Here are Paul’s five things to never put on a resume:
Silly, Funny (usually just to you), or offensive e-mail addresses. Gmail is free and generic - use it!
An objective (still seen on far too many resumes) - by all means have something to give off a resume but make it a value proposition. Think: What you can do for the employer - not what you want from them? Jennifer Schooley chimed in here as well stating it’s obvious by receiving the resume you are looking for a job, so don’t waste the space.
No phone number! Yes believe it - when I was in recruitment I did a quick survey once and found over 15% of resumes had no contact phone number. Huh???!!
Reasons why you left - rarely seen now, but it does happen. Do not eliminate yourself before the interview. Save it for a face to face, or at least a telephone conversation.
Photos. In recruitment we used to have a ‘rogues’ gallery of photos that were attached to resumes. Again, save it for the interview or web interview. Or make sure any photo is professionally taken for bios and on-line profiles like LinkedIn.
Leave responsibilities out. Build each bullet around STAR: Situation, Task, Action, Result. Tell a short story, max 3 lines, about each accomplishment. These can also serve as a platform for the interviewer to position his questions.
Bill Green added “GPA - leave it off. If you have a 3.8, you have just publicly said you not as smart as someone with a 4.0.”
Jacob Share at JobMob also pointed me to his top 10 unusual resume mistakes. He puts out some of the most useful content in the world of job search out there. If you don’t read Jacob’s blog, it’s a good addition to your daily feeds.
Thank you all for your insight! I’d love to hear any other ideas you would add in the comments.
This part two of a three-part series about what to never put on your resume.
Job searching can be a lonely, frustrating place. It’s time consuming and it rarely comes without rejection. In most cases, your years of hard work are represented on one or two pages and evaluated by someone who has probably never worked in your position. And it’s that step that determines if you are in the “in” interview pile or the “out” pile.
Those two pages of finely tuned words ARE you, until you have the chance to let your personality shine through in the interview. Here are my top five things to avoid putting on your resume.
Giving personal data. Your resume should be a business representation of you. Avoid listing your marital status, age, family data, hobbies, etc. You should have hobbies and a life outside of work, but it’s not necessary to include them on your resume UNLESS the hobby or information is relevant to the job itself. Your prospective employer will find this all out anyways on your Facebook or Myspace page (so make sure it’s representative of what you want them to know). Your age, sexual preference, martial status or family information (children, ages, etc.) are irrelevant. The unfortunate truth is that hiring managers may base their decisions on whether or not to interview and hire you based on the information you provide, discriminatory or not. Don’t let them make that judgment.
Listing every job since adolescence. The Starbucks Barista job that got you through college isn’t for the resume. If it’s not relevant to your current job search, drop it. Think: Did this job prepare me to be a PR pro? If not, don’t list it. That goes for internships too. If you have more than five years experience your internships are no longer relevant.
Going more than two pages. This is a tough one, especially for candidates with lots of experience. You may have the temptation of wanting to list all of your relevant experience, but nobody reads more than two pages. So don’t give in, no matter how much experience you have. Find a way to cut it down. A good way to start is by focusing on accomplishments for each position rather than a long list of responsibilities.
Personal pronouns. Writing your resume in the first person detracts from your accomplishments. It adds unnecessary work and wastes space. The same goes for referring to yourself in the third person. Examples: “I pitched business and trade publications such as…” or “Jane has 15 years of experience…”
Providing references or stating “references upon request.” You need references, but not on your resume. You don’t want your valued references being called before you have a chance to let them know. If a company requires references, it will ask you for them when you are seriously being considered for the position. Listing “references upon request” at the bottom of your resume is a given and wastes valuable space.
Michael Melcher offers some good advice in the NY Times Shifting Careers blog about staying positive in your job search after a layoff. Being affected by a staff reduction isn’t fun for anyone involved and for those who haven’t engaged in a job search or interview process for an extended amount of time, they may even feel completely lost.
The typical person’s job search starts with a resume re-write and then a scouring of online job boards to see what’s out there. Resumes are sent into “the black hole” and with some luck, an automated response like this may be returned:
“Your resume has been forwarded to the appropriate department for evaluation. Should your qualifications meet our current requirements, we will contact you within the next several weeks for additional information or to schedule a personal interview. If there are no suitable openings at this time, we will retain your resume in our active files for future consideration.”
But you never hear back even though your qualifications match perfectly.
As difficult as it may be to keep your chin up, it’s a key to a successful job search. Melcher states, “People find new opportunities in recessions, but not people who spend a lot of time being depressed, whiny or angry.”
Melcher’s suggestions for dealing with non-responsiveness:
Act like a human being. The best antidote to feeling disconnected is to connect with people. Manifest as a person, not as an e-mail address.
Lessen your dependence on the Internet. If you are focusing solely on online applications, your job search hasn’t begun yet.
Assume that other people are busier than you are. A non-response isn’t a “no.” It’s just a non-response.
In my opinion, the most important of these five suggestions is lessening your dependence on the internet job posts. Many companies do not post their open positions online, especially small or mid-size companies who may not have the budgets to subscribe to expensive job boards. Many recruiters (myself included) won’t waste time posting open positions on job boards and chasing the same candidate pool as the job posters.
If you are relying solely on job boards for your job search, you are missing out on the majority percentage of available jobs out there. I’m not saying ignore them completely, but do realize the importance making real connections. Go to networking events (professional or personal), volunteer, be active in your social networks, reconnect with old colleagues and friends (this is something you should always be doing, even if you are happily employed!), meet your Facebook or Twitter friends for coffee, and find and build a relationship with a recruiting firm in your industry niche to keep an eye out for you.
This video is from a great post written by Rowan Manahan on his blog, Fortify Your Oasis.
Does this sound like you? Maybe not that bad, but the point is that people usually don’t notice when they’re using these “filler” words and expressions, especially when they are nervous.
Professional communicators are not immune to this type of speaking behavior either. It was only a few weeks ago I took note of the over 50 “ums” a candidate said while phone interviewing with me. That is a lot of “umming” for one conversation.
While my husband is learning English, I’m realizing how much we use these expressions. I’ll hear him say things such as “you know what I mean” or “ya know?” at the end of his sentences as if they make him sound more fluent. He picks it up from his teacher, our English speaking friends, and me.
It’s difficult for a listener to concentrate on what the speaker is saying if the message is littered with these tics - especially in an interview! Rowan suggests that you “tape yourself delivering a couple of interview answers or a section from a presentation and play it back. Is your tone interrogative when it should be declarative? Are you saying ‘like,’ ‘you know,’ ‘kind of,’ ’sort of,’ or any of the myriad other verbal tics with noticeable frequency?”
If you don’t have a tape recorder, leave yourself a voicemail or practice with a friend and let him count how many times you use filler words or sounds.
Another good resource is Sara Reistad-Long’s article on Real Simple about correcting these common speech tics. She covers eight common speech problems, why they happen, and how we stop them, including:
Thanks to HR World for compiling this excellent cheat sheet of links to help the job seekers and hiring managers interview better. It doesn’t mater how confident you are with your awesome interviewing skills, even the most awesome get hung up on something in an interview from time to time.
I recommend candidates also study resources applicable to hiring managers. Understanding the process from their perspective and what they are looking for will only help you to present yourself better.
Here’s a brief overview of the type of information compiled in the 100 resources.
Sample interview questions for candidates and good answers
Types of interviews
Tips and interview techniques for hiring managers
Interviewing strategies for candidates
How to dress
What not to do on an interview
Interview preparation steps and advice
After interview follow-up and thank you letters
Resume help
The list is extensive, so no need repeating here. Enjoy!
Virgin Airlines was the first to discover 13 employees making comments. According to The Economist, “crew members joked that some Virgin planes were infested with cockroaches and described customers as ‘chavs’, a disparaging British term for people with flashy bad taste.”
Shortly after, British Airways followed suit and “began investigating the behaviour of several employees who had described some passengers as ’smelly’ and ‘annoying’ in Facebook postings.”
This is one of many examples of how what one says in what could be considered a private or invite only forum by a user could affect current and future opportunities. Anything posted online is a digital footprint that could follow you for a very long time. A good rule of thumb is to post what you would feel comfortable with others seeing - like your boss, future employer, grandmother or children. If you have to really think if it’s appropriate, it’s probably a good idea to not go there.
On the other hand, companies need to take responsibility for being very clear with their employees about the online policies towards posting information associated with the company. Companies should trust employees to use these tools appropriately, but they need to be diligent about monitoring what’s being said out there on the social web and perhaps join the conversation when appropriate.
This blog is to share my recruiting experiences and discuss thoughts on the job market, PR industry and technology.
I'm an entrepreneur, business developer and recruiter.
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This blog is to share my recruiting experiences and discuss thoughts on the job market, PR industry and technology.
Alison Kenney is an independent PR practitioner with more than 15 years of PR consulting experience.
