Lack of Focus - a disorganized resume: Most resumes have a never-ending list of everything the person has done in his or her career. There are also endless lists of skills, personal characteristics and accomplishments, verbs, and unnecessary detail. Instead of making everything on your resume stand out as equally important, you need to point out a dominant focus, a clear sense of purpose and direction. This will help you get the exact job that you are looking for.
Too much detail - not written for a "skimmer": Potential employers do not read resumes in detail at first. They just ‘skim' it, usually taking perhaps only 15 to 30 seconds to see if it is worth reading in detail. When your reader is skimming, his or her eye will naturally start at the top center, and then quickly scan down the left side of the page. The left side of the page is where the battle for your reader's attention is fought. And, by trying to make everything ‘stand out', you lose control over your reader's eye. Therefore, you should put the most important words, items, and information on that left side.
Failure to ask the two fundamental questions:
- What does the employer want to see first?
- What do you want the reader to see first?
In answer to the first question, what most employers want to see first in a resume can vary. Most of them are looking for key factors like academic degrees, certification and licensing, job titles, or key skills related to the job. Others may look first for gaps in employment, school activities, recent training, or other factors. So keep these details handy when making your resume. Secondly, emphasize what you want your employer to see first. Make sure your prospective employer can find all of these ‘firsts’ without having to read in detail....
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Author: Jason Kay