It is a good idea to use power words in your CV and cover letters when applying for jobs. Using these words help demonstrate your strengths and reinforce why you are the right fit for the role. Power words also spice up your job descriptions make them appear alive, as opposed to looking flat. Let’s get started by looking at the types of power words, why they are important and how to use them effectively. We will also provide some sample power words at the end of this article.
What Power Words Accomplish
Power words are used for a variety of reasons. Firstly, many recruiters quickly scan through CVs and cover letters due to the high volume they receive. These power words tend to hump off the page, quickly show the recruiter you have the skills and qualifications to do the job successfully. In addition, most CV language is boring and repetitive. Therefore, if your language is the same as everyone else’s, it will be difficult for you to look unique and stand out.
Types of Power Words
1. Action Verbs
One kind of power word is an action verb. This type of verb shows your ability to succeed. These words showcase the skills you have used in previous jobs to achieve success. Examples of these types of verbs include: accomplished, initiated, supervised and designed.
2. Company Values
In order to demonstrate that you are the right fit for the company, you should use key terms that the company uses to describe itself. You may find this language on the company’s ‘about us’ page or in the job listing itself. For example, if the company describes itself as ‘innovative’, you can use this power word in your CV.
3. Popular Skill Words
There are a number of specific skills and qualities that almost every employer is looking for in a job candidate. For example, employers want an employee who is responsible, a strong leader and passionate. So, try to use this sort of language to demonsrate that you have these essential skills.
4. Keywords
Keywords are essentially words from the job listing that relate to particular skills or other various requirements for the job. By embedding them in your CV or cover letter, you will reinforce, at a first glance, that you fit the requirements for the job. Keywords may include: quantified, programmed, designed, taught and trained.
5. Industry Buzzwords and Jargon
Every industry has particular keywords that are important. Knowing and accurately using these keywords shows you have the necessary hard skills.
How to Use Power Words?
You can add power words throughout your CV, including your job descriptions, your CV summary and your cover letter. Remember to vary the words that you use. In other words, avoid repeating the same word, even power words, as it leads to a dull reading experience and will turn off the recruiter. Rather, use a variety of terms that best describe your accomplishments to reveal to employers the scope of your achievements. Lastly, it is essential that you only use the terms you are familiar with.
Power Words for Resumes and Cover Letters
A–D
- Absorb
- Accelerate
- Access
- Accomplish
- Accrue
- Acquire
- Achieve
- Act
- Activate
- Adapt
- Address
- Adjust
- Administer
- Advertise
- Advise
- Advocate
- Affirm
- Aid
- Alert
- Align
- Allocate
- Analyze
- Apply
- Appraise
- Approve
- Arbitrate
- Arranged
- Assemble
- Assess
- Assign
- Assist
- Attain
- Authorize
- Award
- Begin
- Brief
- Bring
- Broadcast
- Budget
- Build
- Business
- Calculate
- Campaign
- Certify
- Chaired
- Change
- Chart
- Check
- Choose
- Clarify
- Classify
- Coach
- Collaborate
- Collate
- Collect
- Combine
- Communicate
- Compare
- Compile
- Complete
- Comply
- Compose
- Compute
- Conclude
- Condense
- Conduct
- Confer
- Configure
- Connect
- Conserve
- Consolidate
- Construct
- Consult
- Contact
- Continue
- Contribute
- Control
- Convert
- Convey
- Convince
- Coordinate
- Correspond
- Counsel
- Critique
- Cultivate
- Customize
- Decide
- Declare
- Decline
- Decorate
- Dedicate
- Define
- Delegate
- Deliver
- Demonstrate
- Depreciate
- Describe
- Design
- Detail Oriented
- Determine
- Develop
- Development
- Devise
- Diagnose
- Direct
- Dispatch
- Dispense
- Distribute
- Document
- Draft
E–H
- Edit
- Educate
- Effective
- Efficient
- Emphasize
- Encourage
- Energized
- Enforce
- Engineer
- Enhance
- Ensure
- Enthusiastic
- Establish
- Estimate
- Evaluate
- Examine
- Execute
- Expand
- Expedite
- Experience
- Explain
- Fabricate
- Facilitate
- Finance
- Focus
- Forecast
- Formulate
- Foster
- Fund
- Furnish
- Gain
- Generate
- Graduate
- Greet
- Guide
- Handle
- Help
- Hire
- Host
I–M
- Identify
- Illustrate
- Implement
- Improve
- Improvise
- Increase
- Index
- Influence
- Inform
- Initiate
- Initiative
- Innovate
- Inspire
- Install
- Institute
- Integrate
- Interact
- Interested
- Interview
- Introduce
- Investigate
- Itemize
- Join
- Justify
- Knowledge
- Launch
- Leadership
- Learn
- Lecture
- Lessen
- Lift
- Link
- Listen
- Maintain
- Manage
- Management
- Manipulate
- Map
- Market
- Measure
- Mediate
- Merge
- Mobilize
- Modify
- Monitor
- Motivate
N–S
- Negotiate
- Observe
- Obtain
- Open
- Operate
- Order
- Organise
- Originate
- Outpace
- Outperform
- Participate
- Passion
- Perform
- Persuade
- Plan
- Practical
- Prepare
- Present
- Prevent
- Printed
- Prioritize
- Priority
- Process
- Produce
- Professional
- Program
- Project
- Promote
- Propose
- Prospect
- Prove
- Provide
- Publicize
- Purchase
- Pursue
- Qualify
- Run
- Rate
- Reach
- Receive
- Recommend
- Reconcile
- Record
- Recruit
- Reduce
- Refer
- Refocus
- Regulate
- Reorganize
- Repair
- Replace
- Report
- Represent
- Research
- Reserve
- Resolve
- Respond
- Responsibility
- Restore
- Restructure
- Results
- Results-Oriented
- Retrieve
- Review
- Revise
- Revitalize
- Schedule
- Screen
- Search
- Secure
- Seize
- Select
- Send
- Serve
- Share
- Showcase
- Simplify
- Skill
- Solution
- Solve
- Sort
- Specialize
- Specify
- Sponsor
- Staff
- Standardize
- Start
- Succeed
- Suggest
- Summarize
- Supervise
- Supply
- Support
- Surpass
- Survey
- Sustain
T–Z
- Target
- Teach
- Team
- Team Player
- Test
- Timely
Track
- Trade
- Train
- Transact
- Transcribe
- Transform
- Translate
- Transmit
- Transport
- Tutor
- Unite
- Update
- Upgrade
- Use
- Utilize
- Validate
- Value
- Verify
- View
- Volunteer
- Watch
- Weigh
- Witness
- Win
- Write
- Yield