But… that doesn’t matter.
Here’s the truth no one tells you:
The free ATS tools that give scores out of 100...
They don't mean anything.
Every company, every recruiter, every hiring manager configures their own ATS differently.
In other words, there is no universal ATS system.
So stop obsessing over ATS scores.
They have no meaning in the real world.
But here’s what does have meaning:
𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗔𝗦𝗜𝗖𝗦 𝗥𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧.
As Charlie Munger says:
"𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙩. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙫 𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙗𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙪𝙥𝙞𝙙."
So if you do just the basics, you will already be 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝟵𝟬% 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀
So let’s break it down. Here’s why this resume works:
1. 𝗦𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲, 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁
Easy to scan. No cognitive overload. No guessing where to look.
2. 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁
Dates right aligned, consistent readable font, spacing, alignment — all clean and tight. Makes it feel polished and easy on the eye.
3. 𝗕𝘂𝗹𝗹𝗲𝘁 𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲 “𝗪𝗵𝘆 → 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 → 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁” 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁
This tells a story. It shows how you think, how you solve problems, and what impact your work created.
4. 𝗕𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗽
Because recruiters scan top to bottom, left to right — in an “F” pattern.
5. 𝗢𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀. 𝗗𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼 𝗻𝘀
Saves space. Adds real context. Doesn't feel like keyword stuffing.
6. 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝗱𝗲 𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀
Not for the sake of it. Talk about real-world problems and real world impact.
In the below template, I show how each of these simple, basic, but effective tricks are incorporated.
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👇 And if you want all the secrets to write a winning resume check out the Resume Booster.
It costs only $7. But it gives you everything you need to create a resume that gets shortlists:
• AI prompts to make it stronger
• Real templates you can copy paste
• Checklists to ensure basics are solid
• Exact process to create impactful bullet points
• Real examples of before and after transformation
(Link in comments.)
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