Exclusive MyPerfectResume analysis shows resume writing peaks midweek, while Thanksgiving and other holidays bring activity to a halt.
GUAYNABO, Puerto Rico, Nov. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- For the first time, resume writing has been tracked as a time series, revealing a hidden truth about American workers: most update their resumes during the workweek, not during their personal time. New research from leading resume builder MyPerfectResume® finds that resume creation spikes on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and drops sharply on weekends and holidays.
The Resume Rhythm Indicator, based on 11 million resumes created by employed U.S. workers between July 2022 and July 2025, offers a data-driven look at when people focus on their careers. Unlike surveys or job postings, resumes are private and rarely studied at scale. MyPerfectResume's exclusive access makes this the first dataset of its kind, providing a direct window into career behavior.
"There is no tradition of studying resumes in this way because no one else has access to the data," said Dr. David Nordfors, lead research scientist at MyPerfectResume. "We can now see how work itself shapes when people think about changing jobs, and it turns out that happens most often during the workweek."
The Normal Rhythm: Resumes Are a Weekday Activity
Outside of holidays, resume writing follows a remarkably consistent weekly cycle:
- Tuesdays and Wednesdays: Peak activity, 25 to 26 percent above average.
- Fridays: Activity starts to decline.
- Saturdays: The lowest point of the week, 41 percent below average.
- Sundays: Partial recovery, but still far below weekday levels.
Employed Americans treat resume writing like work itself. Midweek is designated as "career focus time," while weekends are reserved for rest, family, and recovery.
When Holidays Disrupt the Cycle
Holidays stand out as the only true "hard stops" for resume writing. Using a new Holiday Impact Coefficient, researchers measured how much each holiday suppresses activity compared to normal weekdays.
Major Suppression
- Thanksgiving Day: Resume activity drops more than 82 percent, the single largest decline of any day of the year.
- Christmas Day and Independence Day: Each cuts activity by more than half.
- New Year's Day: Strong declines, depending on the weekday placement.
Moderate Suppression
- Memorial Day and Labor Day: Noticeable but more minor drops.
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth: Mild reductions in activity.
- Veterans Day and Columbus Day: Minimal effects, indicating that less-observed holidays have a minimal impact on career focus.
The results show that while weekends slow down resume writing, holidays stop it entirely, especially those with deep cultural significance like Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Occupation Lens: Who Writes Resumes at Work
Comparing weekday and holiday patterns across industries highlights clear differences:
- Office and Administrative Support: Resume activity falls to just one-tenth of normal levels on Thanksgiving.
- Healthcare Practitioners: Drop only to one-fifth, reflecting continuous work schedules that include weekends and holidays.
Because many healthcare professionals work non-traditional hours, their resumes tend to be more evenly distributed. This reinforces the conclusion that most employed workers update their resumes while at work.
A First-of-Its-Kind Analysis
The Resume Rhythm Indicator opens a new frontier for understanding worker behavior. By treating resume creation as a continuous time series, MyPerfectResume offers unique insights into how Americans engage with their careers, not just when they search for jobs.
To view the full report, please visit https://www.myperfectresume.com/career-center/careers/basics/resume-rhythm-indicator or contact Nathan Barber at [email protected].
Methodology
The Resume Rhythm Indicator analyzed 11 million anonymized resumes created by employed U.S. workers between July 2022 and July 2025. By treating resumes as a continuous time series, researchers identified weekly cycles and isolated anomalies tied to cultural or seasonal events.
About MyPerfectResume
MyPerfectResume Resume Builder with professional templates is designed to help job seekers elevate their careers. The easy-to-use platform was created to eliminate the hassle of resume writing, offering professionally written examples, free expert tips, step-by-step guidance to make a resume, and valuable interview advice to create an outstanding job application effortlessly. Since 2013, MyPerfectResume's resume builder has helped more than 15 million job seekers create their perfect resumes online. Their comprehensive employment surveys have been featured in Forbes, Yahoo! Finance, CNBC, Newsweek, USA Today, BBC, Workable, and more. Stay connected with MyPerfectResume's latest Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, X and Pinterest updates.
Media Contact:
Nathan Barber, MyPerfectResume, 1-888-873-3488, [email protected], https://www.myperfectresume.com/
SOURCE MyPerfectResume
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