10 Common Resume Mistakes To Avoid

A one-size-fits-all approach

While it’s vital to have a master resume (a repository for all your professional information), you should also have different resumes for different purposes.  The resume for a copywriting job, for instance, should differ from the one for a social media job. Targeting a 

A one-size-fits-all approach

resume for an opportunity by including only relevant details depicts you as an individual willing to take the extra mile.

Lack of clear headings

Hiring managers rely on your resume layout (header and section headings) to find relevant information. As such, vague or lengthy headings can make it difficult for them to understand your resume. For better results, keep your resume headings simple, short, and outstanding (underlined or bolded).

An ‘objective’ section

An objective section is as pointless as water in a basket.  Replace it with a professional summary that showcases your value proposition in 1-3 lines.

Listing every online certificate

Delete irrelevant or beginner-level certificates from your resume.  List only the credentials that taught you high-value skills applicable to the potential job.

Use of personal pronouns in your experiences

Indeed, the resume is yours, but it’s meant to act as an impersonal description of your professional makeup.  Keep your resume business-focused by removing all personal pronouns or articles.

Lies

While you can be creative when writing a resume, you shouldn’t channel your creativity into lies or embellishments.  Soon, your lies often catch up with you at the interview stage or while you’re on the job, which may lead to termination. As an alternative to lying, cover up for your 

Lies

professional loopholes by updating your skill set, taking more volunteering roles, and handling more (and even independent) projects.

Grammatical blunders

An error-filled resume can prevent you from getting interviewed. “But a misspelling or typo doesn’t determine my expertise,” you may say.  Yes, it doesn’t decide your competence. It does, however, characterize you as someone who doesn’t pay attention to details - a red flag for 

Grammatical blunders

business. According to Fast Company, 75% of employers said they would reject a candidate if they found grammatical errors or typos in the résumé.

Citing Microsoft Suite as a skill

When you enumerate Microsoft Office under the skill section, the employer automatically assumes you can build formulas in Excel, merge mails, and create automated “rules” in Outlook.  Except you’re capable of these, remove Microsoft Office from your resume and instead put the 

Citing Microsoft Suite as a skill

specific platforms that you know in Microsoft Office. Else, your Microsoft Office low proficiency level might get exposed in the interview stage or while on the job.

Badly organized work history

When you don’t organize your past positions in reverse-chronological order, your resume reads as hocus-pocus to the recruiter, preventing them from seeing your point.  To be safe, either begin with your most recent position and proceed backward, or focus on your skills and link

Badly organized work history

them to apposite experience.

Poor formatting

Formatting elements such as margin size can make your resume jumbled up (if it’s too small) and bland (if it’s too much).  When you commit any of these mistakes, an employer might be forced to question your capacity. Make your resume margins one-inch on all sides to

Poor formatting

ensure excellent formatting.

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