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Black Collegian Career Center
Four Fatal Resume Errors to Avoid
by Kathy M. Simmons
"A poorly designed resume causes a job hunter to lose more opportunities than
anything else. The funny thing is. . .this situation is totally preventable!"
- Hiring Manager
Any employer would hire you, if they knew how much you had to offer. Right? Your first
step is a sharp resume. Studies show that recruiting employers spend an average of 30
seconds scanning over each resume. That's precious little time to make a memorable
impression! To ensure those few seconds result in an interview, you must diligently avoid
these four fatal resume errors:
1. BEING TOO VAGUE/BORING
Being too vague leads the reader to conclude you don't know what you want. And if you
don't know, who does? It's your duty--and certainly in your best interest--to be very
specific in your resume.
"Objective: A challenging career" tells the reader very little.
"Objective: A challenging career in the insurance industry" is a
little better, but still inadequate.
Do you want to get into sales? Underwriting? Claims? Official file room paper shredder?
Whatever it is, express it clearly and concisely in the objective, e.g."Objective:
A claims adjudicator position which will utilize my prior 15 years of group insurance
claims and underwriting experience."
Speaking of paper shredders, this is the likely resting place for boring resumes. The
right words can save yours from such a fate. Action verbs such as created, organized,
and developed are high energy words that portray you as a go-getter. A resume with
mundane descriptions of responsibilities lacks the sizzle to stand apart from the stack.
It may generate a yawn, but not an interview.
2. IRRELEVANT INFORMATION
You will often hear advice from the "one-pager" club who insist that it is a
cardinal resume sin to venture beyond one page. Hogwash. The key is relevance, not
brevity. If you can hit the high points in one-page, do so. But rest assured, if you have
pertinent and interesting information to relay, it will be read whether it be one page,
two or ten.
Remember, a resume is not supposed to tell your life story. If it piques the
recruiter's interest enough to contact you, it worked! As proud as your mother might be,
prospective employers do not care about your Scout adventures or cheerleading camp
memoirs. But they are interested in what you can do for them.
Hiring managers are busy people. After all, why would they be looking for more staff if
they had plenty of free time? Your resume is your first--and possibly last--chance to
demonstrate an ability communicate effectively. Respect his or her time and keep it
relevant!
3. SLOPPY PRESENTATION
Typos on a resume can be a kiss of death, regardless of the content. Think about the
underlying message you communicate with this blunder. What else can an employer conclude
other than you are 1) careless, 2) too lazy to use spell-check or ask a friend to review
the resume, or 3) not too serious about finding a good job? Organization of information
should be user-friendly, easy to follow, and, by all means, completely accurate in terms
of grammar and content. Margins should be neat and orderly, and bold print should be used
to emphasize judiciously.
Read your resume out loud several times, and have several friends (ideally those in
management positions who are used to looking at resumes) review it. Encourage their
brutally honest feedback, and use it to polish your resume to perfection.
4. LACK OF FOCUS
In order to communicate that you are an ideal candidate for the job, you need to tailor
your resume. Who says you can only have one? In reality, it is rather noncreative to give
the same resume to every organization.
For example, suppose your research shows that job cross-training is expected by a
company you are interested in working with. They want their employees to have a broad base
of skills so that they can be used in several areas, rather than just one. A resume that
highlights flexibility and an interest in learning many functions will have a special
appeal to this company.
Your resume must be vibrant focusing on results and accomplishments rather than
responsibilities. For instance, consider the impact of the following statements:
"Supervised widget night crew" or "Increased productivity 20% over 6 month
period in widget department." Do you see the difference?
IT’S UP TO YOU NOW. . .
Amazing how much power one piece of paper has, isn't it? A strong resume will make the
difference of whether or not you get your foot in the door. The rest is up to you.
Avoiding these errors will lead to a dynamite resume--one that will increase your odds of
landing the job you dream about!
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