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The Do’s And Don’ts Of Résumé Writing – Tips On How To Write An Interview Winning Résumé

Your CV is the most important document of your career. It must be flawless and must also effectively tell recruiters why you deserve to get hired. Even the smallest omissions or the slightest mistakes will hurt your career progression.

I do a lot of resume evaluations and have seen a pattern of mistakes that job-seekers make. ( you can send your CV too for a free professional evaluation and feedback to limasehgal@gmail.com ). As a result, I felt the need to create this list of do’s and don’ts of CV writing as an easy reference so that job-seekers can draft a great CV and so that no one gets rejected because of their CV.

DO’s

1 # do start your CV with a summary of your professional career – 5 bullet points maximum

2 # do list your work experience in reverse chronological order

3 # do tailor your skills and responsibilities based on the job you are applying for – ensure your CV is optimized for the ATS system.

4 # do weave your soft skills into your work experience and achievements.

5 # do list your achievements holistically alongside the job in which you made the achievement.

6 # do quantify your CV – wherever you can, use facts and figures – use digits not words (for example write ‘4 million ‘ not ‘four million’).

7 # do make sure your contact details are clearly listed on top of your CV.

8# do mention which country and city you have worked in/are working in.

9 # do list the industry specific hard skills you possess.

10 # do proofread your CV before sending it out – ask a friend to also proofread for you.

11 # do send your CV as a PDF document – so that the formatting is retained.

DON’TS

1 # don’t use a career objective – it is no longer relevant.

2 # don’t use long paragraphs – one thought should be in one line – use bullet points.

3 # don’t flood your CV with keywords and jargon – it should flow naturally.

4 # don’t include personal information such as religion or marital status. Also don’t include a photo unless specifically asked for.

5 # don’t let your CV go beyond 2 pages.

6 # don’t include hobbies and interests.

7 # don’t use too much colour – use no more than one light color and use black text with a white background.

8 # don’t use tables, graphics, or links – it is distracting.

9 # don’t use an unprofessional sounding email ID.

10 # don’t list routine job functions that every employee would have.

11 # don’t include salary details.

12 # don’t use fancy fonts – use a simple font and a uniform font size.

13 # don’t underline or use bold for anything except headers.

14 # don’t lie or embellish any details –you will get caught.

15 # don’t include the phrase“references on request” – it is understood.

16 # don’t put a declaration as to the true nature of the contents of your CV – it is not a legal document and it is assumed that the contents are true.

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Stay clear and concise on what you want to show on your resume. There is so much competition out there, you cannot afford to make mistakes in what you communicate to others through your CV.

For a FREE PROFESSIONAL EVALUATION AND FEEDBACK on the strengths and weaknesses of your CV, mail your CV to limasehgal@gmail.com and get tips and advice on how you can improve the impact of your CV and boost your job search.

Also feel free to follow me on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/limasehgal/ for regular CV tips, vacancies, interview tips and advice on how to conduct a successful job search (and let me know so I can follow you back)

Looking for vacancies? Go to our jobs section at www.jobnetonline.com/jobs for more

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