It is tempting to put little white lies on your resume. These might include overstating your knowledge of required software (“If they call me, I’ll teach myself over the weekend”), a certification (“They’ll never go through all that trouble to find out”) or extending dates at a former employer (“They can’t find out. The company went out of business”).
This is the second in a series of articles highlighting principles for writing a sparkling resume. Each article presents one or more keys to creating a professional and effective resume that generates interviews.
How Resumes are Read
Resumes are rarely read. Resumes are first scanned, usually by HR (Human Resources) or the internal recruiter. Resumes are scanned in about 10 seconds per resume. HR scans hundreds of resumes daily and does not have the time to read resumes in detail. Even if they did it is unlikely they could perform a detailed screen because they are recruiting for multiple disciplines and understand each discipline only at the conceptual level. HR is looking for keywords. You’re competing for the reader’s. If a quick scan captures the reader’s interest they read it in detail.
Contrary to what your college professor said, the one-page resume rule is a myth.
Contrary to what your college professor said, the one-page resume rule is a myth. Unfortunately, many listen to this outdated advice and devise ways to cram a complete professional history into one sheet. So much so that most job seekers expand the margins of the documents, use a small font size, and skimp on accomplishments rather than risk exceeding one page.
The résumé that landed you a job five or ten years ago may no longer be as effective as it once was, especially if it was the “one size fits all” type. In order to conduct a successful job search, it’s essential that you custom fit your document to the targeted position and its challenges. It’s not enough to copy sentences out of resume books. Every good resume begins with a strategy based on the applicant’s skills, experience, education, and industry.