7 Things destroying your resume!

In our line of work we see tons of resumes. Resumes that start in the 70's and 80's to resumes that are one discombobulated sentence about a paragraph in size. Many candidates fail to remember that recruiters and hiring managers see hundreds of resumes, as such we spend about 6 seconds on the Fit/no fit initial decision. If you want to pass that initial test you need to highlight the solid qualifications and you need a perfect resume to highlight them,

Here are a few things to remove from your resume.

1. Irrelevant work experiences - Sure, as a freshman you were the pizza king, slapping down toppings faster than anyone else. But unless you are applying for a position as an executive level pizza technician... no one cares.

Yes, it's true that previous career experience can showcase a depth of knowledge, but unless that knowledge is relevant to the position you are currently applying for, remove it.

2. Your hobbies - So you love playing D&D or you are the next must see wood carver, "That's FANTASTIC!" If a hiring manager is interested in what you do in your free time, they will ask. There really is no need to waste space on a resume or company time listing your hobbies. It is possible that the hiring manager also wants to hike the Appalachian trail, but chances are the only thing they are concerned with while reading your resume is finding the right candidate.


3. Details that give away your age - This is a big no no. Yes age discrimination is illegal, but if your resume starts with your first job as a bell hop in 1970, you're probably getting passed over. So its time to remove those graduation dates, remove those job from more than 15 years ago or at least to not highlight them, and remove those photos, maybe some day they will be important, but for now they are creepy.

4. Fancy fonts or graphics - We get that you want to make your resume stand out. But fancy fonts, graphs, photos of previous properties, will just leave the hiring manager thinking, "please, no!". From personal experience, those resumes with "fancy fonts" are difficult to read and just get passed right over. Those graphs and photos detract from the time I spend reading about your ACTUAL strengths and accomplishments

5. Salary information - This sends the wrong message altogether. When I see a salary listed I make all sort of assumptions about the candidate.  If the salary went from high to low, they were fired or needed a new job immediately.  Regardless, anytime I see salary, I see a person who is only in it for the money, only concerned about themselves, and chances are will not make a great leader, only a poor or difficult boss.

6. Generic accomplishment - As a recruiter or a hiring manager, if we get to the point that we are actually reading your bullet points, there is nothing more annoying than generic accomplishment, i.e. The hotel general manager who puts "responsible for hotel operation and training." Trust me, if we are looking for a General manager we assume you are responsible for these things. If you are going to put an accomplishment down, put an accomplishment down with some meat and potatoes! For instance, instead of saying "Grew revenue by X" try saying "X project allowed for a Y % increases in revenues"

7."Typos" and grammar errors  - Finally, we all have spell check, we all have friends. Nothing screams inept and unprofessional like seeing " general manger" or "Ackomplishments". If you are looking to score an outstanding new position, slow down and proof read.

For more great tips look over these great articles:
THINGS YOU SHOULD REMOVE FROM YOUR RESUME IMMEDIATELY
10 Things to Never Put on Your Resume