Slip-up # 1
A resume is not an autobiographical document. It should serve as an advertisement about your professional skills and experience. A resume should address the specific needs of the potential employer who is reading it. The ideal reaction of an employer who is reading your resume should be, "Wow. This person has exactly what I am looking for."
Slip-up # 2
A common mistake in creating a resume is to water down and oversimplify your responsibilities and accomplishments. The result is that potential employers often think, "This person is under qualified and has not worked toward solid professional advancement."
Slip-up # 3
Do not use a hard to read or confusing format. Potential employers will have approximately twenty seconds to scan your resume. Because of the volume of resumes a potential employer must review, you should set yourself apart by using an easy-to-read format that quickly and easily conveys the essential facts about you.
Slip-up # 4
Avoid the common pitfall of providing more detail and depth for past positions than for your present employment. You may unintentionally give potential employers the impression that your career has peaked or is in decline. The result will be that you will be passed over for an interview.
Slip-up # 5
You should never, ever submit a resume with spelling or grammatical errors or format inconsistencies. As the old saying goes, you only get one chance to make a first impression. Potential employers will notice any sloppy mistakes in your resume and think, "A person who presents himself this poorly on paper will likely be a poor representative of my company."
Slip-up # 6
Avoid burying information that is important to a potential employer in the text or layout. Prioritize the information contained in your resume and then make what is most important about your professional experience the first thing that a potential employer will see. Omit information that is unnecessary or of minimal interest. As the great writer E. B. White advised, be concise.
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