Résumé words · Results and numbers
Another word for “Exceeded”
What it is trying to claim: That you went past a target somebody else set.
Why it underperforms
The verb is fine and the target is the problem: a figure you exceeded means nothing until the reader knows how it was set. Exceeding a soft target is not an achievement and everybody who has carried a quota knows targets vary. It is also almost always written without the margin, which is the one number that would settle the question.
Stronger than "Exceeded"
Not ranked. Each is right for one situation, and the situation is the column that matters.
| Word | Use it when |
|---|---|
| Beat | Shorter and more confident. Usually an upgrade. |
| Hit | You met it, and inflating that would be caught. |
| Delivered | The output rather than the comparison. |
| Finished | A ranking or placement is the stronger claim. |
| Sustained | Holding a number over time is harder than one peak. |
A real bullet, fixed
Before
Consistently exceeded quarterly sales targets.
After
Beat quota in 9 of 11 quarters, averaging 118% of a target that rose each year, with the two misses in the quarters after the territory was split.
Naming the misses and the reason makes the nine believable in a way "consistently" never does.
When “Exceeded” is the right word
Where the target was external, published, or set by somebody with an interest in setting it high. Quota, SLA, and regulatory thresholds all qualify.
Common questions
- What can I say instead of "Exceeded" on a résumé?
- Beat, Hit, Delivered, Finished. Pick the one that matches what you actually did, then follow it with a number. Naming the misses and the reason makes the nine believable in a way "consistently" never does.
- Is "Exceeded" bad on a résumé?
- The verb is fine and the target is the problem: a figure you exceeded means nothing until the reader knows how it was set. Exceeding a soft target is not an achievement and everybody who has carried a quota knows targets vary. It is also almost always written without the margin, which is the one number that would settle the question.
- When is it fine to use "Exceeded"?
- Where the target was external, published, or set by somebody with an interest in setting it high. Quota, SLA, and regulatory thresholds all qualify.
Fix these next
- AchievedThat you reached a target.
- DeliveredThat something finished and arrived.
- IncreasedThat a number went up because of something you did.
- SuccessfullyThat the thing you are describing worked.
All 125 words are on the résumé words index. For the verbs grouped by what they claim, read résumé power verbs.
After the résumé
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