Resume: What to do, what not to do

At Worlco, we are in the staffing business. As you can imagine, that means we deal with resumes daily. We have seen great resumes and bad resumes. We have seen resumes that need no modification and resumes where we just have to start all over. Here is a guide of what to do, and what not to do.

By: Patrick Tiedeken

www.Worlco.com

Not to do: DO NOT have any grammar mistakes. Employers will laugh. Even if you are creating your resume the night before an interview (we all have done it) wake someone up, and have them check over for mistakes. Spelling, grammar and punctuation; it all really does matter.

Not to do: DO NOT include terms that will put employers to sleep.

Here are some specific terms that kill resumes. If you have them on yours, go to Microsoft Word now, and get rid of them!

Results-oriented professional

Cross-functional teams

More than [x] years of progressively responsible experience

Superior (or excellent) communication skills

Strong work ethic

Met or exceeded expectations

Proven track record of success

Works well with all levels of staff

Team player

Bottom-line orientation

To do: DO give your resume a personal voice. This actually sounds a lot better than "goal oriented marketer."

"I'm a Marketing Researcher who's driven by curiosity about why people buy what they do. At XYZ Industries, I used consumer surveys and online-forum analysis to uncover the reasons why consumers chose our competitors over us; our sales grew twenty percent over the next six months as a result.

Not to do: DO NOT "Bedazzle" your resume. It will not make you stand out. It will make you look unprofessional. Leave the gold sequins at home. Leave your picture off. The fanciest thing your resume should have is a line below your contact information and some Italic print. Anything else will make the employer say "is this person serious?"

To do: DO ADD a skill summary. If you have many relevant skills, throw right on the top of your resume in list form. If the employer is looking for someone who has skills "working with C# development for 2-3 years" and you have those skills, your resume should reflect that. Therefore, the first thing at the top of your skill summary should say "Working with C# development for 3 years." Show the employer that you have the skills desired for the job, then charm them with your great personality.

To do: Feel free to Google "how to make a resume." But wait, I already did it for you. It's free and easy. Just follow these guides: http://internships.about.com/od/resumetipssamples/ht/ResumeTips.htm