𝙄𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨…
You’re at brunch with a neighbor.
You scan the menu:
Avocado toast.
Breakfast burrito.
Eggs benedict.
French toast.
Parfait…
At the bottom:
Chicken and waffles.
Steak and eggs.
A few minutes later, the waiter comes back.
What do you remember?
The first items.
And the last ones.
Everything in the middle?
Gone.
🧠 That’s the Serial Position Effect.
Your brain remembers:
• The beginning (primacy bias)
• The end (recency bias)
The middle?
Basically background noise.
Now let’s talk about your job search.
Because the same thing is happening.
Imagine this…
A recruiter opens your resume.
They scan for 6–8 seconds.
What do they actually see?
Top third:
Your headline
Your summary
Your positioning
Bottom:
Your most recent role
Your latest impact
The middle?
Blur.
And here’s the problem…
Most jobseekers:
• Bury their value in bullet #4
• Hide impact halfway down the page
• Lead with generic summaries
• Close with nothing memorable
So even if the resume is “good”…
It’s not remembered.
MJW Takeaway:
Your resume isn’t read.
It’s experienced in flashes.
If you don’t win:
👉 The first impression
👉 The last impression
You don’t win the interview.
What this means for you:
Open with:
A clear, confident value statement
(“Here’s why I matter.”)
Close with:
Results that hit
(“Here’s what I’ve done.”)
And accept this truth:
The middle of your resume?
It’s elevator music.
The candidates getting interviews aren’t always more qualified.
They’re just more strategically positioned.
And once you see this…
You can’t unsee it.
If you’d like, we can hop on a quick call and I can walk you through how I can help. You can book a chat with Matt at 👉 https://calendly.com/mjwcareers and get you some Matt Magic! (my clients’ words, not mine).
+ I offer discounted resume update and resume tailor solutions to repeat clients! Come join my roster and start gaining some perks!
Also, check out our resume writing packages here.
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