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The Ten Big Do Not’s of Resumes

Jan 12 2014

This week’s blog is a list of resume Do Not’s. Next week we will list the big resume Do’s.

Do not use the words “I” or “me” or “my”—they can be used in the cover letter, not in the resume.
Do not lead with a goal in your resume (“to find a job that will engage my talents…”)— lead with a summary of your accomplishments and skills.
Do not write your life story. You can summarize jobs that are more than 15 years old (“Earlier experience includes:”) and drop those that have no relevance at all (“delivered newspapers to local residents”).
Do not give excuses for leaving a job (but if the company was bought out and you were retained for a while, you might want to mention that—it shows your value to the purchasing company).
Do not worry about keeping to 1 page. As long as the information is relevant and tightly written, your resume can be 2 pages or more.
Do not write your resume for “any job.” You aren’t qualified or interested in every job in the world and your job search becomes totally unwieldy if you search for anything and everything. Focus.
Do not say “references on request.” It’s a waste of space.
Do not give information about health, family, hobbies (unless they are relevant to the job), religion or politics (again, unless you’re apply for a job in a church or for a political organization).
Do not proofread online; proofread on paper. Make sure you look especially for punctuation errors, inconsistencies, missing or duplicate words, and misspellings. Ask someone else to proofread if you can.
And most important: Do not seek resume advice from every family member and friend. They will contradict themselves, and you will never finish. At some point, your resume has to leave your house whether everyone approves or not.

So where do you find advice you can trust? At Robin’s Resumes® we have more than 12 years of experience, industry certifications, a BSChE from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and national recognition (including speaking and teaching engagements). Contact us today.

The Hidden Messages in Your Resume

Nov 24 2013

Over and over, you have heard the same advice about writing your resume. But the reasoning behind that advice might not be as clear.

For example, you are told to proofread your resume carefully to catch mistakes. Yes, hiring managers want recruits who understand English grammar and spelling but the main reason for proofreading is to show that you are attentive to detail. You do not let mistakes creep in.

You are told to describe results in your resume, not just a list of skills. While impressive results are helpful, what hiring managers are looking for is confirmation that you will use your skills to benefit the company. Having skills is valuable; knowing how and when to apply those skills is priceless.

You are told that a resume is not your life story, but should focus on the skills, experience, accomplishments and education most important to the job you want. This focus ensures that hiring managers will consider you for the right jobs. But it also shows hiring managers that you know enough about the company and the position to write a resume targeted to both.

Finally, you are told that your resume should look professional; in fact, looking professional is more important than looking creative. Practical considerations for a professional resume include the use of Applicant Tracking Systems by many companies to weed out resumes. Those systems cannot handle creative resumes. However, the most important factor is that hiring managers have limited time to choose between resumes. They want to find the facts fast and not search for them in a maze of sidebars, colored charts, boxed quotes, etc. They want to know that you value their time and understand the company’s priorities.

Is your resume sending out the wrong messages? Contact Robin’s Resumes® and we will set it right.

Five Things to Fix before Your Resume Leaves Your Desk

Mar 25 2012

Recruiters are not very forgiving. If your resume has one of these five errors, you are reducing your chances of being called in for an interview:

(a) The name, contact information or job title at the company where you’re applying is wrong. Many companies have names that are easy to misspell. Check and triple check that all the contact information is correct.

(b) You made a mistake in your own contact information. Be especially careful about transposing numbers in your address or phone number.

(c) You provided your marital status, health or religious preference (unless you are applying for a job with a religious organization). It is illegal for companies to ask for this information and you put them in a difficult legal position if you provide it. And don’t include your social security number—that is an invitation to identity theft. The only exception is a federal resume if the directions specifically ask for the social security number.

(d) Your email address is cute (skibum@yahoo.com) and the phone number you give is regularly answered by a three-year-old. Companies want to feel they are contacting a professional. You may have to invest in a temporary cell phone to keep your three-year-old from answering when potential employers call, but the temporary investment is worth it.

(e) You never proofread your resume. You must proofread your resume every time you change it, word for word. Minor mistakes in grammar and spelling creep in and send a major negative message: you do not care about quality and pay no attention to detail.

Do you need help making sure your resume has the best chance of catching a recruiter’s eye? Contact Robin’s Resumes® today. I’m here to help.

Resume Mistakes: The Five Worst Resume Sins

Apr 17 2011

Your resume is a company’s first look at what skills and accomplishments you might bring to the job. Don’t make it their last look! Be sure to avoid these major resume mistakes:

You failed to tailor your resume to the specific job you want. So even though you have the skills that the company asked for in their advertisement or posting, you left the details out of your resume. Those specific skills must be in your resume and should be prominent, preferably at the top of your resume.
Your contact information is incomplete and does not include a professional email address. A professional email address consists of your first and last name. Cute email addresses are not professional. If you have a common name, try putting your last name first or adding numbers after your name. Avoid the numbers 1 and 0. In some fonts, they look like letters and can confuse people reading your resume. Does your johndoel address refer to John Doe One or John Doel?
You lied about or apologized for or over-explained your qualifications. If you lack confidence in your abilities, how can an employer have confidence that you are the right person to hire? A resume should describe you honestly but also show you at your best.
You did not proofread the last draft. A last minute change might affect your entire resume. For example, if you add a word on page one, it might force a line awkwardly onto page two or even create a blank page. Or perhaps you corrected the spelling of a company name in one place but neglected to change it in another place. Always proofread the last draft as carefully as the first draft.
You never sent the resume out. You had so much advice from friends and relations that you became paralyzed by the chance of making a mistake. If you never send out a resume, you will never be asked to interview. In truth, no one keeps track of how many resumes you send out or how many never receive a response. All you need is one “yes.” Send your resume out today and start asking for that “yes.”

What would you place in your top five resume sins? If you know someone who is making mistakes on their resume, ask them to give me a call.