This is part 2 of our two-part article on the Top 10 Common Mistakes We Find on Resumes. You can find Part 1 by clicking here. This is the last 5 mistakes to be aware of when writing your own resume.
1) Present Tense Verbs in Past Jobs Descriptions.
One of the most overlooked aspects of a resume is the use of verb tenses in job duties/descriptions, which can actually make the difference between a good resume and a great one. This level of detail may be important for the job you are applying for and could easily be a deciding factor in granting you a position. Start paying special attention to how you describe your job duties in terms of your use of present tense vs. past tense. For example, in a current job you would LEAD, as opposed to a past job where you LED. Another example would be on a current job you would MANAGE, and in a past position you MANAGED. Most people don’t pay attention to this, but recruiters are trained to look for this. You don’t want to have a verb tense to be the reason why you don’t get an interview.
2) No Consistency with Section Headings.
We have seen several resumes with different heading formats for job titles and dates for each job listed on their resume. Aesthetically speaking, consistency is a key component of your resume and can inadvertently reveal insight into behavioral characteristics as it pertains to your work ethic. It’s amazing how something that seems meaningless can actually make or break you as a job candidate.
3) Overuse of Formatting.
As a continuation of the above point, the formatting of your resume content can be overwhelming to the reader if you have an overabundance of italics, bolded fonts, shading and other graphic elements. We talk more about this in the next point below. Believe it or not, if it’s too hard for the reader to decipher the content, they probably won’t give it a chance. It takes the focus away from the real reason you sent the resume in the first place. You also run the risk of getting your resume filtered into the dreaded online “black hole” if it has too many graphics. Keep it simple and you should be fine.
4) Too Many Font Styles or Unreadable Font Styles.
In addition to overuse of formatting, there is a theme we often see on resumes that we call “Death by Font.” Limit formatting to simple bolding and a variation of font sizes and styles depending on what you are seeking to emphasize. We’ve seen bold, italics, small caps, all caps, different font styles and fonts that are too small and unreadable in ONE resume. In this case, you’ve pretty much submitted your resume into digital file 13 when you have all of this going on at one time. As explained in the previous point, keep it simple. We suggest using a sans serif font like Tahoma, Times New Roman, or Arial, primarily no smaller than 11pt for all text outside of headings. Your name is and should be the largest text on the page and the 2nd largest text should be your resume title. All headings should be the same size in the same format and font as well as the date styles.
5) Not Having a Text-only Version of Your Resume.
When you are submitting your resume through online systems, normally those systems are not designed to read fancy graphics, pictures, lines, tables, etc. added to resumes for visual impact. Your resume can end up at the bottom of the pack just for this reason alone. In this case, only the text matters. Your goal is to have as many relatable and relevant keywords that match the job position description. This matters far more than that fancy font you used for your name. Your resume may not even get seen by a human because it didn’t get through the system properly. Don’t jeopardize the perfect position because you are trying to wow the company with a fancy looking resume. Fancy resumes have their place, but not as likely for submitting online. Always make sure you have a text-only version of your resume to submit to online systems without all the fancy graphics. Save the fancy version for emailing to someone directly or for physical submissions.
Need a second opinion about how your resume reads from an employer’s perspective? Click here to send your resume for a free resume review (feedback by email).
