Common resume mistakes
If you really need to prepare a resume, take note of the following mistakes.
Not focusing on key accomplishments
Do you want to know what the doctor has done to treat people or what degrees do the doctor received?
Focus your resume on key accomplishments and roles you’ve had that are relevant to the job you are applying for. Do keep non-relevant accomplishments and roles to the absolute minimum especially if they are out of date or irrelevant to the job you are applying for.
After working for more than five years, it’s not necessary to list every position from early on in your career unless they are absolutely relevant to the job being applied for.
Resumes that are too generic
Always individualise your resume for the job you are going to apply for.
It will certainly take effort and time but would be worth it.
Always remember that the recruiter is reviewing as many as 500 resumes. So make your resume is relevant, fit-for-purpose and stand out from the crowd.
Objective statements can backfire
Objective statements can hurt your chances of being a contender for the job you want if your objective statement doesn’t match with what the company is looking for.
Do remember that your objective statement only focuses on what you’re looking for. It’s limited from your perspective.
This statement does not focus on what the organisation or the hiring manager wants.
The thing is that the job vacancy is about them, not you. Organisations frankly don’t care about your objective and what you want.
Instead, consider replacing your objective statement with a brief executive summary that clearly lays out the tangible value that you will bring to the employer if you do get hired.
Overcrowding your resume
Don’t include everything in your resume hoping that something will stick. This machine-gun approach will not help you.
No one wants to read your entire career history.
Do include a lot of white space. A lot of text lands your resume in the discard pile very quickly. It’s also easier to read on the computer.
Avoid small print, unusual formatting.
For corporate, technology and business roles, use a straightforward chronological resume.
For creative businesses and professionals, use creative resumes.
For academia, use less expressive resume than the business format.
Trying to hide information
Based on your resume format, recruiters can immediately pick out from your resume if you don’t have relevant skills.
If your relevant skills aren’t reflected in a recent role, then include relevant skills that you have used recently. Indicate your accomplishments even if they weren’t essential to your role.
Be transparent if you have employment gaps, personal leave, medical leave, or family leave of absence.
Do include what you’ve been doing during the gap period especially with volunteering activities and self-education to upgrade yourself.
Poor formatting
Resumes that have no bullet points or too many bullet points can be overwhelming to the reader.
Use bullet points strategically to highlight your key accomplishments. These are anything you did that was special or unique to the job and have to quantifiable (i.e., you saved your employer 7% from implementing your idea).
Using useless buzzwords and jargons
Avoid using buzzwords and jargons.
Words like “team player” and “take initiative” do not tell me much without strong evidence being provided in the form of accomplishments.
Don’t assume that the reader is fully across all the industry jargons.
Use more generic statements, where possible.
Not giving what they want
Your core skills, competencies, and experience must always be customised to match the skills, competencies and experience that are specifically mentioned in the job advertisement.
By repeating the keywords that have been used in the job advertisement, there is a higher chance that the hiring manager may choose you.
Don’t go overboard with keyword stuffing. Be natural when using the keywords.
It is, therefore, crucial for you to take the time to customise your resume and job application to what the employer is looking for so that it resonates with them.
Not keeping it short
A one-page resume is generally sufficient.
A two-pager is preferred for more experienced job applicants.
If your resume goes onto a second page include a header with your name, phone number and email address in case the second page get separated.
Include your LinkedIn profile address in the header if you have an updated profile.
Right font, right size
Steer clear of overused fonts like Times New Roman and Arial.
Instead, try Calibri or Cambria.
What to leave off your resume
Due to possible identity theft, it’s okay to omit your street address by only listing the city, state, and postcode.
Do exclude “references available upon request”.
Recent grads can include their GPA scores if they are above 3.5.