Avoid these top 5 resume sins.
Updating your resume is the first step to starting a job search. It may seem as simple as filling a few pages with everything you've ever done, but some tact and strategy can go a long way toward polishing your resume into a readable and persuasive gem. Avoiding these top resume mistakes will set your application apart from the mediocre pile on hiring managers' desks.
#1 Making it too long
Your resume only needs to be one page, maybe two (if you're writing a curriculum vitae, or CV, that's a different story and this article doesn't apply to you). The reason for this is, believe it or not, hiring managers don’t want to read long resumes; they need quick and to the point. Your mission is to find the most relevant and important information about you for this role and fit only that into your resume. It also needs to be readable and friendly, so not a super small font and tight margins to fit everything you would’ve put on additional pages—in those cases it would be better to have a friendly two-page resume rather than an unreadable one-pager. You’re going to have to cut some things. A good rule of thumb is to include only three of your most recent or most relevant roles.
#2 Not having a summary section
A summary section is a 2-3 sentence section at the top of your resume that tells the hiring manager quickly who you are (current role), what relevant experience and skills you have, and what you’re looking for (“opportunity to apply my skills as a [role you’re applying for]”). This section is so important because hiring managers are looking at hundreds of applicants and are probably only going to skim your resume. You want this summary section to tell them everything they need to know while also enticing them to read more of your resume. Ideally, your resume should be edited for each job you apply to so the language is tailored toward the job description; but at the very least update your summary section for each job application.
#3 Putting things in the wrong order
Always organize your resume in reverse-chronological order; meaning, start with your most recent job first and end with your least recent last. The same goes for your degrees, the most recent, like graduate degrees, should be first with undergraduate last. Once you have a Bachelor’s or Associate’s degree you should not include any information about high school degrees or achievements on your resume. In terms of section order, it doesn’t much matter whether you put degrees or jobs first (though I prefer to see degrees up top). Skills and other sections should be after those two.
Here’s a suggested resume outline:
I. Summary (3-5 sentences)
II. Education (newest to oldest)
III. Job history (~3 of your most recent or relevant roles, listed newest to oldest)
IV. Skills and other optional sections (certifications, technical skills, hobbies, references, etc.—these sections should be organized in order of importance, not necessarily chronologically)
#4 Not highlighting what YOU actually did
This one is hard to spot if you don’t know what you’re looking for, but it drives hiring managers nuts. It’s too easy to accidentally focus on what the company, project, or team did in general rather than what you personally did. Hiring managers want to know what you’re capable of doing, so they need to see specifics of what you’ve already done. Simply being on an impressive team does not mean you were an impressive contributor. Even describing your role as seen in the job description is not good enough because it only states what you should be doing in the job, not what you are actually doing. It’s the difference between saying “Was in charge of five projects” vs. “Led five projects to double their results in six months.” It can be helpful to start your bullet points with past-tense action (led, organized, executed), and get as specific as you can about the results you helped create. Anytime you catch yourself describing what the company or team did, ask yourself how you individually contributed and made a difference in those places.
#5 Including irrelevant experience
This goes along with not making your resume too long. Every piece of your experience might seem relevant to you because it’s part of your journey and how you got here, but it’s not all relevant to the job you’re applying for. Even if it seems like it might be important to include but your resume is getting too long, narrow it down to what is the most pertinent to the roles you are applying for. You don’t want to risk the hiring manager tossing your resume out by making it too long or irrelevant.
Bonus: Not having a cover letter
Most people don’t submit cover letters anymore, which is why you need one to stand out! You can read more about how to write a cover letter and why you need one here.
If you find yourself stuck at any point in your job-seeking process, coaching can help! You can schedule a free consultation below to get started.
