10 COMMON BIGGEST MISTAKES IN RESUME WRITING

10 COMMON BIGGEST MISTAKES IN RESUME WRITING 

Hundreds of thousands candidates submit applications for the job in question, and at least a third are completely off the mark. The funny thing is that almost all of these candidates have college degrees and a fair amount of experience, but so many of them make basic, no-excuse mistakes.

Common sense is not always common. Failing to follow the simple instructions of sending a resume, a cover letter, and couple of references are common mistakes in resume writing. Several people send only two of the three required items.

I must say "Resume writing is an art" and everyone should give proper attention to it.

1. MAKING GRAMMATICAL ERRORS AND TYPOS

There is no room for sloppiness. Employers do make a note of resumes with typos as one of the top mistakes that led them to automatically dismiss a candidate.
In this day and age, there really is no excuse for a number of grammatical errors, Some common errors are “your-you’re” and “lose-lost" words spelled incorrectly and overuse of punctuation commas and hyphens.
Use spell checker option in MS Word or a lot of spell checkers are available free of charge online. Anyone can make errors while typing in the computer.

2.  SENDING NEW DOCUMENTS AFTER YOU HAVE SENT YOUR RESUME 

Always make sure that you send correct documents along with your resume. It is acceptable to write again and ask that the new attachments to be used in review and if it was just a minor error, let it go. Take the time and do it right at once

3. SUBMITTING INCORRECT INFORMATION

Getting simple details wrong will get your resume will land into reject pile on the spot.
Mention correct phone number, email address and contact information. Even if you make it to the interview stage, the incorrect information will come out eventually. A wrong phone number can easily be called and a job title can be verified with a former employer.

Most of the times job titles do not match the job duties listed, and the interviewer will find out upon interviewing that the title was changed on the resume which is not a good idea and could lead to a failure.

4. INCLUDING MICROSOFT SOFTWARE ON YOUR LIST OF “TECHNICAL SKILLS"

Using MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint is more of a basic skill than a technical skill now. If you think it is pretty cool that you know how to use standard applications, the employer will start thinking that you don’t know much about computers.
Hard skills and examples of how you utilize those skills in previous positions is a great way to leave an impression

5. GETTING TOO ELABORATE WITH FORMATTING AND STYLE

“Formatting is the key”. Do not let your resume get out of hand with fonts and graphs and distract the reader from what is important (e.g how qualified you are, what are your basic skills). If you are going to use bullets, they should be the same size and shape in each section and align from page to page.

Try using a template that does not require to work within “boxes” (which are difficult to format).
Use simple font and creative language. Do not overuse words to describe your skills. Simple and short explanation will do the magic. Show a little bit more of your personality and creativity while explaining your previous achievements.

6. SQUEEZING TOO MANY WORDS ONTO THE PAGE IS ONE OF THE COMMON MISTAKES IN RESUME WRITING

There is no hard and fast rule about resume length. Research data shows that for fresh graduates, 60% of employers think a resume should be one page long, and for more mid level candidates, 85% of employers think resume should be at least two pages long.
When explaining your employment history and skills into a few pages, “choose the achievements that are most relevant with the position you are applying for”. Most relevant experience and qualifications should be written to the position will get you on the top of the list of expected candidates for interview

7. OMITTING EXACT DATES IS ONE OF THE COMMON MISTAKES

Do not leave exact dates of your previous employment. Doing so will make the employers suspicious about you that you might covering up something. Mention exact dates of joining and leaving. If you have a big gap in your resume you can explain the brief reason in your cover letter.

Not including exact dates of employment is one of the most common mistakes in resume writing that can cost you a job as they need to know the tenure of your professional experience

8. USING THE SAME RESUME FOR MULTIPLE JOB APPLICATIONS 

It is a common practice that due to lack of time or complexity, people are sending the same copy of their resume to multiple job listings, which require different skills or knowledge or fall in completely different industries.

9. UNPROFESSIONAL/TOO LONG EMAIL ADDRESS

Not having a professional email address when you are applying for jobs since there are lots of free email service provider and it will take you less than 2 minutes to create a new email address. It should be a simple variation of your first and last names

Use email addresses like: Honey@gmail.com, Honey17@gmail.com 

Do not use email addresses like: Honeyboy20007@gmail.com, Honeyprofessionalartist17@gmail.com

10. DO NOT INCLUDE TOO MUCH INFORMATION

Including too much information do not tell employers everything about each job. Focus on the highlights, keep your document short as much as possible unless you are applying for a position within academic and research fields.

Even when the companies are in the same industry, their culture and needs might differ. Therefore, your job application needs to be adjusted for each particular job you are applying for.