Someone once said, “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.” Too much reading can also be dangerous.
Having an AOL e-mail account. Using Times New Roman. Not having more than a one- or two-page resume. ATS. White fonting. What’s a person to do?
This was actually the mindset of a career counseling client of mine. She had paid someone for a resume that produced nothing but a hole in her wallet. So she decided to read all she could about resumes. Problem was, she had what I call “information overload.”
Everyone has an opinion about resumes. Professional resume writers have the need to make resume writing appear to be a science. They focus in on what is important to them. They want you to write your resume (or pay them to write your resume ) their way. But their way may not be the employer’s way. And it’s the employer who matters.
Here is what employers cares about:
Where do you live?
How can they reach you?
What have you done that will convince them that you can do the job for which you are applying?
What are your qualifications?
Where have you worked and for how long?
What have you done that differentiates you from your competition?
They don’t care about what you think about yourself. They don’t care about your subjective opinions. They only care about objective facts.
So keep your resume simple and honest. Provide the answers to the above questions in a sensible manner. And don’t worry. Employers usually don’t spend more than five seconds looking at a resume. It’s a tool to get you to the important step – the step they care about – the interview.
Just, please, don’t spend a lot of money having someone write a resume for you. After all, you are providing them with the facts, all they are doing is organizing them. It’s not complicated!
Employment Edification 