Top 10 R Sum Dos And Don Ts

I tell ya', I get tired of scanning résumés sometimes. Having seen thousands of

them while hiring people, I can confidently tell you that the average employer

spends only 30 seconds per résumé. What does this mean? It means you only have

30 seconds to make the first cut. Since I see so many badly written résumés and

since someone on the Evolt list posted a question about résumés, here's my first

article. Follow these résumé tips and you'll improve your chances in the job hunt.

Since the

objective of a résumé is to get you a job interview, your résumé should keep

shouting, "These are my skills, this is what I have accomplished, and this is

how I can be an asset to your company". While no two résumés can ever be alike,

keep the following points in mind while creating your résumé.

Don'ts

• Don't include too many
  personal details. Exclude information irrelevant to your job such as: Parents'
  name: Your parents have nothing to do with your job.
  
  Family history: Employers are more interested in what you can do, not whether
  your father is with the government or if your sister is married.
  
  Height, weight, blood group, and health: Not required unless you are applying
  to be a fitness instructor.
  
  Nationality: Not required unless you're applying for a job abroad.
  
  Languages known: Once again, unless it's a job requirement, it's a waste of
  space.
• Don't write volumes
  about the companies where you have worked previously. While it may be good
  to have worked at a reputed company, a half page description of the company's
  activities is hardly required. Your résumé should sell your skills, not your
  previous employer. However, do point the skills you acquired at your previous
  jobs.

• Don't give details of
  more than the last three to four positions/ companies where you have worked.
  Omit the rest or put them in a section called "Other positions held". If you've
  got 15 years of experience, writing about your first job as a trainee is not
  required and only makes the résumé long. Recruiters who often have to look
  through tens and hundreds of résumés may skip through your résumé, which is
  not what you want.

• Don't give a long list
  of job responsibilities that you were entrusted with. Give results. Instead
  of writing, In charge of training of employees in computer applications,
  use, Trained 35 employees to use Windows 95, Microsoft Word, and Microsoft
  Excel within 4 months. This will help your potential employer assess you
  by what you have done and is more likely to get you an interview. A long list
  will also make your résumé excessively long. Most résumés should be a maximum
  of 3 pages in length.

• Don't - and this is a big DON'T - create "fill-in-the-blanks" types of résumé
  cover letters. Letters that have blanks for positions and company names like
  Application for the position of _____ create the impression that you have
  been sending them out to plenty of companies, and can't be bothered to create
  a proper letter.

• Don't ever write, application
  for any suitable post in your cover letter. If you can't decide where you
  will fit in, don't expect your potential employer to think of a position for
  you.

• Don't photocopy résumés
  and send them. Get proper prints (preferably on a laser printer). It is very
  easy to distinguish a photocopy from an original. The minor extra expense
  is well worth it as an investment in your future.
• Don't, for heaven's sake,
  type out your résumé in all caps and with underlining. This is one sure way
  to destroy readability. For section headings, use a sans serif font in bold
  weight instead.

• Don't mention salary
  information anywhere. This may put you out of the race at the application
  level itself. Remember that you have to get to that interview! If your expected
  salary is specifically asked, put it as negotiable. Don't include a detailed
  salary history either.

• Don't include a photograph
  unless specifically asked for. Passport photos have a way of turning bright,
  cheerful people into sulky, grumpy, stone-faced people and the recruiter may
  form a negative impression of you before he/ she even meets you.

Do's

• Do give your name and
  contact information at the very top of the page. This will get the rid of
  superfluous headings such as "Name" and "Contact Address". It also makes it
  more likely that the recruiter will remember your name.

• Do focus on all your
  achievements in the past. Be sure to quantify everything you have done. Sentences
  such as Reduced project expenditure by 20% and Increased sales in my region
  by 30% within 3 months have more impact than merely Overall charge of projects
  and Handled sales in region. They show that you have accomplished something
  instead of merely being involved in mundane activities. Employers want achievers
  so your résumé must tell them why they should hire you.

• Do put in skills that
  are important to the job for which you are applying. For example, If you are
  applying for the post of secretary, skills such as knowledge of computers,
  shorthand, etc. are usually required. Once again, be specific. Use sentences
  such as Thorough knowledge of MS Word and Excel, Typing speed of 60 WPM,
  5 years experience as Secretary to Director to highlight your skills. Exclude
  information like School cricket captain unless it is relevant to the position.

• Do use good quality paper for your résumé. Superior quality paper makes
  an excellent first impression and the cost hardly matters. Avoid old, yellowed
  paper and normal photocopying paper. Remember not to fold the résumé either.

• Do write a proper covering
  letter to go with your résumé. A cover letter provides a short introduction
  of you, the position you're applying for, and the skills, qualifications,
  and experience you possess. Restrict it to half a page. Don't use clichés
  like I am enclosing my résumé for your kind perusal and consideration. Most
  recruiters will just skim over all that.

• Do try and find out
  who will be reading your résumé and then address your cover letter to them.
  This will give your résumé a better chance of being read. If you don't know
  the person, call up the company, tell the person at the other end that you
  wish to send a job application and would like to know whom to address it to.
• Do, and please
  follow this tip, proofread, proofread, and then proofread some more. Make
  sure you have a printed copy of your résumé and give it a thorough and careful
  read. Then look at it again after a couple of hours. Once you're satisfied
  that there is nothing wrong, give it to a friend and ask him/ her if everything
  looks right. Spelling and grammar mistakes show that you can't be bothered
  reading your résumé carefully. Some recruiters won't even call you for an
  interview if they find spelling mistakes. Don't create a negative impression
  at the beginning itself.

• Do give your résumé a
  professional look. Résumés that are typewritten or printed on a 9-pin dot
  matrix printer don't really work well. If you don't have access to a laser
  or inkjet printer, go to a DTP bureau that will do it for you. Make sure that
  all section headings are clearly visible and the recruiter can quickly get
  to the section that he/ she wants to see.

• Do create your own résumé.
  Don't merely copy someone else's and then change the information. Résumés
  should be different depending upon your qualifications and experience, the
  nature of the position, etc. A résumé that is suitable for someone else may
  be totally unsuitable for you. For example, for a person with 20 years experience
  in Administration, skills and achievements are more important than educational
  qualifications. For a software engineer with limited experience, however,
  education and technical knowledge are definitely more important.

• Do go to a professional
  résumé service if you need help preparing a résumé. By this, I don't mean
  your corner typist or your neighbourhood DTP bureau. Résumé professionals
  will ask you for your qualifications, skills, experience, etc. and then create
  a targeted résumé for you. Though they may cost more than the DTP fellow,
  they are usually worth it.