The Resume: Blunders and Winning Tips

When it comes to writing your resume, what works and what doesn't work? It's hard to get an idea of what the ideal "winning resume" is out there - after all, what works for one person does not necessarily work for everyone. There is not an easy way of mass-mailing your resume out to every company you'd like to work for either - it definately takes more than one afternoon to really score a winning resume. So what consitutes a "winner" and a "loser" in the resume world?

"The Resume Loser"

1. Not Proofread

Amazingly enough, many people do not proofread their resume before sending it out. After constantly updating and sending out the same document, most people feel that their resume must be pretty flawless. Minor mistakes such as the usage of commas or periods may seem minimal to the sender, but to HR readers, these mistakes are pretty noticiable. So before you send that resume out, take another look. Here are some common grammatical errors to look for:

Periods = either use periods at the end of every sentence/description or don't use them. An idea of this should be to keep everything consistent in the resume.

Overdoing the bolding, italics, and underlining = Many people are at fault for this. Since you are writing so much, how are you going to make keywords and actions stand out? That's how many people make the error of bolding or underlining every other word. The truth is, it's good to sometimes bold or underline thing you want to highlight, but it makes reading the resume very confusing for Human Resources.

Spelling = Spellcheck or have someone proofread for you. If English is not your first language, it's very important that you have someone proofread your resume.

2. Using an objective rather than a career summary
A summary is different than a objective because it highlights your skills and past roles. In this tough job market, a career summary makes it easier for Human Resources to asses your qualifications and whether or not to continue reading your resume. This part of your resume is probably the hardest to write - it has to summarize your strengths and experience in just a few sentences. Remember to make it short yet impressionable.

3. Lying
As states, don't lie. Don't be stupid. You may think you are fooling people but when your resume is being read by Human Resources personnel that have seen thousands of reumes, lying on your resume is very very apparent. Resume details are routinely checked during the final interview process. It all comes out in the end.

4. Mass-mailing your resume to everyone
It's hard to apply for jobs when you are either currently still working, or unemployed and busy with the family at home. However, its important to customize your resume to every employer. If you want to stand out among the masses, then put in the time to show the company that you are a right fit for their work enviornment.

"The Resume Winner"

1. Remember the "Three-C's" : Clean, Coordinated, Clear-Cut
By keeping it clean, we mean avoiding scattered, hard-to read writing on your resume. Also, it's best to create a layout that is easy on the eye. Being coordinated, we mean being consistent with grammar, layout, and themes of the resume. If you are just arbitarily typing descriptions into your resume, it's not only displeasing to the eye but also makes the reader want to give up on reading the resume. Being clear-cut about your experience is very important to the reader. The Human Resources reader wants to quantify and assess the skills that you have. So use numbers! If you have certifications, use certifications and acronyms (remember to list the full description with the acronyms). In our industries, we see phrases such as "Six Sigma Certified" or "Injection molding" and value those skills. If you want a reference for what skills the company wants, look at the job description.

2. Action Words
Using actions verbs will help your resume stand out. Don't be passive - action verbs such as "managed" help your image as a leader and contributer to a team stand out much more than passive words like "did". Keep your verbs simple as well, using complex words will only work to confuse and puzzle the reader instead of demonstrating your superb vocabulary skills.

3.How you will contribute to the company
After all, thats what the resume is about. What are you going to do for the company you are applying to? Putting your ability to contribute into the cover letter as well as the skills and descriptions you have in your resume only makes your resume more of a "winner".

4. BE PROACTIVE. Follow up.
If you want the job, show the company extactly how much you want it but following up with them. Try to get in contact directly with the manager of the department you are applying for. Sending in the resume accounts for only 25% of the effort needed to secure your future job. Talking to people in the department not only gives you a better idea of how much you want to work with the company, but also a feel of how you would fit into the company's work culture.


Keep in mind these factors when writing a resume. The most important thing of all is to not only get your resume perfected and sent out to the companies you want to work for, but to also follow up on your resume and network to make sure that the your interest is known.

Let us know how you are doing on your job search! If you have any industry comments or questions, feel free to post on our commments section of this blog.