Even in the digital age, a good resume is still a job seeker's best bet when it comes to landing an interview. However, a lack of hard work and thoughtfulness when crafting a resume can lead to serious resume mistakes that can land a good candidate's application into the reject pile. Avoid these common resume mistakes to improve your chances of impressing a potential employer.
1. Grammatical Errors
A resume filled with typos and other grammatical errors makes a poor first impression, and a hiring manager is likely to associate it with laziness or a lack of professionalism. Proofread your resume word by word, and have a friend or colleague look it over to catch any mistakes you missed.
2. Personal Information
Never include information such as your date of birth, your Social Security number, your street address or your reasons for leaving your last employer on your resume. Save this type of information for the job application form, if required, but keep your resume strictly focused on your education and work.
3. False Information
A lack of truthfulness is one of the biggest resume mistakes as it makes you look like an untrustworthy job candidate. Employers can easily perform background checks, consult social media and speak with references to verify information in a job resume. Even if they don't, they may find out later down the road after hiring you, which can lead to serious consequences.
4. Excess Information
Hiring managers and recruiters don't have time or patience to sift through an overstuffed resume, so avoid this resume mistake by crafting a concise resume to increase your chances of getting an interview. One page is the ideal length for a job resume, and it should never pass two pages unless absolutely necessary.
5. Not Being Consistent
Employers often check for inconsistencies in your resume by consulting other sources such as social media profiles. Ensure that information such as education and previous employers is the same across your resume and all online platforms so recruiters do not think you are purposefully falsifying information.
6. Unnecessary Details
Avoid this resume mistake by keeping your resume objective and career summary free of preferences, personal beliefs or other superfluous information. Instead, focus on your skills, accomplishments and experience. Employers only care about quantifiable data in your resume, so save details of your personality and work ethic for the interview.
7. Poor Formatting
A resume should never include confusing formatting, unconventional fonts or other creative details. Create a clean, straightforward resume that includes company names and information of previous employers, your positions, and your accomplishments and responsibilities listed underneath with bullet points.
Remember to craft your career summary and objective to match the job description of each position, and include relevant keywords to aid electronic sifting. Avoid exaggerating your accomplishments, but remember that being modest is also a common resume mistake.
Photo courtesy of stockimages at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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