I recently learned to row. After a few lessons in a single scull, I had the opportunity to row in an 8-person boat.

There’s nothing more humbling than joining an experienced crew and trying to match my movements with theirs. When we rowed in unison, we were stable, smooth, and efficient. But if one of us was out of sync (🙋🏼‍♀️), the rhythm was disrupted, the boat slowed down, and we all wobbled.

The last thing I wanted was to be that person in the boat who messed up the flow. Let’s just say my fellow rowers were kind.

Just as rowers have to synchronize their strokes to get that elegant sweep of blades, resume writers follow one grammatical pattern when creating a list—whether within a sentence or bulleted list. It’s how we ensure rhythm, balance, and clarity.

Most importantly, it helps our reader keep track of our achievements.

How to Ensure Parallel Bullets

An example of where that parallel structure can get disrupted is in the branding section at the top of your resume.

Take a look at the following bullets from a technical sales leader’s resume and see if you notice what’s “off.”

• Accomplished mid-market and small business pre-sales leader
• In-demand keynote speaker and technical sales expert
• Recognized for transforming and mobilizing technical teams

Yep. The last bullet just doesn’t belong, since it starts with a verb rather than a noun phrase.

💡 Let’s try this, instead:

• Accomplished mid-market and small business pre-sales leader
• In-demand keynote speaker and technical sales expert
• Builder of high-performing teams

Why We Care

Can the non-parallel bullet be understood just as easily as my corrected version?

Arguably, yes.

But a parallel structure leads to uniformity throughout the section, which in turn results in clarity and a smooth read. And a smooth read makes for a happy reader…🤗

By the way, there are other ways to call out your accomplishments in the branding section; you can talk about specific achievements rather than your broader contributions, as I did in the example above.

But again…either start with a strong verb (Steered the organization through multiple changes) or a noun (Winner of 10 industry awards). Just be sure to stick with one grammatical form.

How to Ensure Parallel Structure Within a Sentence

Don’t forget to follow this rule within a sentence.

Here’s an example where I see clients struggle:

❌ Incorrect: Increased revenue, profits, and scaled for growth.

If you start a series with one verb, don’t introduce a new verb unless…

You use a new verb for every series item, as in:

👌 Grew revenue, increased profits, and scaled for growth.

Or…

The new verb is part of a new clause:

👌 Increased revenue and profits while scaling for growth.

If you call out your superior communication skills in your resume, cover letter, or LinkedIn profile, you never want to create doubt in the mind of your reader—who may well be one of those scary grammarians 😱. Don’t get caught with this common mistake.

Even if they aren’t sure what the exact error is, the hiring manager may feel it if something’s off.

They’re also less likely to be as forgiving as my teammates.

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