A resume is the perfect opportunity to showcase your experience, skills, education, and much more, but some people can get so carried away trying to promote themselves that they add too many things to their resume.
With as many resumes as an interviewer must look through, they don’t want to read through a lot of fluff.
Your resume should be as clear and concise as possible and highlight why you should get the job. To do this well, here are six things that you should NOT include in your resume.
- An Objective
Objectives are a thing of the past. When you think about it, what did they really contribute to your resume? Every employer will know that your objective is to get the job. They don’t care how eloquently you can put it into words.
Instead, you should have a quick introduction to who you are and why you would be the best candidate for the job.
- Lies
It doesn’t matter how much you want the job; there is no excuse for lying on your resume. If you get caught in the lie, not only will you not get the job, but you will also lose your reputation.
This includes taking something true and making exaggerations or embellishments that make it sound bigger than what it really is. Make sure you include only honest and true statements in your resume.
- Typos
The ability to craft a well written document and ensure that there are no typos is an easy way for you to show your skills in written communication. Your resume is, in a way, your first test task that a potential employer can evaluate you on.
Take the time to make sure that you dot your “i’s” and cross your “t’s” Make sure the wording is cohesive and your grammar is correct. A poorly written resume will not get you the job.
- Hobbies
The fact that you collect vintage cars or can play the violin are not skills that you need to include in your resume. Not only can this come off as showing off, but it isn’t relevant to the job at all.
Your hobbies are definitely something that you can leave off your resume.
- Unrelated work experience
You may be tempted to write down every job you’ve had since high school on your resume, but this isn’t a good idea. The only jobs that you should have on your resume are ones that look good for the job you are applying for.
No one needs to know that you were the best fry cook in McDonald’s when you were 16 and they don’t need to know you took a side job to make ends meet on your first job out of college.
- Unprofessional email addresses
The email address that you put on your resume for a new job application should be professional. You should not use your personal email with a funky name like [email protected]. This email doesn’t make you seem like the type of person that takes the job seriously.
You also don’t want to use your current employment email address either. This is tacky. If you must, create a whole new email and keep it simple. Your first and last name are perfect for a professional looking email address.
Your resume is your first step to getting the job. Make sure it is polished and presentable before sending it in.
