Creating A Quality Resume

Creating A Quality Resume: 8 Common Mistakes to Watch Out For

When writing your resume, you need to make it shine to stand out from other submitted resumes. Mistakes do NOT make a resume shine. There are some errors that many people make when writing theirs. Be careful not to make them, yourself.

Writing a quality resume is one of the most vital parts of finding new employment. It's the primary way to initially capture the attention of the company you want to work for. Any mistakes they spot means your resume is going one place, fast: the trash. Here are some to watch out for:

1. Using pronouns: Avoid using "I", "me", or "my". It personalizes the resume, and this is not a good thing. Also avoid "you", "your", "them", "their", and so forth.
2. Writing "RESUME" on top of your resume: This is redundant, and will draw negative attention.
3. Starting with an "objective": Many people do this, but it's considered old-fashioned. It can be used for new graduates starting their career. For anyone else, a "Summary" should be used instead.
4. Using a Microsoft template: They are templates - realize how many people have Microsoft Word and use these. Hiring managers see these cross their desk every day. If the hiring manager has 200 resumes to look at and 190 of these use a Microsoft template, how will you get yours noticed if you use one, too?
5. Listing "duties and responsibilities": Does your resume list these for your old positions? It's boring! You need to sell yourself; list quality accomplishments, like saving a company $500,000 a year. Boosting sales by 50%. This shows achievement, and makes you more attractive.
6. Giving personal information: With nondiscrimination laws in this day and age, an employer being able to put a face on the employee before hiring can be awkward. Be careful about listing personal interests, number of children, height, weight, nationality, spouse's name, etc.
7. Limiting your resume to one page: This does not work. Especially with several years of experience. The employer wants information - write two, three, even four pages if you need to.
8. The little things: Check for typos! A resume with typos shows someone who does NOT put much effort into their work. At the very least use a spell-checker. Having a friend double-check your work is also a good idea.

If you've made some of these mistakes, there are other options to make sure your resume is in tip-top condition. You can find professional help to either assist you or even write your entire resume, to make sure it is effective and attention-catching. This can make the difference between looking for work for one week or looking for six months. Make sure your resume is as good as you can make it!

This resume error checklist brought to you from a review on resume resources at ReviewsOfStuff.com. Interested to find out what other choices you have when writing your resume? This, plus effective methods to get your resume distributed at Resume.ReviewsOfStuff.com.