Top Resume Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

If you have ever tried to write a resume, for yourself or for someone you know, you are already familiar with the fact that this is not an easy task to take on. So much information goes into a resume; from your career objective to the list of your qualifications, your resume should be personal, convey confidence and set your best foot forward in order to impress a potential employer.

The following are the most commonly made mistakes - be sure to avioid them:

Stretching the truth.

Whether you are simply inflating past accomplishments or coming up with complete fabrications, lying is simply a bad idea. Aside from any moral or ethical implications, chances are that you'll eventually get caught and lose all credibility. So even if you get past the interview, your resume may become part of your employee file if you are hired, and inaccurate information could come back to haunt you.

Typos and Errors.

Never present a resume with errors! Proofread, proofread and then proofread again. Your résumé is your one chance to make a first impression. A typo or misspelled word can lead an employer to believe that you would not be a careful, detail-oriented employee. Spell-check software is not enough, since sentences like “Thank you for your patients” would get the thumbs up. Ask several people to proofread your resume to be sure that it is free of typos and grammatical errors. You want to put your best foot forward. Do your best to present the most polished resume to your potential employers.

Salary Information.

Never include salary information on your resume. If you are responding to an advertisement that asks for your salary history (what you have earned in the past) and /or your salary requirements, and you choose to provide that information, put it in your cover letter instead. However, surveys have shown that if an employer is interested in you, you will be contacted, regardless of whether or not you have included the requested salary information.

Including references to personal web sites.

You may wonder why referencing a personal web site may be a mistake. What if you have a sample of your graphic design work on your site that you want your potential employer to see? It sounds like a great idea, if the site you are referencing only has work-related information available. Many people make a mistake of including their personal web sites that may contain information potential employers may find irrelevant (and now you are wasting their time) or inappropriate.

As a rule, do not include your personal web site if it contains your photo or other photos that may be viewed as inappropriate, if it contains jokes (even if they are clean jokes), or your blog. In other words, if the site you have is entirely for personal purposes, you are best leaving it off your resume.

Include a link to your web site if the pages are set up to showcase your professional portfolio, a copy of your resume, reference letters, presentations, photos taken for professional use, or your web development skills.

Using very small fonts in order to get everything to fit on one page.

Never submit a resume that is difficult to read. Do not use a small font in order to fit everything into your resume. If you do, noone will want to read it! Be sure to use a font and type size that are easy to read, and select a format and design that are attractive and leave lots of white space to enhance readability.

One of the most common challenges is creating a resume that formats well on a single page. As a rule, a resume should not exceed two pages. It has become commonplace for professionals to change jobs frequently, and listing all the experiences, in addition to your career objective, education, qualifications and references, can certainly take up a lot of space. Keep in mind the font type you are using – stick to the basics, Arial and Times New Roman are best. Instead of changing the font size, review and revise your resume to make your statements more concise.

Incorrect company/school listings.

Refer to the past employers and/or the school(s) that you attended by their full names. Do not use variations of company and school names. Do not use abbreviations unless they are in fact part of the name. If you have attended New York University, list the complete name, not just NYU (even though it’s commonly known and your employer will likely recognize it). You don’t want to appear sloppy or as if you don’t pay attention to details.

Lengthy paragraphs describing your experiences.

To list the responsibilities you’ve had in your past professional experience, you are best off using bullet points that begin with action verbs, such as managed, developed, etc. You do not need to use full sentences, and you certainly do not need to use the paragraph format. This makes the information in your resume overwhelming and difficult to review quickly. Make your statements brief and clear; don’t add words to fill in space.

Vague or unclear objective.

Make sure your career objective is specific – for example, Position as a Network Engineer” – and not simply a vague statement such as “seeking a position offering training and advancement opportunities. Read also How to write an effective career objective on your resume or CV.

Words Every CV and Resume Should Include

If you have never written a CV or a resume, the blank page you are facing can be very intimidating. While you can describe your job responsibilities to your friends, listing them out in a resume and showcasing how your experience to date meets your career objectives is a very difficult task.

You must first consider what type of a job you are seeking. Much like your career objective or summery should reflect your professional goals, your current and past experiences must demonstrate that you are the best candidate for the position you are applying for. In describing your current and past professional experiences, try to focus on those responsibilities that indicate you are qualified to take the next step in your career.

Use keywords. Since more and more companies and recruiter sites use scanning software to pick out candidates, it is very crucial to use keywords, including active verbs, to describe your skills. Instead of beginning your job descriptions with “Responsible for” try to use active verbs such as:
- managed
- developed
- created
- communicated
- interfaced
- achieved, etc.

These key words get straight to the point of describing your responsibilities, which is exactly what the employers are want. Chose these words carefully – don’t say that you “managed a project”, implying you were responsible for the whole task from start to finish if you were only responsibly for communicating the project to other associates. Instead say that you “Developed and executed the communication strategy for associates,” describing your role more accurately and emphasizing your strengths.

Every word on your resume counts in today's competitive job market. But some words count more than others -- especially those that refer to skills and competencies. For example, teamwork is more important than ever in the workplace. The ability to work well with others to accomplish a common goal is vital for a harmonious workplace. Employees are often organized into teams to manage projects. And many employers believe collaboration increases the quality of work and improves productivity. A team player is an attentive listener, a cooperative colleague and is willing to help others.

Another important word is 'Flexibility'. Employers value workers who are flexible and able to juggle multiple tasks simultaneously, so it's just as important to be a jack-of-all-trades as a master of one. You can show that you're flexible by demonstrating a willingness to take on new and varied projects and an ability to handle changing priorities and deadlines. Ultimately, being flexible doesn't only increase the odds that you'll get a job -- it also improves your chances of keeping it should layoffs occur.

'Detail-Oriented' Employers want to know that they can trust workers to handle a project down to the last detail. Being "detail-oriented" means being organized and meticulous about your work. It also implies that you can work without constant supervision and act independently.

'Self-Motivated' or "Self-Starter". Such employees can generate their own ideas and follow them through to fruition. A self-motivated worker goes the extra mile. She regularly takes on tasks that may not be part of her job description. She's inspired to work hard not just to reap rewards but also for personal satisfaction.

Use action words and active voice in your resume to help grab the reader's attention. The words you choose for your resume can help you catch the attention of a potential employer. It is important to use action words and to write in the "active voice" instead of "passive voice."

For instance:
• Passive voice: "Monthly financial reports were generated by me." — BAD!
• Active voice: "I generated the monthly financial reports." — GOOD!

Nearly every book and article on the topic of writing CV and resumes will advise you to use high-impact action words, and avoid the passive tense. When you sit down and actually write, it is tough to come up with some original words.

Here is a list of powerful action words you can use to make your resume more attention grabbing and dynamic:

Ability to
Accelerated
Accomplished
Achieved
Acquired
Adapted
Addressed
Adjusted
Administered
Advertised
Advised
Advocated
Allocated
Analyzed
Applied
Appraised
Approved
Arbitrated
Arranged
Assembled
Assisted
Assumed responsibility
Audited
Augmented
Authored
Balanced
Billed
Blazed
Brought
Budgeted
Built
Calculated
Carried out
Catalogued
Chaired
Channeled
Charted
Classified
Closed (a deal)
Coached
Collected
Communicated
Compared
Compiled
Completed
Composed
Conceived
Conceptualized
Conducted
Consolidated
Constructed
Consulted
Contacted
Contracted
Controlled
Convinced
Coordinated
Copyrighted
Corrected
Corresponded
Counseled
Created
Cultivated
Cut
Dealt
Debugged
Decided
Decreased
Defined
Delegated
Delivered
Demonstrated
Designated
Designed
Detected
Determined
Developed
Devised
Diagnosed
Directed
Discovered
Dispatched
Distributed
Documented
Doubled
Earned
Edited
Elicited
Eliminated
Empowered
Enabled
Engineered
Enhanced
Enlarged
Enlisted
Established
Estimated
Evaluated
Examined
Exceeded
Executed
Expanded
Expedited
Explained
Facilitated
Filed
Forecasted
Formed
Formulated
Founded
Gained
Gathered
Generated
Graded
Graduated
Guided
Handled
Headed
Hired
Identified
Ignited
Implemented
Improved
Increased
Influenced
Initiated
Innovated
Inspected
Installed
Instituted
Instructed
Interpreted
Interviewed
Introduced
Invented
Inventoried
Issued
Justified
Launched
Lectured
Led
Lobbied
Logged
Maintained
Managed
Manufactured
Mediated
Met with
Modernized
Modified
Molded
Monitored
Motivated
Negotiated
Obtained
Offered
Operated
Optimized
Orchestrated
Ordered
Organized
Originated
Overhauled
Oversaw
Participated
Patented
Performed
Persuaded
Pinpointed
Placed
Planned
Posted
Prepared
Presented
Presided
Processed
Produced
Programmed
Promoted
Proposed
Proved
Provided
Published
Purchased
Qualified
Quantified
Received
Recognized
Recommended
Reconciled
Recorded
Recruited
Reduced
Referred
Regulated
Reinforced
Reorganized
Repaired
Replaced
Reported
Represented
Rescued
Researched
Restored
Revamped
Reviewed
Revised
Revitalized
Saved
Scheduled
Screened
Selected
Served
Set up
Simplified
Sold
Solved
Spearheaded
Spoke
Standardized
Steered
Streamlined
Structured
Studied
Suggested
Supervised
Supplied
Supported
Surpassed
Surveyed
Synthesized
Systematized
Systemized
Taught
Tested
Traced
Tracked
Trained
Transcribed
Translated
Tripled
Underwrote
Updated
Used
Utilized
Won
Wrote

Typically, the first job listed on your resume is the one you currently hold. In this case, make sure that your responsibilities are stated in present tense, as you are still responsible for them. For example, say “Manage accounting activities” instead of “Managed accounting activities.” This will indicate to your potential employer what your day-to-day activities are like and how they compliment responsibilities of the job you are submitting your resume for. All previous jobs should be listed using past tense, and should start with active verbs such as managed, developed, accomplished, etc.

Additionally, make sure that responsibilities you are listing are relevant for to your career objective. List only those responsibilities which help you put your best foot forward. For example, if you are looking for a job that requires managing a team of people, focus on your development and participation in group projects instead of focusing on solitary activities such as office organization.

In terms of formatting, make sure that your responsibilities are listed in bullet points. This formatting is preferred to paragraphs on a resume because it is easier to review quickly. Employers simply scan the resumes and look for keywords – if the resume looks overwhelming, with a lot of copy and poor formatting, they will likely discard it. Thus, it is very important that your resume is formatted with enough white space and doesn’t contain any errors.

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