How would a business owner, all their life, write a resume to become an employee?

jjj: How would a business owner, all their life, write a resume to become an employee?
A friend of mine needs a job. He has been a business owner all his life, but due to the economy being so bad, he sold his business. Now he wants to work for someone, but doesn’t know how to write a resume as a business owner. Is it the same as writing a resume if you worked for a companies?
Would it be negative for the employer to know that you owned a business (for many years)? Would they think he is over-qualified?

Answers and Views:

Answer by geiniusbobiknow
Have him go to a professional resume writer, or don’t admit to being an owner, just an employee of the former company that happened to have the same name and be humble, not bitter.

Answer by spanner
It should be achievement-oriented. It should elaborate on specific achievements for which he is responsible while operating his own business. It also should outline some of the skills, both managerial and manual, that he acquired during the course of his work in his business, because they may be transferable.

It should remain within the guidelines of a standard resume in terms of length and information. Certain categories concerning personal information and background would remain the same. He would maybe benefit from using a lot of business references who do not present a threat as rivals.

I think your friend should visit his local human resources office and ask whether any sample resumes are available for reference. I have found one on the Internet, but I think I have seen better sample resumes for individuals who have remained in the same position for a number of years.

As well, he might benefit from looking at different links on the web site shown above.

Having owned and operated his own business would not necessarily be a negative factor. I think it is more likely to be a positive influence, because it generally seems to be an indicator that he is well-motivated. How much of an influence it would be could depend on the type of job he is seeking and on the individual personalities involved. Whether he is over-qualified for a job would depend on the position under consideration.