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12 COMMON RÉSUMÉ WRITING MISTAKES |
By Surranna Sandy, CPRW, CEIP, President ResumeSolutions |
Many Canadian and international job seekers are aware that errors on their résumé, even seemingly insignificant ones, can mean the difference between a request for an interview and having their résumé sent to the “not interested pile.” In today’s highly competitive job market, it is essential that job seekers craft résumés that are error-proof with high impact. The list of mistakes made by job seekers when writing their résumés is endless. The following are the 12 most common résumé-writing mistakes that Résumésolutions.ca résumé writers see from our clients: |
| 1- Poor spelling and grammar - It does not make a great first impression to describe yourself as being "very resuts oriented.” Yes, it is a cliché, but there will be no second chance to make a good first impression. Proofread your résumé repeatedly. |
2- Including unnecessary information - As proud as you maybe of that 8 grade hockey team champion, do not devote your résumé to it. |
3- Zero focus on achievements and strengths - Providing lengthy, generic job descriptions – your career history section should reflect your achievements and demonstrate the benefits of employing you. Of course, you should back the statements up with facts and figures wherever possible. |
4- Listing less important career details before key experience and achievements. |
5- Using a "life story'' résumé writing approach. A potential employer does not need to know that your wife/husband left, leaving you with two kids, two cats and a large mortgage. |
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7- Writing old, irrelevant information. If you built up your career to a management role from your start on the shop floor, a detailed description of your high school education or first job is not your strongest selling point. Limit job descriptions to the last 10-15 years. |
8- Sharing highly personal information such as SIN number, date of birth, marital status or the number of children you have. |
9- Attaching a photograph. Never include one. |
10- Going on and on. If your résumé is more than two pages and you are not an academic or in highly technical roles, forget about applying for positions, which require "excellent communication skills''. |
11- Forgetting the importance of active language / action verbs. Start sentences with strong action words such as "delivered'', "designed'', "implemented'' and "initiated''. Click to read our article on using action verbs effectively called Writing a Great Résumé Using Action Verbs. |
12- Information in the wrong order. It is crucial for a recruiter to see the most relevant information first, so remember to put each section of your résumé such as work history and education in reverse chronological order and place the most important information on page one. |
Make sure you are not making mistakes when writing your résumé and if in any doubt utilize the experts of RésuméSolutions.ca. We offer a very powerful and effective service. |
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