How to tailor your resume without lying
By the RizzWorks team · Updated · 6 min read
Tailoring a resume doesn’t mean inventing a new person for every job. It means choosing which true things to put first, and describing them in the employer’s language.
CareerOneStop puts it plainly when it talks about using AI: make sure your finished resume “includes only true information about you,” because AI can generate great-sounding descriptions that exaggerate or falsify your experience. (CareerOneStop: Resumes)
Step 1: Split the posting into must-haves and nice-to-haves
Read the job post and make two lists:
- Must-haves: usually under “Requirements”, “Minimum qualifications”, or phrased as “you have…”.
- Nice-to-haves: “preferred”, “bonus”, “plus”.
Your tailored resume should make every must-have you actually meet easy to find.
Step 2: Map each requirement to proof
For each must-have, find a real bullet from your history that shows it. If you don’t have one yet, ask yourself:
- Did I do this in a past job, volunteer role, school project or side project?
- Did I do something close to it that I can describe honestly?
If the answer is no, leave it out. A gap is better than a claim you can’t back up in an interview.
Step 3: Reword, don’t invent
Good tailoring changes words and order, not facts:
| OK | Not OK |
|---|---|
| “Coordinated vendor schedules” → “Managed vendor relationships for 3 suppliers” (if true) | Adding a tool you’ve never used |
| Moving your most relevant job’s bullets to the top | Changing your job title |
| Using the posting’s term for a skill you have | Inflating numbers or dates |
Step 4: Put the best match first
Reorder bullets so the most relevant ones lead each job. Update your summary to name the role and two or three of your strongest matching skills.
Step 5: Read it out loud
If a line would make you uncomfortable explaining it in an interview, rewrite it.
How RizzWorks helps
The RizzWorks coach suggests changes as cards you accept, reject or edit, using only your career data. If it needs a detail, it asks you rather than making one up.
Related: Keywords vs. keyword stuffing.