A while ago, I did a post on the ten words to avoid on your résumé. You can see it here. In that article, I mentioned how many of the “go-to” words people typically use are useless. I’m including a table I used in that post to show you just how ridiculous those words are. After…
The easy answer to that statement is “all of them” but that wouldn’t be correct. As we saw in a previous post, there are a few rules you want to break. The majority of them, however, should be adhered to. So read on for a quick rundown on which rules you shouldn’t break when writing…
Seven Worst Résumé Mistakes There are a lot of mistakes people make when writing résumés. Some are forgivable and some not. But instead of talking about all the mistakes, let’s just discuss the seven worst résumé mistakes. What Is a Résumé’s Purpose? We’ve talked about this before also. A résumé has only one purpose—to get…
Before we begin, let’s look at a few things that take a résumé down a peg or two. Spelling mistakes. This may be the number one reason why résumés go into the trash, and yet they’re so easy to fix. A quick run with a spellchecker will resolve it. Misused words. If spelling mistakes are…
When you’re searching for a job, not much is more frustrating than submitting your résumé for a job that you know you can do, and then never hearing back from the company. You’re left wondering why. Wonder no more. I’m going to tell you the five reasons why I didn’t read your résumé. Reason Number…
It might seem ridiculous to ask Does anyone read cover letters? Because it’s like asking if anyone drinks coffee. The answers to both are simple: Yes, people drink coffee if it’s good. Yes, people will read a cover letter if it’s good. The key words to those answers were “If it’s good.”nnMany people cite statistics…
For everyone reading this, I’ve got news for you: good résumés do not earn you interviews. Only great résumés get interviews. How do you get a great résumé? Read on, and you’ll see. First, let’s look at the differences between a good resume and a great résumé. Good Résumés Get Looked at. Great Résumés Get…
Every résumé needs a cover letter. Cover letters are your chance to shine (or look like an ass). The following is an excerpt from my book No Mistakes Resumes. I know that most people don’t use cover letters. That should make you happy. Why? Because that gives you an edge. Using a cover letter is…
I know I already wrote about mistakes to avoid on cover letters, but that didn’t encompass all the common mistakes. It’s time to look at a few more of the common errors. More Cover-Letter Mistakes A cover letter opens up wonderful opportunities, but it is also where mistakes appear most often. In a cover letter,…
When to Use Compound Modifiers on Résumés Compound modifiers play an important part in the English language, particularly when written. Many people pay no attention to them, but it’s important to know when to use compound modifiers—especially on résumés—because some of the people who screen résumés do pay attention. And of all the places where…