A piece recently came out on Business Insider entitled “11 Things You Should Never Put On Your Resume.” Though I’m fairly new to the recruiting game, I generally have pretty strong opinions on resume dos and don’t {check out my Confessions of a Recruiter series}, but I was up in the air about some of these. The comments add some interesting arguments to the article; they’re worth checking out.
1. Don’t have an objective: I’ve discussed the pros and cons of this before and I’m still on the fence. Every once in a blue moon, I see it done well- creatively, articulately, uniquely, etc. But put an irrelevant career path or the wrong job or company and you’re toast.
2. Eliminate irrelevant work experience: Again, on the fence. I agree that it looks cluttered and can make a candidate look wishy washy, but without it, you risk having inexplicable gaps in your work history. Which is the lesser of two evils?
3. Eliminate marital status, social security number, etc: Agreed! It’s odd, outdated, and uncomfortable.
4. Keep it to one page: I’ve discussed this one before too. I used to be a strict adherent to this rule, but I now see the merits of including more details if you’re a seasoned executive (but don’t sloppily let a resume run over to a second page. PDF that thang!).
5. Don’t list your hobbies: As one commentator said, “ hire people, not robots, and the hobbies and personal interests help me understand the person better.” I agree- it shows balance, self-motivation, and can often be just the thing that makes a recruiter take notice. I’ve convinced I was only hired because I could share the cool story of GW Bites, which was a hobby business.
6. Don’t give them a chance to guess your age: While companies do often play the “too senior” card, leaving off dates looks suspicious!
7. Don’t write your resume in the 3rd person: Agreed all the way! I used to have my LinkedIn in 3rd person but realized how strange it looks!
8. Don’t include references: Agreed- it’s a waste of space and besides, you should prep your recommenders about each individual job before they are contacted. They should be able to speak to your skill set for that job in particular.
9. Don’t use a tacky (my word) email address: Yup yup yup.
10. Don’t identify your phone number: As in “Phone: xxx-xxx-xxxx.” I definitely wouldn’t reject someone because of this, but I’ll agree it’s obvious that it’s your number!
11. Don’t include your current employer’s contact info: Yup!
What do you think? Disagree with the article and/or me? Let me know!
P.S. Anyone realize how every part of the Confessions series has a different title? That’s because I always have a different title. Haha!
