Top 7 Resumé Mistakes

 

Is your résumé working for you or against you? In this post, I’ll cover the top seven resumé mistakes so it has a fighting chance of working FOR you.

Executive recruiters say you’d be surprised at how many candidates leave out important facts, such as the names and locations of companies where they’ve worked, or include way too much information, like Soccer Coach of the Year!

Don’t Make These Resumé Mistakes

1. No Career Summary/Introductory Statement

Most hiring companies don’t have time to match unspecified resumés to open positions, so lead off with a career summary or introductory statement that makes it clear what type of position you are seeking and why you are qualified for the job.

2. Lack of Keywords & Phrases

To pass through a company’s applicant tracking software, your resumé must contain the keywords and phrases it is screening for. These words are not the verbs stressed in paper resumés, but nouns—such as job titles and technical skills.

To find out what keywords you should be using, read the job posting or obtain the actual job description. You also may want to check out the book 2,500 Keywords to Get You Hired by Jay Block and Michael Betrus, which lists critical keywords for each career and shows examples of how to use them in your résumé.

3. No Evidence of Your Experience

Your resumé should not merely list the jobs you’ve held—it should provide specific examples of how you achieved success. Resumé-writing professionals recommend using the PARS formula—describe a Problem, the Action you took, the Results you achieved, and the Skills you applied.

4. Use of Personal Pronouns & Articles

With just two pages to sell yourself, make each word count. Write in a telegraphic style, eliminating all personal pronouns and articles like “the,” “a” and “an.” Removing the “I,” “me” and “my” from your resumé not only frees up space, but creates a subliminal perception of objectivity.

5. Irrelevant Information

Irrelevant information keeps the reader from seeing your selling points. Weigh each portion of your experience from the hiring company’s perspective to decide what to include and what to emphasize.

For example, if you’re applying for an engineering position, don’t devote a whole paragraph to your job as a camp counselor unless the position has elements that are transferable to the engineering job.

And, never include information about your marital status, personal situation, hobbies or interests unless they are relevant to the job for which you’re applying.

Remember that the purpose of your resumé is to communicate your experiences and accomplishments as they relate to an open position and to obtain a job interview. Because each situation is different, you should tailor your résumé to each opportunity.

6. Poor Formatting

Unless you have no work experience or have held a number of different jobs in a short amount of time, a chronological resumé is the most effective. That means using the following order:

Header: Name, address, e-mail address and phone number

Career Summary: Profiling the scope of your experience and skills

Employment History: Reverse chronological order and emphasizing achievements

Education & additional training: Degree, college (without year of graduation)

7. Typos & Misspelled Words

From the would-be administrative assistant who claimed to be a “rabid typist” to the executive who boasted that he was “instrumental in ruining the entire operation,” misspellings communicate that you have poor writing skills or a lackadaisical attitude.

Proofread your resumé carefully and have several friends and family members read it as well.

Lastly, when in doubt, have a resumé writer or career coach evaluate your resume and pay to have it done professionally. It will be money well spent!

Good Hunting!