I was recently working with a CFO client and after sending his the first draft of his executive resume, he responded with a long list of questions regarding the content. He was really concerned that I had omitted some facts about his educational and career background and was worried that it could hurt his prospects.

I would safely say that one of the hardest aspect of developing an executive resume is knowing when and what to let go.

Do any of these scenarios sound like you?

-- You want to include your college activities and GPA even though you earned a college degree more than 20 years ago

-- You are targeting CEO-type positions, but have included detailed descriptions on internships you held during college

-- You want to transition into a non-profit executive role, but have prominently listed your real estate license, social work degree and financial analyst certification.

-- Your goal is to move away from engineering positions and start building your career in management, but your resume outlines every engineering project you held since high school.

Well, for starters, I certainly hope that none of you fit into the above scenarios...however, I am confident that your brain is starting to tick and you are getting my point. Executive resumes are strategic marketing tools that must effectively "sell" you to employers.

Therefore, you need to identify the most impressive and RELEVANT aspects of your career background to highlight and emphasize on your executive resume. In reality, a global company is not going to be too concerned about whether their next CEO made the Dean's list in college, instead they want to hear specific examples about his/her achievements in strategic planning, P&L management, revenue growth, cost reduction and more.

So release any emotional attachment to your experience, educational credentials, certifications, licenses and volunteer activities. Make sure that you are maximizing your resume space on leadership tasks, position descriptions, career-defining achievements and any other supporting information that would qualify you as the ideal candidate. Just think strategic document and remember, relevant, relevant, relevant.