Real Resumes, Real Mistakes

In my many years of writing resumes for job seekers in the board room and the mail room, in private industry and in government and the military, I’ve come across some interesting mistakes.

Here are a few mistakes you should not make on your resume.

One recent college graduate wanted to make his resume seem more impressive. He turned a one-page resume into a two-page resume by leaving two-inch margins on every side of the paper. He wasn’t fooling anyone. I write two-page resumes for recent college graduates but I include information that most recent college graduates do not consider putting in their resumes. This information may make the difference in getting you hired or having your resume stall in the Applicant Tracking Systems or on a hiring manager’s desk.

A job applicant assumed she correctly remembered the names of all the companies she worked for. But she didn’t; she misspelled two of them. Mistakes like that make recruiters and hiring managers wonder if the resume is truthful.

A sales executive described his success at landing multi-million dollar contracts for various companies. But each time he listed a dollar amount, he changed the form: $1 million; $2M; $3,000,000. That mistake shows a disregard for detail.

An applicant for a government job saw the requirement for a social security number but ignored it. When you apply for government jobs, you cannot ignore any requirement. (Note that your social security number should never appear on your resume for jobs in the private sector.)

At Robin’s Resumes®, we have seen, caught and corrected countless mistakes you may not see because we have more objectivity and more experience. Let us help you craft a resume that shows you off to perfection.