Common Resume Mistakes To Avoid

You’ve decided it’s time to update your resume and start getting it out there. Before you hit “send,” here are a few of the most common resume mistakes job candidates make. Avoid these mistakes and you’ll improve your ability to land interviews.

Sending your resume before you know what you're looking for

When you do this, you're not tailoring your resume for any particular type of position. You may be lacking focus, and that will come across in your resume. The document will typically fail to resonate with people because it wasn't crafted with them in mind.

Sending a generic resume

As someone who regularly reviews resumes, I can attest that it is obvious when someone is sending the same resume for lots of roles at many organizations. Generic resumes are easy to spot.

Why does this matter? If you're not taking the time to tailor your resume for a particular role at a particular organization, how well are you demonstrating that you're invested in the role? How well are you demonstrating that you have relevant skills, experiences, and expertise for the role?

Making it hard to identify pertinent information in your resume

If your resume is cluttered with pages of extraneous, irrelevant, dated information, you are making it difficult for the person reviewing it to find what they are looking for. Some job candidates even omit their contact information or format it in such a way that it's not visible to applicant tracking systems (ATS).

Thinking you have less experience than you do

If you're a recent graduate, you may have more experience than you realize. It can be tough to see job posting after job posting for entry-level positions requiring 2-3 years of experience, when you feel like you don't have that.

However, when you add up your volunteer experiences, internships, involvement with student organizations, academic leadership experiences, and so forth, you very well may have a strong foundation that you can build upon. So don't underestimate your qualifications. If a role sounds of interest and you can showcase your relevant skills and experiences, go for it!

Working on your resume in isolation

Working on your resume alone is similar to trying to clean out your closet without any help. It can be done, sure, but how long will it take you to get around to it? How much progress will you make, given that you have an emotional attachment to many of the items? How strong will the finished product be, given that you have a hard time deciding what to keep and what to part ways with?

A Dean of College and Career Advising I spoke with on this topic suggested, "Utilize your network to get feedback or see how others are sharing their information in their resumes."

Recap

Here's how to get past common resume mistakes:

• Identify what types of roles sound of interest to you (it's fine if it's a few different types of roles)
• Get in the habit of customizing your resume and cover letter for the roles you're applying to, so it is clear you did your homework and you have relevant qualifications
• Make it easy for the reviewer to find the info they need
• Count up your experiences and if you meet many of the qualifications, go ahead and apply. You don't need to meet every qualification to be a strong candidate.
• Take a look at other people's LinkedIn profiles and resumes to get ideas on how to present experience. Get feedback on your resume from advisors, mentors, coaches, etc. Others' experiences and perspectives can help you increase your clarity and strength as a job candidate.

I partner with a professional resume writer who is an expert at transforming resumes to make them highly relevant and accomplishments-oriented. By working with an expert, you can dramatically reduce the amount of time you spend applying for jobs and speed up your progress.

Learn more about working with professionals on your job search.

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