Well… last year (2010) I couldn’t update my blog and the reason is I was quite busy in other tasks that I don’t get a single hour to write a single new line… A sincere apology to the viewers/visitors of this blog. I’m soon coming up with some new content of this blog…

Resume:

CV/Resume is the most important & basic tool to market yourself. An intelligent CV/Resume increases chances to get job. So, you have to be very careful and have to pay full attention at the time of formulating/building up CV/Resume.

What is a CV/Resume? Defination of CV/Resume.

A CV/resume is one of the most important, necessary and key job-hunting tool for your professional career. CV/resume summarizes your accomplishments, academic qualifications, professional experiences, areas where your expert, your skills & strengths and any other information regarding the professional life and profession. CV/resume is a brief document that highlights your qualities and many other necessary things. This document can be considered as your proxy in the corporate world. It’s simply a marketing tool to get you into the door or win an interview.

Don’ts of CV/RESUME writing.

1. Don’t Use Stylish Fonts Or Funny Looking Fonts:
Avoid using stylish, funny, or fancy language fonts. Your CV/RESUME should look mature and professional. Let the content do the talking. Don’t use the word “I” repeatedly.

2. Don’t Put Your Snap/Picture:

Do not put your snap/photograph on your CV/RESUME. You want the employer to consider you on the basis of your Skills, Education, Experience instead of your physical appearance, as a start.

3. Never Lie:

Never lie whatever it takes. By lying, we only get saved for the time being and later on we get into the trouble. So it’s better to speak truth.  Explain your time gaps in your CV/RESUME when asked. If you have spent 1, 2 or more months looking for a new job, then say so. Inform the employer about it. If you have taken a career break, gone traveling or you were looking for the better opportunity, then say so! Don’t try to hide or make an excuse with the help of lie. The HR people are professionals and also expert enough to get the truth out of you.

4. Do Not Use Slangs & Abbreviations:

Do not use slangs or abbreviations in your CV/RESUME. This creates a careless and immature impact on the recruiter. Your CV/RESUME may be read by the HR manager who will be in need of seriously dedicated employees in his team. Make a good first impression through your CV/RESUME, so compose it very carefully.

5. Don’t Write The Same Thing Again N Again:

Avoid writing or repeating the same thing in your CV/RESUME which you have already mentioned, even if it is written in the form of bullets, because it will use the important space and take your other achievements far away. It also doesn’t give a good impression on your CV/RESUME.

6. Don’t Exaggerate Your Experience:

Exaggerating your experience will put you in great trouble and will also cause you problems later on. Write only experience where you actually worked and gained experience. Avoid writing fake experience.  So be practical, honest & careful while writing a CV/RESUME.

7. Don’t Quote Irrelevant Facts:

Do not write irrelevant/useless facts in your CV/RESUME which has no concern with your career achievements. A potential employer has no interest in how many children & grandchildren you have. He may only be interested and looking for a candidate, who is educated, trained, qualified and skilled in his area of expertise.

8. Make Professional Email ID:

Your email ID should be professional & mature looking.  Make a professional email address, preferably with your own name like: "shaan.malick@abc.com", “smalick@abc.com”. Don’t use a humorous or inappropriate email address such as "shaanlover@abc.com, “crazylover@xyz.com”, “smartboy@xyz.com” etc. This may make an employer smile but won’t call you an interview.

9. References:

Include references only when it is required by the company. You should simply state that: “To be furnished upon request”, “References are available on request”.

Dos of CV/RESUME writing.

1.     Detailed CV/RESUME:

Take 2 to 3 days to compose your CV/RESUME. The biggest mistake most candidates make is to throw away a great chance by rushing to an average one. Regard your CV/RESUME and application letter as an important project in progress and give it a polish every couple of months thus developing and improving it even further. You never know when you will be approached by a company and asked for it. Be unambiguous while stating the facts. Your CV/RESUME should be comprehensive and up-to-date so as to render the employer incapable of coming up with any questions in it while analyzing it.

2.     Career/Executive Summary:

Begin your CV/RESUME with an appealing career/executive summary. This will be a synopsis of the whole document for the employer’s ease. A summary becomes very important for professionals with multiple years of experience as it provides a bird-eye view of your background and skill-sets in one single area. Hence it is a section that must be paid extra attention to.

3.     Write important skills at the beginning:

Elucidate your aptitude, competence and expertise as soon as possible in your CV/RESUME. This will make it more impressive and the employer will not have to scan the whole document. It will also enrich him with the information he requires in order to make an interview appointment with you.

4.     Make the CV/RESUME according to the role:

If you have a job description, it is advisable to regulate your CV/RESUME so that it readily highlights the aspects of your experience relevant to the job which you are applying for. CV/RESUME's formulated with a specific role in mind are almost always more successful than those written for any generic position. This is particularly true of graduate applications.

5.     Updated information:

Always state your updated info at the start of your CV/RESUME, i.e., your contact details including name, address, home and mobile telephone numbers and email address. It is imperative to be accessible at all times and under all conditions.

6.     Using bullets:

Using bullets makes a CV/RESUME more concise and easier to scan. So instead of opting for paragraphs, summarize it in the form of bullets.

7.     Use Comprehensible Headings:

Write comprehensible headings while entering your information in your CV/RESUME. Clear headings help in scanning the required data at a glance.

8.     Detailed and explained in paragraphs:

For experienced professionals, job responsibilities should be detailed, explained in paragraphs if required instead of bullets, but easy to read. The more easy the language the more are the chances for an interview call.

9.     Use accurate Information:

Use accurate, concise and slang-free details while composing your professional CV/RESUME. Including flawed information will only call for trouble when you are asked questions in order to verify what you have written in your CV/RESUME.

10.   Just keep it simple:

Keep it simple linguistically and apparently when it comes to producing the ideal “curriculum vitae”. Remember that: “Less is More”.

11.   Do Mention dates:

Cite dates consistently while referring to qualifications and experience. Always start with the most recent credentials and work backwards.

12.   CV/RESUME writing length:

CV/RESUME should not be longer than 1 – 2 pages if you are just starting your career, 2 – 3 pages if you are seeking mid-management positions and 3 – 4 pages if you are seeking senior management positions.

13.   Standard font size:

Use a font size that is large enough to read, 11 or 12 is advisable. No fancy fonts, so keep it simple. Best is to use Times New Roman, Verdana or Arial font styles while composing a CV/RESUME.

14.   Check Spelling:

This is made possible by proof-reading one’s CV/RESUME over and over again. Typos usually turn off employers. Ask a friend to read over your CV/RESUME and cover letter for the rectification of spelling and grammar mistakes or use a spell check. Spelling mistakes portray you as careless and unfocused. A CV/RESUME full of mistakes will end up directly in the trash can. Use present tense for current jobs, keep it consistent and keep the same tense throughout your CV/RESUME.

15.   Make desired job distinguishable:

Make it clear on a covering letter or email which job you are applying for. This will be to your benefit as the employer will be able to judge in a glance whether you are a suitable recruitment for the available job or not.

16.    Demonstrate Technical Skills:

The most effective way to demonstrate technical skills is to provide a breakdown of the projects you’ve worked on. Remember that a project should comprise of the following pieces of information:
• Title
• Timelines
• Number of staff involved
• Technology you used
• Your role
• What you actually did

17.     Make yourself a Selling Tool:

Remember that a CV/RESUME is a very important selling tool. It is a way of persuading a consumer to buy a product, means a company to decide that your skills are worth paying for. You should think about the skills and experience that would appeal to an employer rather than including everything you have done. The “kitchen sink” approach can mean that your relevant skills are lost in your CV/RESUME and are not sold enough.

18.     When can be Available:

Include your availability (e.g., “immediately available” or “4 weeks’ notice”). This will help the employer to make up his mind about whether he can/cannot wait for you as a prospective candidate.

The Do’s And Don’ts Of CV/Resume Writing

What is the difference between a CV and a Resume? Actually there is no difference between them. Resumes and CVs are both the same documents that are considered to be the first exchange of information between a recruiter and a person who is looking for a job or has been selected for the initial job interview.

For that reason, a CV/resume should be written very carefully and should contain only that information that is relevant to the job description/profile that you have applied for. 

CV/Resume is one of the basic or main documents of our professional career. The CV/Resume can be described as a concise document that highlights the educational qualifications, the professional experience and expertise, and any information regarding the profession and professional life. This document can be considered as your proxy in the corporate world.

Your CV/RESUME is not a job description. It is a sales catalogue for your services. Thus, job seekers need to keep industry “requirements” in front when writing their CV/RESUME.

In this competition period, every day the recruitment manager of a company faces a unnumbered job applications for each advertised post. Usually he will catorized the CV/Resume as “yes”, “no”, and “maybe”. So your first mission is to make sure that your job application secures a position in “yes” category.

You can get the positive and outstanding results by composing a well written CV/RESUME. Thus, it is CV/RESUME which decides whether you are going to be fit for the job or not.

Here are a few Dos and Don’ts which should be rigorously kept under consideration while composing an executive or professional CV/RESUME.