Keep your resume short

October 27, 2006 · Filed Under Finding Your Job 

You’ve got to cut it down.

I’ve looked at quite a few resumes. And while there are some exceptions to this rule, if you are the exception, you generally don’t need to be reading this blog for resume advice. Here are the three out of the six you MUST do right now to cut down your resume:

  1. Don’t overdo the underlining, bolding and italics. Wow, this is one that flubs me every time. If you use bold and italics on every other word, not only is it hard to read, it doesn’t actually highlight anything.
  2. Include old information sparingly. I say this with a caution: make sure you are disclosing that you are giving incomplete information. I made a very targeted resume for someone and I gave it the term “Relevant Work Experience” and include a phrase that her full job history was available upon request. I also made her have a separate sheet that include her full work history available with her at all times.
  3. Leave out personal information. One fellow that has dropped off his resume before has included his full vital stats. That is completely unnecessary. You can talk about your love of big game hunting once you’re hired. It is really unnecessary for you to include it on your resume, especially considering the amount of precious space available.

Everything else in the article is good too but you have to follow those rules.

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