Someone once said that you never get a second chance to make a first impression. The resume is your first impression as it pertains to the career world.A resume is the primary job-finding tool. There are several guidelines involved in writing a resume.The first step in resume writing is deciding on a format. No one format is going to be perfect for everyone. The chronological format is based mainly on your employment history. This format places more attention on your previous work duties, responsibilities and progression. Many employers prefer a traditional format such as this one; however, this type of resume may not be appropriate for people just starting or changing their careers. This type of resume is also not a good idea for people who have gaps in employment and people with unusually brief employment periods.The functional format focuses on your skills, knowledge and accomplishments. This format provides an opportunity to establish skill level, which is very good for individuals starting or changing a career. In addition, you can give skill highlights not only from paid positions, but also from other experiences such as volunteer work. The drawback to this type of resume is that it does not show the standard presentation of personal strengths due to previous job experience for directly qualified candidates. Also, most employers are interested in time anchors. This resume is suggested for people that do not have direct experience in their career field.The combination format is normally best for everyone because it takes the best of both resumes and fuses them into one.Once you have chosen the format type, the next step is to organize your resume. Good resumes have five essential parts, which are a clear objective, highlights of qualifications, relevant skills and experiences, chronological work history and relevant education and training.Objectives need to be short and to the point, but still need to answer a few simple questions. An objective should tell the employer what you want to do, who you want to do it with, where you want to do it and at what level of responsibility.It is a good idea to keep a master list of your work history so that when you decide to apply for a job, you can quickly and easily determine which jobs are relevant and which are not. Once you determine relevancy, list the jobs in chronological order, beginning with the most recent position.The next step is assembling your resume. Type a draft copy using all five essential parts. Go through and delete anything unrelated to your objective. Remember to try and keep your resume to one page.A resume cannot necessarily get you a job, but it can be the deciding factor in getting an interview. Without the interview, you cannot get the job.