Avoid these Common Resumé Mistakes

Employers want to know that you will be making a measurable contribution to their business. Here are just a few of the errors you can make when preparing your resumé. Avoid these, and your resumé has a better chance of staying out of the circular file.

Telling your Life Story

Your resumé is not the place for your tell-all career autobiography. Your resumé should tell a focused, true story of accomplishments relevant to the job you are seeking. And it should be a forecast of future successes.

Presenting a Career Timeline

We have been conditioned by job applications to list every job we’ve ever had. There is a time for that––after the interview in which you convinced the hiring manager that you are the only person for your new job.

The application should be an afterthought. They have said they want you, and  the required application is a mere formality, like filling out the form that says you are eligible for employment in the United States. Most HR people will not admit this, but it’s true!

Listing your Job Titles

Job titles are among the least important items you could put on your resumé. In fact, sometimes your past job titles could keep you from being considered for your dream job.

A former Vice President for a retail company looked for a new position for months. He was never invited for an interview. When he removed that title from his resume, he began to be considered for many positions. Ultimately, he landed a great management job doing exactly what he wanted to do, without the baggage of his past titles.

Describing Previous Job Duties

When writing a resumé, it is tempting simply to list the main duties of each position you have held. Prospective employers are not interested in reading your past job descriptions, so it is okay to leave them out.

It is much more important that they see your past accomplishments in qualitative or quantifiable terms.