Resume Traits To Avoid
Hiring managers look at resumes all the time, and there are
some things about the way resumes are put together that can
irritate them. You need to avoid these.
- Make sure that there are no mistakes in your resume.
Errors in spelling and punctuation suggest to a potential
employer that you don't have enough real interest in
getting the job, because of your lack of attention to
detail.
- Unless your hobbies and interests have some relevance
to the job, exclude them from your resume. If they don't
help you to do a particular job, a hiring manager will not
be interested in them.
- Ensure that your resume is printed in a font that is
easy to read. Black printed on white paper or at least
another neutral color. Avoid coloured papers, and any sort
of fancy fonts that you think might catch the eye of the
hiring manager. They will have the opposite effect, and may
result in your resume being eliminated from the
shortlist.
- Do not include any obsolete information. Details of
your college activities will be irrelevant after several
years of employment.
- Hiring managers prefer to deal with the factual
information they see in your cover letter and your resume
when deciding whether your application will be processed to
interview. They do not like other enclosures, such as
a photograph, as this could lay them open to accusations of
discrimination. Unless you are specifically requested to
enclose other items of a personal nature, do not do so.
- Avoid unexplained gaps in your work history. If
necessary explain how you came to be out of work for any
particular reason - such as doing voluntary work, involved
in single parenting - in your cover letter.
Avoiding these resume traits increases your chance of being
granted a job interview.
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