ECR's Top 5: The mistakes to avoid when writing your resume

ECR's Top 5: The mistakes to avoid when writing your resume

Whether you are in the market or not, best to avoid these mistakes...

Resume lettering text on black background
Resume lettering text on black background/Pexels Website

If you are in the job market or thinking of a career shift, the first thing you need to do is refresh your resume. 

Because even with the relevant experience and qualifications, sometimes you still go unnoticed by employers. 

Perhaps the leading cause of you not getting the attention you deserve is your resume (or as many South Africans call it, your CV). 

And if that is the case, you need to take some time to freshen up that document that literally introduces you to the world of employability. 

We have found some common mistakes that many people make when writing out their resume, and wanted to list them, so you can avoid them. 

According to LinkedIn Africa, there are more than five, but we have chosen the most common (in our view) and think perhaps this is a great starting point. 

1. Avoid a busy, complex resume format. Stick to a single column and use a font that’s easy to read. Simplicity is key.

2. Be wary of overloading the resume with irrelevant information and details that don’t showcase your soft skills.

3. Steer clear of misrepresenting or lying about your work experience, degrees or certifications - and be honest.

4. While writing job descriptions, abstain from using “I’m responsible for” at the beginning of each sentence and replace it with verbs like “I built” or “I created.”

5. Triple-check your resume for grammatical and spelling errors. 

(Courtesy of LinkedIn Africa)

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Now it can be tempting to include things in your resume to buff up your experience and appear more appealing. 

But lying about your experience will not work for you in the long run. Confidence is one thing, but coming through as a liar, ruins your integrity and your potential to move forward in your job search. 

We hope these have helped in some way, and if all else fails, contact a recruiter for some help. 

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