What NOT to say on a Resume

Keeping your resume updated is an essential part of a job search.

Because hiring managers and HR personnel have so many candidates to look through, their attention spans don’t last long and they only look at your resume for an average of 10 seconds. As a job seeker, this means that it’s extremely important to make sure you’re not giving your potential employer any reason to discard your resume and forget about you. Career experts have listed some main reasons that someone reading your resume would immediately shut down their consideration and move on to another resume and I would like to share them with you.

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1. OVERUSED BUZZWORDS

Every year, LinkedIn releases a new set of 10 overused “buzzwords.” This year, the following words made the list: specialized, leadership, passionate, strategic, experienced, focused, expert, certified, creative, and excellent.

We need to understand the rationale why people use these words on a resume. Simply put, it is for ease of use, which means that it takes minimal effort to fill your resume with these words rather than coming up with a creative sentence and the widely held assumption that because everyone else is doing it that it must be the professional thing to do.

Of course, it might be impossible to avoid banishing these keywords altogether from your profile, so if you are going to use one of these words, make sure that you’ve got some experience to back them up. There has to be some hard evidence to back up your claim.

2. SUPERLATIVES

Poor resumes usually include too many superlatives which are words that people interpret subjectively and see differently. The one that makes most hiring managers cringe is the term ‘people person’. Instead, candidates describe how they mentored their staff, and how many people advanced at their company. Instead of using a word like innovative in a summary profile, you should give an example of something that you have created from scratch–including improving a particular process.

3. AMBIGUOUS AND VAGUE INFORMATION

One of the most common mistakes is the use of vague and clichéd words. Examples of this include “experienced with, proficient with”–phrases that don’t really speak to the level of knowledge you already have. Using phrases like that might give someone a reason to think that it’s a “filler” when they see your profile.

S how do you communicate that you’re a PowerPoint whiz? “Rather than saying ‘familiar with Microsoft Office,’ highlight that you use PowerPoint during quarterly meetings. Something that speaks to how you use it,” he says. It’s easier for recruiters to picture and understand how you’ve mastered a particular skill if they know how you apply it in your day-to-day work.

4. EXTREMELY BASIC SKILLS

Speaking of PowerPoint, you should probably leave basic skills out of your resume unless your competence is above and beyond what’s normally expected of a normal professional. I recommend stay away from non-specific or simple traits. You don’t need to put that you have used Microsoft Word, you don’t need to put that you’re timely or punctual or responsible. After all, it’s unlikely that recruiters or hiring managers will be searching for those–and they won’t be that impressed that you know how to file your emails in Outlook.

5. ANYTHING NOT RELATED TO YOUR JOB

Other than volunteering, which shows that you act selflessly and genuinely care about others (an important trait for many jobs at many levels) it is important to leave personal information off of your resume. Like Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, LinkedIn or any other social network, in the climate that we live in, it can be tempting to post stuff that’s not entirely related to our job or professional lives. Certainly, hiring managers look at your profile, but when it comes to your resume, you need to keep your facts straight and your opinions to yourself. Leave all personal information out and stand out as the consummate professional. During or after the interview process, you can get a sense of the company’s social climate. With all of the skills that you possess, you would not want to be judged simply for a political affiliation, an opinioned stance, or membership with an organization that is either counter culture or not in alignment with your future company’s objectives.

There are so many things to consider when sitting in front of your computer as you start to type out your resume. Using these tips will help you. If you need further help, you can always ask me.

richardfruscione@hotmail.com