6 Common Resume Mistakes

6 Common Resume Mistakes

As a career coach, I see many resumes that do not help a candidate get to the next level.  Remember, your resume is a marketing document that helps you get the interview; which ultimately gets you closer to getting the JOB!  Below are a few of the most frequent mistakes I see on resumes:

Having Spelling Errors—I recently did a search for the word “manger” on LinkedIn within a 50 mile radius of my zip code and found over 3,000 people having this on their LinkedIn profile. I don’t think that people understand that this is not a good thing; check your spelling c a r e f u l l y.

Forgetting to use Accomplishments—People often will put their job description under each job title but forget their achievements on their resume.  Employers don’t need to see that you filed payroll reports or attended conferences, employers want to see results. Show them you are qualified based on your experiences and achievements.

Being too wordy—Sometimes, less is more and has more impact.  If you put too many million dollar words in your resume, it dilutes your strengths. Try being clear and concise in your messaging.

Focusing on What you Want (i.e. Objective Statements) vs. your Value (i.e. Summary)—Employers want to know what you can do for them. So what better way to show your value than to prove it to the reader that you’ve got the stuff they are looking for in a candidate.  Past experience generally is a good predictor of future performance. Show your achievements and results. 

Having a Resume Longer than 2 pages--Unless you have publications, you should be clear and concise in your writing and be able to tell your story of who you are within 2 pages.

Lack of Interest or Clearly Defining Who you Are—Sometimes job seekers want to be everything to everyone so they do not specify who they are.  An employer may take only 20 to 60 seconds to glance at your resume and make the decision to keep or put it in the circular file (read, Trash).  The top third of your resume is very important real estate and if it doesn’t hit them over the head as to who you are and what your value is, then it will not be moved to the next level. Spend some time working on your branding of who you are by knowing who you are.

10 Job Search Tips to get you Started

1.      Be organized

       a.      Set up our computer with all your Career links for weekly follow-up 
       b.      Have an exit statement and stick to it with everyone you meet—EVERYONE!
 
2.      NEVER, NEVER talk badly about your former employers or company.
 
3.      Check out www.Godel.com under Job List and you will find over 65 locations to refocus, get help and network--go to at least one a week for motivation and energy. Networking works 90% of the time—where do you want to spend your time?
 
4.      There is no such thing as an informational interview. Expect every encounter to be a full interview even a 3-5 minute visit.  First impressions are so important and that person could help you find your next job.

5.      Get LinkedIn--Get recommended.  In Nike speak--just do it.

6.      Get your business cards ASAP for networking.  Don’t worry, you will redo so get something on paper to pass out and start connecting.  Never go smaller than 7pt www.VistaPrint.com

                  a.      Name (no address)

b.      phone #

c.        email

d.      LinkedIn address

e.      area of expertise

7.      Volunteer your time.  It will help to make your resume more robust—don’t stop once you get the job.

8.      Develop a schedule

a.      Job Searching is full time

b.      Goals for the day, week.  Remember it is a numbers game

c.       Face-to-Face Meetings Are Better than phone but phone is better than no contact.

d.      Don’t neglect your looks—Get dressed up nice at every networking meeting.

9.      No matter how much time you spend on your resume, you will always have changes.  Spend a lot of time early on and then tweak it as you go along. It’s not about YOU, it’s about them (hiring manager) do not use I, me, my on you resume. 

10.  Use a T-Letter as a cover letter (see more on this in another blog post)

Embracing Change

So you've been displaced. 

I like that word better than the many terms that are out there.  Here is my list of the top 10 not-so-good terms:

1. Let Go
2. Laid off
3. Made Redundant
4. RIF'd (Reduction in Force)
5. Involuntary Employee Resource Program
6. My department was downsized
7. Restructured
8. Got a Package
9. Being affected by a staff reduction
10. Have been told that you will now be exploring other opportunities

So my word displaced, to me, still gives me a sense of positivity.  Being displaced is not being fired.  Through no fault of your own, your company made the decision to get rid of you.  They could not afford you so they are telling you to move on. 

Perhaps now is the time that you can embrace this as an opportunity to find something different to do.  Or, an opportunity to be able to spend more time with those you love or focus on something else that may be important in your life.  Embracing change is the key to this whole process.

How do I stay positive?
My advice is to grieve a day but get out there--Start out of the gate running.  Learn.  Engage.  Grow.

My next post will be on the resources out there that will help you to jump start your career search.