VALUE YOUR FRIEND'S OPINION . . . BUT NOT TOO MUCH
​Throughout my career, I have had many clients show off my work to their best friends.  More often than not, this ends in a positive manner, as majority of these friends will confirm how much more effective the new resume is.  There are always exceptions, though!  I want to share a recent example.

Six weeks ago, I completed a sales resume for a mid-level professional. I showcased his sales achievements and customized the resume and cover letter directly toward the provided job postings that were forwarded to me.  This, in my humble opinion, was a highly effective resume; however, the client's best friend reviewed it and allegedly "tore it apart."   Those were the exact words from my client, although, no specific examples were given.  The client indicated that his friend decided to take it upon himself to "correct" the resume that I had created.  The client was apparently content with his friend's revisions, but wanted to send me the new version so I could have a quick look and possibly proofread it for him.  I agreed to look it over . . . what a mess!  When I opened the PDF attachment of my client's "corrected" resume, I was in complete shock.  The following is only a partial list of the issues and errors found on the new resume:

-resume was extended from 2 full pages to 2 full pages and 1 paragraph
-a generic header was created, which contained the wrong phone number for the client
-many spelling issues were located, including one instance where "pubic" was written instead of "public"
-power verbs and phrases were replaced by soft and weak verbiage, including the following:
"Talked to customers and made new sales everyday"
"Made sure that customers were happy with store products."
"Tried to resolve all co-worker problems in a fast manner."

...those are just three of the sentences with WEAK verbiage.  This is the verbiage of a 14-year old's resume, not a mid-level professional.  This resume would be frowned upon by over 95% of prospective employers.

Conclusion:
Think twice before following your friend's advice on your new resume.  If in doubt, please show your resume to 3 or 4 other friends and/or family members.  By no means am I the "God of Resume Writing," but I do know more than the average Joe!  Please trust my judgement, folks! You won't be sorry!

CPRW STATUS
When looking for a résumé writer, selecting a Certified Professional Résumé Writer (CPRW) is the way to go.  With this being said, you need to verify that your writer holds ACTIVE CPRW status--many writers do not.  To verify that your prospective résumé writer holds active status as a Certified Professional Résumé Writer, log on to the site for the Professional Association of Résumé Writers (PARW).  Use the link below to search for a specific writer -- if the writer's name does not show up on this site, then you may want to consider selecting a different résumé writer.
http://www.parw.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?h=1