O.K. I'll admit it's true: Writing a résumé is about as exciting as watching paint dry. So I'm not going to try and sell you on the résumé's entertainment value. Instead, I hope this article will inspire you to think about the career value of a winning résumé. Time spent on developing a well-crafted résumé has the same effect on job opportunities that practicing does on your performance. Fortunately, you don't need to spend years writing your résumé—but a few drafts over the course of a couple of weeks can make the difference between an invitation to a mediocre opportunity, and the opportunity of a lifetime. Winning résumés open doors. résumés written in the wee hours of the morning usually find their way into an employer's recycling bin.

Here are my top five guidelines to writing a résumé that will rocket you past the screening stage and into the audition or interview.

Résumés are not "one-size-fits-all." If I had a dollar for every person who sent a performing résumé for a teaching or administrative position, I could retire tomorrow. Performing résumés

The best résumés give a feeling that each professional engagement build's on the previous one.

are for performing opportunities only. The same applies to résumés that are directed toward teaching positions. Ideally, you should have two or three résumés that you are using for different career objectives.

Each of the performing disciplines—dance, drama, and music—has a preferred résumé format, a certain way of organizing your information. An actor's résumé presents information differently from that of an oboist. The résumé templates that are available on standard word-processing programs—like Microsoft Word—are usually incorrect for performing résumés. You can learn about the appropriate format for your discipline by visiting the Office of Career Development in Room 476.

Résumés must "read" fast. Potential employers (this includes conductors, presenters, and directors) rarely spend time poring over each résumé that passes over their desks. Résumés that are formatted to convey the most important information in a matter of seconds stand a greater chance of making it to the follow-up pile than those requiring the reader to navigate a maze of unorganized material. Formatting is the key. Indents, columns, bullets, and italics are some of the tools that you can use to promote easy reading.

A common mistake students (and many professionals) make is sending everything including the kitchen sink to a potential agent, manager, or employer. They mail off every press clipping, demo tape, program, photo, and letter of recommendation they have ever accumulated. Suffice it to say that these packages generally receive a cursory glance before landing in the recycling bin. Save your precious memorabilia—and invest your time in crafting a résumé that highlights your most salient experiences and accomplishments without the need for accompanying clutter.

The best résumés give a feeling that each professional engagement or work experience builds on the previous one. These résumés project a sense that something is happening. (Alas, they are few and far between; when I come across one, I usually save it.) The irony is that this feeling of "something happening" doesn't necessarily come from a big debut somewhere, but more often from a progression of engagements. Every engagement seems to be networked with others, conveying the sense that this person is clearly able to capitalize on every opportunity.

How do you write a résumé that projects a sense of something happening? This might be difficult for a student with little professional experience. In such a case, you would do well to consider performance opportunities that have "résumé value." A good manager or agent will be aware of résumé value and encourage a young artist to consider certain engagements specifically for this purpose. Before you turn down an interesting opportunity because it is somewhat inconvenient or doesn't pay anything, put it to the "résumé value" test. Ask yourself, if this were to appear on my résumé, would it foster or hinder that "something-is-happening" feeling? If you apply this line of thinking, you will undoubtedly develop a powerful résumé that opens doors and invites interest.

For more guidance on résumés (or other career development topics), please visit the Office of Career Development.

Please e-mail any comments, questions, or ideas for future columns to careerfile@juilliard.edu.

Derek Mithaug is Juilliard's director of careeer development and an alumnus of the School.