The Worst Resume Advice

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A couple of years ago, I wrote The 10 Worst Resume Suggestions You Ever Received. It is time to update that list with a few more examples of the world’s worst resume advice for job hunters.

  1. Do not say anything that sounds like bragging. Then hope that companies will be awed by your lack of success, progress, and confidence.
  2. Fill your resume with acronyms so that hiring managers and recruiters are struck dumb with admiration. They will also feel dumb—hiring managers and recruiters do not actually understand every acronym used by every specialty in every company in the world.
  3. Do not tie yourself down to a specific job title. Leave it to hiring managers to figure out where you might fit in their company; they have nothing better to do.
  4. Do not read job postings or advertisements to get a handle on what companies are looking for. If you pile on enough achievements and skills, you are bound to be qualified for something somewhere, right?
  5. Be sure to fill social media with your complaints and rants about your current job. Hold on to your belief that constant complainers are high on everyone’s list of best employees or that hiring managers never consult social media.
  6. Never network; ignore your friends, coworkers, family, and peers when you are job hunting. Stick to the computer and hope that the perfect job finds you.
  7. Do not proofread. Trust your online grammar and spelling checkers, which never make mistakes, like accepting fiancé when you meant to write finance.
  8. Lather on the adjectives. Who cares what you actually have accomplished as long as it was “best in class” or “unparalleled” or “state of the art” or “exceptional”?
  9. Do not check your contact information. Trust that you will never transpose a number, write different email addresses on different pages, or abbreviate your state the wrong way.
  10. Refuse to talk with a professional resume writer. What do professionals know anyway?

At Robin’s Resumes®, I am dedicated as always to steering job hunters away from bad advice.

Resumes for Jobs in Foreign Countries

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If you want to live and work at a foreign location—whether outside the United States for a U.S. citizen or within the United States for a citizen of another country—your resume has to meet certain special criteria.

You will want the hiring manager or recruiter to know that you are familiar with the language of the country where you want to work. It is also important to mention if you have citizenship or dual citizenship in that country, if you have lived (or visited) there previously and if you have educational degrees that are equivalent to those in the foreign country.

If you use a professional resume writer, the writer should be a native speaker in the country where you want to work. Even small mistakes in spelling (for example, between American and British English), grammar or cultural references may undermine your resume.

Different countries have different standards for resumes; may prefer CVs, which are more detailed. Some require your social security or passport number; some (like the U.S.) do not want it. Some expect a photo; some do not. Make sure you understand the expected format and content.

Make it easy for foreign companies to contact you. A LinkedIn account and a Skype account are very helpful additions to email and phone.

Different countries have different ideas about appropriate behavior. Religious views about foods or beverages, comfort with direct eye contact or with touching between men and women, the type of clothing considered professional and many other social norms vary greatly. Make sure your photos and comments on social media do not violate the sensibilities of your target country.

You will face different visa, driving permit and work permit requirements in foreign countries. Familiarize yourself with those requirements before you start your job search to make sure you can meet them in a timely fashion if you are offered an interview or job.

Robin’s Resumes® has helped many foreign job seekers find work in the United States. Contact us today.

Writing Advice from Robin’s Resumes®

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Sometimes I see a resume in which the job seeker has followed every piece of advice I ever gave on writing a resume and it is still not ready to send out.

The contact information is clear and professional, the opening profile explains the job applicant’s value to the company and the resume is targeted for the companies and industry the job seeker is interested in.

So what’s wrong?

Unfortunately, the one item that sinks many resumes is poor writing. At Robin’s Resumes®, you have a skilled, certified, professional resume writer working on your resume. While all my skills, certifications, and years of experience are important, the word “writer” is the one word that we are focusing on today.

You cannot make spelling and grammatical mistakes on your resume. Hiring managers and recruiters will often cast a resume aside for those mistakes without ever looking at an applicant’s actual qualifications. Those mistakes include the misuse of commas and apostrophes; misspellings (“complementary” instead of “complimentary” or “advise” instead of “advice”); subjects and verbs that do not agree (online grammar checkers are notorious for making mistakes with plural and singular verbs); and similar errors. Two letter words (of, at, to, in) are often missing and easily overlooked because you expect to see them when you read. Over-capitalization is a bad habit that I mostly blame on technology, where every new product or service (Cloud vs. cloud; Web site vs. website) starts out life with a capital letter.

Beyond grammar and spelling—involving rule you probably have not thought about since fifth grade—good writing also means using interesting verbs to capture attention; explaining difficult concepts in a way that hiring managers and recruiters can understand even if they lack the needed financial, technical, or business background; emphasizing the right accomplishments and skills; creating flow; and on and on. Good writing means communicating your value concisely, accurately, and passionately, when “concise” often means “in one sentence or less.”

If writing is not your strong suit, take heart—you have Robin’s Resumes® in your corner. Contact us today.

What Makes a Resume Writer Professional?

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The best resume ever achieves two goals. First and foremost, it results in an interview. Second, it prepares you to ace that interview by reminding you of all you have achieved during your career and why you are a great fit for the position.

As a professional resume writer, my goal is to have every resume result in an interview and give a job seeker confidence and pride in his or her accomplishments, skills, and education. How do I work toward that goal?

  • By not simply taking a job seeker’s word for what they have achieved. I ask questions that often elicit facts that the job seeker overlooked and achievements that the job seeker downplayed—important information that any recruiter or hiring manager wants to know and important information for the job seeker to share during the interview.
  • By making sure that all the information in the resume supports the specific job search. Often, job seekers, eager for any job, will send out a resume that is so generic or broad that it is suitable for no job. Or the job seeker will describe responsibilities (“sold shoes”) instead of accomplishments (“sold 25 pairs of shoes daily, 10% over average sales for other sales associates”); or will waste space on irrelevant information. With a targeted resume, job seekers need not struggle to recall their greatest successes; how they overcame a challenge; or why they are a great fit for this company.
  • By organizing information to give the strongest initial impression: at the first glance a hiring manager or recruiter knows that this person has what it takes to succeed at the company and the job. Moreover, the right keywords are taken from the job posting or advertisement so that an applicant tracking system pulls that resume as a match for the job requirements. Finally, because those keywords are in the resume, the job applicant knows what words the interviewer is hoping to hear.
  • By making sure that the job seeker’s online presence and resume support each other. Few things are more embarrassing at an interview than having to explain contradictions between a resume and an outdated online profile (for example, on Pinterest or LinkedIn) or worse yet to explain away an online rant or photo that raises questions.
  • By advising job seekers through this blog, webinars, and articles to give themselves credit for what they have achieved and to seek help when their job search bogs down. As a Certified Job and Career Transition Coach and as a Master Career Director (MCD), as well as a professionally certified resume writer, I keep up with the latest trends in both resumes and the job market, to give you a resume that meets the expectations of today’s recruiters and hiring managers.

A resume written by a professional resume writer advances a job seeker through to the interview and helps ensure that the interview goes smoothly. Contact me today for the professional resume writing assistance that you need.

What a Professional Resume Writer Does

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If TV had a reality show about professional resume writers, you might expect that the entire show would consist of a clacking keyboard. In truth, though, professional resume writing involves a lot more. Here’s how my workweek usually goes. 

First are the phone conversations with clients, where they ask about my services, I explain how the resume writing process works and we discuss fees. Many job seekers who call me don’t have a resume. Many more have a resume that is out of date or has failed to bring them any interviews or interest from hiring managers and recruiters. I spend time finding out about their experience, accomplishments, and skills and any information they may have overlooked that would boost their resume’s power. 

Second, I maintain online and personal contact with recruiters and hiring managers. I need to know what they are looking for; how applicant tracking systems are transforming their search for viable candidates; and how new laws affect their recruiting and hiring practices. Keeping up with industry and government standards and expectations for resumes is an important part of a professional resume writer’s job. 

Third is the actual resume writing, which involves finding the most accurate, passionate, clear description of what a job applicant offers to companies. In a few seconds, the resume must capture the attention of a hiring manager or recruiter and then give them the information they are looking for in their ideal candidate. Every resume must be formatted to pass muster with both applicant tracking systems and human hiring managers; it must also be checked for correct spelling, grammar, and accuracy. 

Fourth, my workweek includes obligations to my fellow resume writers as a mentor. I belong to the four top professional organizations for resume writers and career coaches. I am also a speaker at national and local meetings of resume writers and a judge at industry events. With more than fourteen years of resume writing experience plus awards and honors from numerous industry organizations, I believe I can feel justified in calling myself a professional resume writer. 

When a job search is stalled, a realistic way to start reviving it is with a phone call or email to a professional resume writer. Please contact Robin’s Resumes® today.

 

© 2006-2017 ROBINS RESUMES

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