4 Simple Resume Mistakes You're Making- Without Realizing It!
1. You Tell Too Much:
I don't care that you were a waiter at the Pizza House in 2002 in or that you were captain of your high school lacrosse team. Too much information! On your new resume, be sure to list only job titles and previous work experiences that are relevant to your intended job, as long as there are not too many gaps in employment. Furthermore, the skills that you acquired in that job may still be employable. For example, leadership. When thinking on some achievements to add to your resume think about the ways you have led people to a company's benefit. Perhaps high school lacrosse captain was the tip of the iceberg!
2. You Write in Paragraphs:
Paragraphs are often skimmed. We live in the age of the Internet when a vast amount of information is coming at us quickly. Keep achievements and job descriptions to short, powerful bullets. This will cut out extraneous verbiage and keep the attention of your hiring manager. Resumes are viewed at for an average of 10 seconds before being chucked... or read more. Keep the attention on you.
3. You Mention Duties You Hated in Your Past Job:
Chances are if you hated a certain task you shouldn't mention it when applying for this new job. Unless those boring chores of the past are part of the new job summary (tell me again, why are you applying?), mentioning them could only serve to get more monotonous tasks piled on your plate. Get hired for the skills you want to be using, not the ones you don't. Furthermore, if certain duties would make your life miserable, you'll want to tactfully inquire during the job interview what is expected in your day to day role as well as areas you might be expected to fill-in.
4. You’re Not Focused on the Future:
Job Applicants, read over the job details several times. Now close your eyes. Can you imagine their ideal candidate? Can you see yourself in that role? Now write your resume as if you are already there. It sounds too simple. Yet, if you can see yourself in the position and promote the rock star talents you can bring to this role: you WILL be called in for an interview.