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Things Not to Include on a Resume

September 27, 2019 by Jenni Proctor Leave a Comment

The purpose of writing your resume is to get the prospective employer to invite you to an interview. However even people who understand this still try to capture their entire career-life history.  This makes the really relevant information disappear into the background….Not a good idea!

Your resume is your marketing.

What to include on your Resume

Only include in your resume what you would include when telling someone why you are right for that job.

The fact is that your resume is simply an advertisement that gets you the click. It needs to ‘sell it’, and not just ‘tell it’ about yourself. You want to honestly up-sell your achievements and leave out the information that does not contribute to you looking like the perfect candidate.

In my experience of writing resumes, I have come across a number of rules about what should go in and what should stay out of a resume.

So here’s a list of what NOT to include on your resume:

Anything you cannot provide evidence for

This is the polite way of saying don’t tell lies. You may tell your story in different ways, but any you select must be true.

Anything not directly relevant to the job

Everything you say should support your claim to be the best candidate for the job. Anything that does not do that should be considered strongly for removal.

Salary information

It’s just another means to exclude you from the interview. Even if the job advertisement asks for this information explicitly, don’t do it. You will want to go through salary later, in a face to face negotiation at the interview stage, but not now.

Pictures/Photos

Don’t add any pictures of yourself unless you are absolutely required to do so. It is inappropriate for your photo to be included in your resume.  It also provides yet another way to exclude you from the running. All employers have their own personal stereotypes and opinions about how you should look. Don’t pander to this idea at this stage. (Unless of course you are going for a modelling job or similar, in which case you would be adding full-sized studio photographs, not resume pictures)

Gimmicks

Don’t add cute gimmicks or graphics or unnecessary ornamentation if you want to be taken seriously. Anything that takes the employer’s attention away from your qualifications to do the job should be omitted.

Reasons for leaving jobs

Any excuses or reasons or whatever as to why you left previous jobs should be avoided. It may indeed be obvious from your resume that you have stayed a very short time in your previous job or that you have had many jobs in a very short time. Your best course of action is let the facts speak for themselves and simply never raise the issue. However, you can expect a few questions in the interview when you get there, but leave it till then. No matter how interesting the story is, do not include it in your resume.

Personal details

Leave these out to avoid any possibility of discrimination. You don’t need to put your age, marital status, ethnic origin, excellent health statements, etc. If any of these factors are a requirement for the job then let the issues get raised in the interview, and deal with them there. Also be aware of possible identity theft issues. Here is a security reason for leaving out many personal details. Consider instead, leaving out your street level address, and use a free email address (like Google, Yahoo etc. but do use a professional sounding email name!). You could also list a mobile phone number rather than your house phone.

Reference details

Leave out any mention of references. Referees’ contact details should never be included in your resume. The reason is that people, who you have asked to be references for you, want you to treat their privacy with a lot of respect. So don’t splash their contact details around. Also, prospective employers don’t actually want to see your references at this stage. I recommend that you only provide references when they specifically ask for them and after at least one interview, so you can have had an opportunity to check the prospective employer out as being legitimate.

Remember, your resume is one of many!

Remember that with stacks of resumes to read through, the prospective employer is trying to find reasons to exclude your resume from the selection process. Any information you do record on your resume must enhance your status as the perfect candidate for the job, and not detract from it in any way. Therefore what you SHOULD NOT include in your resume is just as important as knowing what you SHOULD include.

Career-reno-masterplan-3

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Filed Under: Resumes, Your Employment Tagged With: interview, resume

Get a Job: The Do’s and Don’ts of Calling to Check the Status of Your Job Application

August 14, 2019 by BoomersNextStep Guest Author Leave a Comment

check on your job application

Wondering how to follow up on your job application?

Have you recently made a job application, perhaps many job applications, online or in-person?

When you are seeking a new job be aware that small mistakes can make the difference between success and failure in your job search. For more help have a look at our many posts, taking you from career change decision making through job search and resume writing to interview skills.

Has your job application led to an interview?

[Read more…] about Get a Job: The Do’s and Don’ts of Calling to Check the Status of Your Job Application

Filed Under: Job Search For Older Workers, Your Employment Tagged With: find work, follow up on job application, interview, interview follow up email, job openings, job seeker

Seven Keys to Working With Recruiters

July 27, 2019 by BoomersNextStep Guest Author Leave a Comment

Working with a recruiter could be one of the best career decisions you’ve ever made. It can also be a serious waste of time and lead to disappointment and even resentment. Choosing the right firm, the right recruiter and getting off on the right foot can be essential steps to landing you in a position that fulfills your ambitions. Follow these simple seven tips to get the most out of your recruiter relationships.

Work with a Recruiter who specializes in your industry

Choose firms (and recruiters) that specialize in what you do. As obvious as it sounds, a little research will go a long way to helping you find the right position. If a firm or recruiter doesn’t understand the language of your profession, chances are they won’t have the skill to obtain the job orders from managers hiring people like you.

Working with a Senior Recruiter is an advantage

It’s perfectly OK to ask a recruiter a few questions to determine their experience and ability level. Check them out on LinkedIn. Do they have good recommendations? Are they connected to your industry?

Recruiters are working for their client, not you

Most recruiters work for free until they make a placement and when they do, it’s the client who pays not you the candidate. Remember this and treat them accordingly. If a recruiter doesn’t like you for whatever reason (thinks you’re rude or arrogant) it’s unlikely they’ll submit you for any jobs.

Stay in touch

Staying in touch is YOUR job – just don’t stay in touch too much. It’s essential for you to gently remind your recruiter of your existence. However, too many phone calls or emails and your recruiter is likely to run the other direction and begin avoiding you. Striking the balance is easy. Ask your recruiters how often they would like status updates. I recommend sending an email each week with your availability status, whether you have interviewed recently etc. Include in the email “REPLY NOT REQUIRED”. This keeps your recruiter informed without generating more work for them.

Take their advice

If you’ve chosen your recruiter wisely and are working with someone with many years in the industry and he or she offers you advice TAKE IT. They know much more about resumes, interviews, and skills trends than most other people you’ll come in contact with.

Multiple recruitment companies

Register with more than one firm. More recruiters equals better odds of landing the job you want most. If you are working with several recruiters you are likely to find one that really suits your current needs.

Keep notes of people and meetings

Keep track of places you interviewed, the managers you met with and share this info with your favorite recruiters. Many recruiters rely on leads from candidates to grow their job openings, which helps them place other people. This is the very best way you can repay a recruiter for the time they spend with you. Not only will it be appreciated, but it will keep you at the very top of their available candidates matrix as well.

Our Guest Author: @josh_d_matthews is the Director of Get It Right, Inc. and specializes in assisting technology professionals in getting more offers and more out of life.

Career-reno-masterplan-3

Filed Under: Job Search For Older Workers, Networking, Your Employment Tagged With: coverletter, Employment, interview, Job hunting, resume

Executive Job Search? You’ll Need More Than a Resume

July 25, 2019 by BoomersNextStep Guest Author Leave a Comment

Tips for Doing an Executive Job Search

 

Executive Job Search? You'll Need More Than a Resume

It might intrigue you to learn that you’ll be judged by more than just your resume during your executive job search.

A full resume is most likely not going to be the only source of information that recruiters use to decide if you are the right person to be interviewed.

Surprised? You’ll find that recruiters, company owners, Boards of Directors, and other hiring decision-makers often look at your experience through a series of interviews and investigations.  This means that your executive resume is just one part of the process. [Read more…] about Executive Job Search? You’ll Need More Than a Resume

Filed Under: Resumes, Your Employment Tagged With: coverletter, Employment, interview, job hunt, linkedin, resume

Preparing for Your Job Interview Questions and Answers

February 17, 2019 by BoomersNextStep Guest Author Leave a Comment

6 Step Guide to a Successful Job Interview Questions and Answers

A 6 Step Guide to a Successful Job Interview

Tips for a Successful Job Interview Questions and Answers

[Republished from previous post – Jenni Proctor]

It’s time for your job interview!  Stomach churning, sweaty palms, nerves affect most people at an interview. All of your time spent completing applications, submitting resumes, tailoring cover letters and responding to job advertisements have led you to this. You need to perform at your best so you are in the optimal position for a job offer. You don’t want to mess up any of your job search, but most particularly now you have reached this point of being invited for a job interview.

Job Interview Preparation

[Read more…] about Preparing for Your Job Interview Questions and Answers

Filed Under: Interviews, Job Search For Older Workers Tagged With: how to answer interview questions, how to prepare for an interview, interview, Interview Advice, interview preparation, interview questions, Job interview, job interview tips, older workers, questions to ask in an interview

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