The Most Overused Phrases/Words on a Resume

I critique a lot of resumes and I see a common theme. Most like they were copied out of a book, or are just badly written to begin with. Amateur writers make the mistake of overusing the certain words. Here's my list of words & phrases that WON'T make your document stand out from the rest.

1. SUCCESSFULLY did this or that. Of course you did. Tell me by how much instead and what the end result was.

2. RESPONSIBLE FOR. This is the most boring phrase on your resume. We all have job responsibilities. The question is... were those responsibilities fulfilled? What was the result?

3. DUTIES INCLUDE. See #2.

4. OBJECTIVE. Yes the objective is for you to find a job. But the truth is, no one cares about your needs. The reader cares what you can do for them. Use an attention grabbing headline statement instead.

5. MANAGED. I see this one repeated over and over. Pull out a thesaurus and you'll find great synonyms including directed, led, supervised, championed, spearheaded, controlled, guided, etc.

Jobs are There, but Work Ethic Isn't

One of my colleagues in Career Directors International is hiring a Director of New Business Development. Don Straits of Career Warriors recently posted his frustration on our private egroup with finding the right candidate. Don gave me permission to share, as these are issues you need to know about if you're seeking a job. Don has hired hundreds of people throughout his career, and says "it never ceases to amaze me at how many job seekers just don't get it."

He continues....

"I have been looking at dozens of resumes, or perhaps a couple of hundred..and
as we all know, that is a nightmare by itself. But something else really
struck me. With all of the prospects I have identified and scheduled for
phone interviews, or personal interviews, there is a common thread. I
emailed links to each of them for my five websites (Corporate Warriors,
Conferencing, and Blogs) for their review, prior to the interview. WITHOUT
EXCEPTION, every prospect failed to do their homework and review the sites.
When I asked them why not, they all had a list of excuses as long as your
arm. A couple of them gave one or two of the sites a quick overview, but
none of them had an in depth understanding of what we do or had any
questions. They wanted me to tell them what we do. AAARGH."

As it turns out, Don didn't hire any of the prospects during this attempt at securing a Director of New Business Development. He's apparently looking for candidates with a work ethic and research skills.

Let this be a lesson to anyone lucky enough to be called for a job interview. DO YOUR HOMEWORK!

Merry Christmas.

Update Your References with LinkedIn.com

Whether you're out pounding the pavement, or are still gainfully employed, you need to be on LinkedIn.com!

Linkedin is one of the best resources around for tracking down former co-workers, customers, and supervisors and you'll find it will really come in handy when you need to get an employment reference. With people moving around a lot, it's hard to keep track of all this information on your own. LinkedIn does it for you -- FREE.

With LinkedIn, you can gather testimonial quotes, join networking groups with colleagues in your field, and surreptitiously peruse job openings, just in case.

Jason Alba just updated his book "You're on LinkedIn, Now What?" to include the latest service offerings of the site. You can purchase a copy through his website at jibberjobber.com.

Resume Critiques and the Ladders.com

My association with other professional resume writers includes an e-group thread that allows us to ask questions of one another (such as, how do you write a resume for a person getting out of jail? etc.) Over the past couple of days the topic has been about the Ladders.com and their "free resume critique offer."

I used to be very loyal to the Ladders and even critiqued resumes for them for about a year when they first launched. I was a sub contractor for another company. The guy I subcontracted for was super nice and told all us who critiqued and sold resumes, if the resumes look good, say so! Ask if their phone is ringing. If it is, then leave the document alone. Many times I'd run across a resume that was obviously written by a professional resume writer and I would let the requester know it was well written. I didn't sell a whole lot of resumes at $700 a pop. But those I did close sales from people that said they appreciated my honesty during the critique.

My relationship with the Ladders ended a year ago when the company decided we weren't closing enough sales, and they took their critiques and sales in house. I didn't stay on, because I'm just not that aggressive.

So, back to the subject at hand on our resume writers egroup. It turns out that the Ladders is ripping to shreds, documents written by certified resume writers. I got mine ripped apart about 6 months ago when one of my very loyal clients sent it in just to see what someone else thought. He was kind enough to send the canned form letter to me which was extremely verbose and mentioned things like "the document lacks a list of core competencies" which it blatantly had. My client knew they were trying to scam him into a $700 resume, and admitted he was thoroughly pleased with the $350 package I sold him. His first resume, which I wrote for him in 2002 yielded 6 interviews (from 12 applications), 3 offers, and $10K more a year, so he trusted my expertise enough to come back for an update when he was laid off 6 months ago. I sent him to the Ladders to find a job, only to have them slap me hard. I switched allegiances and never recommended the Ladders again.

The resume writers from our egroup forum were comparing notes. It turns out we all got the same critique from sales people who make a healthy commission on every sale. Some of my colleagues have been in business for 20 years, have authored books, and won numerous awards. These harsh critiques were unwarranted.

So just in case you're sending in a resume to the Ladders for a critique. I suggest you send in a few different versions. Change the name, the companies, etc, and then compare what you get back. You'll see what we saw. An impersonal long winded critique trying to get their hands on your hard earned money.

If your phone is ringing for interviews, then the resume is doing its job. It doesn't matter what I think, or the Ladders. Leave it alone and don't change a thing.

Buyer Beware.

Job Fair Tips

Yesterday's unemployment numbers were downright scary -- 533,000 jobs lost in October. For the jobs that are available, it's an employer's market, and to streamline the process and find the best candidates possible, many are using job fairs to fill their positions.

I've been to many of these career expos over the years, as a presenter, resume reviewer, and even on behalf of an employer, seeking new employees. Here are some tips I've put together to help you put your best foot forward.

1. Do your Homework. Find out in advance which employers will be there and research the job vacancies available before you leave home. Hit those employers first when you get to the fair. Also don't wait till the end of the day. I've seen a lot of these employers pack up and leave just after lunch.

2. Dress to impress! This is not a home and garden show, yet I've seen a number of job seekers in the past chewing gum, and wearing skimpy outfits, flip flops, and attire not suitable for a job search. Treat the job fair like you would a job interview. Dress up in business clothing.

2. Leave the kids and spouse at home. Job seekers pushing strollers, or even walking hand in hand with their significant other will not be taken seriously. Job interviews are done solo.

3. If your resume is more than a page, print page two on the backside of page one. I know this seems contradictory of previous advice to always print it out on separate pages, but after talking with several recruiters at job fairs, I've been told they like it back-to-back. That way a page won't get lost if a wind gust scatters all those resumes in the parking lot at the end of the day.

4. Make a positive introduction. Most job seekers at these fairs walk up to the booth and say something like, "what do you have?" Instead, shake the recruiters hand, look him/her in the eye and say "I'm John Doe, a CPA with 10 years experience with successful results working in the building industry. Do you have any openings that might match my qualifications?"

5. Follow up! If you find an employer interested in your qualifications, get a business card and follow up with an email asking for another interview.

6. Don't discount temporary employment. Many temp agencies have booths at job fairs and have "temp to hire" positions. A temporary gig is a great way to try out your next employer and keep some cash coming in at the same time.

7. Don't complain about how bad it is out there in the job market. Employers want to hear the positive, not the negative.

8. Some companies pass out goodies such as pens (for the job application) or breath mints. Grab a breath mint, just in case.

9. Bring a small bottle of hand sanitizer. You'll be shaking a lot of hands, and the last thing you need is to get sick during your job search.

10. Don't talk about money. If you're asked what kind of salary you're seeking, ask how much is budgeted for the position. He who mentions money first, loses.

It is possible to get a job in a poor economy. It just takes more work, and time.

Dialing while Drunk

I got 3 very strange voicemails the other day that came in the middle of the night. They were 3 minute recordings of background noise which appeared to be from a bachelor party for one of 3 guys I heard chattering away not realizing they had an audience. The first call came in at 3AM, the second about 3:30, and the third at 4. I recognized the cellphone's owner from my Caller ID. The phone's owner never spoke to me, or knew that his phone was dialing out on its own.

Here's what I suspect happened. The person had my phone number in their saved contact list and was giving it to his friend (because I'm a resume writer.) Add a few cocktails in the mix, forget to clear the number, and the next thing you know, he was inadvertently hitting the send button or the re-dial. It happens. No big deal, right?

But consider this. What if his phone ended up calling a client, or his boss? Imagine the ramifications of his business associates knowing he hangs out in strip clubs into the wee hours and gets sloppy drunk. That would be career suicide.

Now I'm not judging anyone's behavior here. Just pointing out that your cellphone might rat you out, recording your every move (including photos too.) Be advised.

Everyday is your job interview.

Your ego is showing

I spend a lot of time in professional chatrooms for various occupations to get my feel for the challenges and requirements of different jobs. The threads back and forth are interesting and informative. One thing I've noticed among the replies, is how people sign their names, with the inclusion of supporting contact information. It's called a signature line, and it usually reads something like:

Susan Geary
Certified Resume Writer
1stRateResumes.com
www.1stRateResumes.blogspot.com
(866) 690-4622 (toll-free)

Member Career Directors International
Nominated for 3 TORI Awards for excellence in resume writing

----------------------------

Is it just me or are these things getting a little too long? These signature lines seem to be growing by leaps and bounds. You know what I'm talking about. The threads with 2 line replies followed by a 26 line biography of every accomplishment the signatory ever attained. It's like one person sees another do it, and says, "I'm going to beef up my signature line too." It wastes bandwidth, and annoys the reader, because because information is difficult to find. The reader has wade to through a resume within every email, just to find the answer to a question.

I see the reason behind it, and it's a great idea. Just shorten it please! Perhaps instead of listing 15 different writing awards, write "Winner of 15 TORI Awards." And just give us the best stuff and a web address. We'll seek more information if we're interested.

The only thing an extremely long signature line does is make the writer look egotistical. I'm sure that's not the intention, however be advised that it is the perception.

All the best in your job search!