Your resume has about six seconds to grab the attention of an airline recruiter. That’s the average length of time a hiring manager will take to scan your resume or CV and decide if they want to know more. Once you’ve got the design of your resume on point and ATS proof you need to focus on its content.
But with just six seconds to make an impression and only a limited amount of space to make it you need to choose every word carefully. A great place to start is a ‘Key Skills’ section near the top of your resume but what about when the recruiter looks over the rest of your cabin crew resume?
This is where ‘action verbs’ come in.
A verb is a word that describes an action – It’s normally the key word in a sentence that gives the reader a sense of what is happening. Words such as run, make, do and jump are all examples of verbs.
Okay, so that’s enough of the English grammar lesson. The key point is that every bullet point in the ‘work experience’ section of your resume should start with a verb.
So what’s an ‘action verb’? It’s a pumped up verb. Forget bland, boring verbs that do an okay job at describing what you did but little else. An action verb packs a punch and begs the recruiter to want to read on, luring them in to find out more about you. Actions verbs give a really good sense of your achievements, helping you cut out other unnecessary words that will bloat out your resume.
How Should They Be Used?
The first thing to note is that just because you have a list of actions verbs, it doesn’t mean you have to use every single one! Carefully choose action verbs that will work in the context that you want to use them.
If an action verb simply doesn’t work in one sentence, don’t worry, just leave it out. A recruiter will be far more impressed if you make your resume easy to read and don’t end up baffling them with inappropriate verbs. If it doesn’t work don’t try to crowbar it in.
Wherever possible try to use the action verb as the very first word in each bullet point.
Is it Worth the Effort?
Actions verbs will help make your resume stand out – in the right way. They are powerful, descriptive words that will present your achievements in the best possible way.
One of the best reasons for using actions verbs is that they make you focus on the key skills that airline cabin crew recruiters are looking for. There’s a lot more detail on the top cabin crew qualities here, but in brief, you’ll want to focus on these skills:
- Customer Service
- Team Work
- Problem Solving
- Communication Skills
The Best Qualities to Highlight in Your Cabin Crew Application Resume
By using an action verb at the start of each bullet point you’ll stay laser focused on demonstrating the cabin crew qualities.
Here’s a few example of action verbs for some of the top cabin crew qualities:
Customer Service Skills
- Advocated
- Aided
- Assisted
- Displayed
- Enabled
- Enhanced
- Explained
- Handled
- Helped
- Listened
- Resolved
- Mediated
- Presented
Team Work
- Coached
- Collaborated
- Coordinated
- Discussed
- Encouraged
- Guided
- Helped
- Inspired
- Involved
- Joined
- Motivated
- Suggested
- Participated
- Trained
- Volunteered
Problem Solving
- Acted
- Adapted
- Arranged
- Clarified
- Created
- Devised
- Formulated
- Organized
- Planned
Communication Skills
- Consulted
- Contacted
- Coordinated
- Developed
- Discussed
- Explained
- Involved
- Listened
- Organized
- Promoted
- Participated
- Responded
Action verbs are also a really great way to showcase your accomplishments and clearly highlight that you are an achiever, not just a doer!
Achievements
- Achieved
- Attained
- Completed
- Created
- Developed
- Exceeded
- Established
- Increased
- Improved
- surpassed
- Won
- Produced
- Reached
- Won
