One of the most the tedious tasks during a job search is creating a polished resume. You can spend countless hours trying to perfect it, but if you make these simple mistakes you can bet employers will not be burning up your phone. Kendra Lawson with Dallas based staffing firm, Eli Daniel Group, recently met with Ashley Roberts from DFW Close Up to discuss some essential pointers to create a stand out resume.
Mrs. Lawson, Eli
Daniel Group’s Executive Vice President, explains some of the most common
mistakes candidates make on their resume that can immediately eliminate them
from the running in any position.
What you put down on
paper others will read. Typos, spelling and grammar are one of the first things
that can eliminate an applicant as a potential candidate. With the abundance of
qualified resumes companies receive each day, one of the fastest ways to narrow
down the stack is to discard the ones with spelling and grammatical errors. As
stated by Mrs. Lawson, “About a 3rd of resumes that come across my desk
have a spelling error, typo or grammatical error.” Candidates need to
understand the vast importance of submitting an error free resume.
A potential employer
will overlook your resume unless you follow these important guidelines.
First, make sure your
resume is visually appealing. So what does that mean? You want an employer to
read your resume not just toss it from the pile. Include a title, something
that catches the eye of the person reviewing your resume, but also matches the
position they are trying to fill. Your resume should not be too wordy or
cumbersome. The last thing an employer wants is a twenty page resume when they
have 100 more to sift through. This can make your resume less appealing or
eliminate you as a candidate all together. A few simple tips are to have bullet
points and appropriate breaks, so the more eye catching information stands out
even with a quick glance.
Second, make sure
you’re your resume is specific to your target position and audience. Don’t just
make a general resume and throw it out there on a job board hoping to get a job
offer or call. That’s not going to work these days. You have to do your
research on the position and create a specific resume for it. Read thoroughly
through the job description and use verbiage within your resume that correlates
directly to the job you are seeking. The target audience will be much more
drawn to this method.
Third, make sure you
have a clear objective. General objectives such as, “I’m a software sales
person, and I want to utilize my skills to improve my knowledge of software”
just don’t cut it today. Plus, it’s really self-serving. A company is not looking for someone who they
can help to improve their knowledge, but rather looking for someone who can
help the company improve their bottom line.
In today’s world, it’s all about what you have to offer that will
benefit the company.
Finally, a summary of
qualifications and accomplishments can go a long way. This is your place to
shine whether you were the top sales person for the quarter, have won numerous
awards, or some other achievements. There is a talented pool of candidates
searching for a new job and having the right qualifications can move you to the
top of the list. It’s always important to show a track record of your success
and be proud of your accomplishments. You may have the best resume in the world
in terms of experience, but doing a little bragging about yourself will make it
even better. Take the time to make your resume sizzle, and that lets the person
know you are the candidate they are looking to hire.
Creating a great
resume can be tedious, so when you finish reviewing your work of art have
friends look over your final draft. It’s always good to have an extra pair of
eyes read through your resume and see if there are any errors you may have overlooked.
You never know, you might just go from a qualified candidate that nobody cares
about to an in demand candidate that everyone wants!
Article By Brandon Foster, Eli Daniel Group
No comments:
Post a Comment