Your job objective is usually the first item of substance on your resume, appearing right under your name and contact information. Is yours getting the job done, or is it wasted space?

If you’re like most jobseekers, it’s wasted space. Often, job objectives are so vague that they add no value whatsoever to your resume. Recruiters can recite by heart the standard resume opening. It goes something like this:

Objective: To obtain a challenging and rewarding position in a growing company where my present knowledge and skills contribute daily to a successful operation and where opportunities exist for continued growth.

What’s wrong with this message? For one, it doesn’t really tell us anything more than “I want a good job.” Who doesn’t? But there’s another problem with this kind of objective: it’s all about you. If we go back to one of the basic principles of resume writing, the resume should serves as a marketing document. And the most effective marketing is all about the buyer, not the seller. So to successfully market yourself, your resume should not discuss what you want, but rather what a potential employer needs. A good objective will state what kind of position you’re looking for and give a recruiter some idea of why they should keep reading your resume. Here’s a simple example of a strong opening:

Objective: To obtain an entry-level sales position which allows me to use my strong organizational and interpersonal skills to achieve and exceed revenue goals and distribution objectives.

This statement keys in on a job target and manages to address some of what the company would be seeking in an entry level candidate. Considering many human resource professionals examine resumes for only a few seconds, make sure your objective statement provides enticing reasons to keep reading and clearly articulates the fact you meet the major requirements outlined in the job posting.

A strong Objective is essential to making your resume stand out. Use the space at the top of the page wisely, and you’ll increase your chances of getting noticed.