Health & Fitness
Ten Common Sense 'Rules' About Resumes
Resumes - can't live with 'em; can't live without 'em! From a seasoned expert, some common sense 'rules' about what's important in that all-important document!
TEN COMMON SENSE 'RULES' ABOUT RESUMES
1. Always keep your resume up-to-date. Always.
2. Make sure that any gaps in employment history are explained; briefly but honestly.
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3. Never lie - either by commission or omission.
4. Avoid "jargon" and acronyms that may only be understood by those in your specific industry or company; this is especially true if you are seeking to transition from one industry or business domain to another.
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5. Make sure your resume is legible, and composed in a large-enough (but not too-large) font; that it is professional in its tone and language, and that it has a reasonable amount of "white space". (We'll cover this in more detail in a later post.)
6. Not too long; not to short - if your business resume is longer than three pages (actually, in many cases, 2 1/2 pages) it's probably too long. (Again, more about this later.)
7. Avoid like the plague any attempt to use gimmicks or to play "hide-n-seek" with information; this always backfires! (Again, we'll talk about this more in an upcoming post.)
8. Do not - repeat DO NOT - waste your time constructing a functional resume. With very few exceptions, and you're probably not one of them, reverse chronology is the best way to go. (Once more, more on this in a later post.)
9. Humility will not get you invited in for an interview; however, neither will arrogance. Make sure there is a balance of "team-centered and "me-centered" statements.
10. Always have a trusted colleague or friend proofread your resume for content and quality. Spellcheck tools are handy, but they are never a substitute for human review.
In future posts we'll examine each of these 'rules' in detail. As always, if you have a question or a comment, please jump in!
Brian M. Hoffman is the President and Principal Partner at Aidan Herman Partners, Inc., of North Easton. He is an experienced professional recruiter and search consultant with more than 35 years of success as a business partner working with hundreds of corporate clients in metro-Boston and on the South Coast-South Shore. You can reach him at: brian@aidanhermanpartners.com or 508-238-2100.
