Sloth
A whopping 50 per cent of CVs have typos on them. Spell check is all well and good, but it can’t correct everything and will miss a whole host of mistakes. Use ‘their’ instead of ‘there’, ‘to’ instead of ‘too’ or spell a company name wrong and the error will stay for all to see.
Don’t be lazy; check and check again, then check again and ask a friend to check for you. Attention to detail and strong written communication skills are required in all sorts of jobs. Put it this way: if two candidates have the same skills but one can’t spell, who would you recruit?
Sloppy formatting is not acceptable, either. Most bosses are anally retentive and sticklers for presentation – that goes for CVs as well as a decent tie. So make sure your styles match and your paragraphs and bullet points are immaculately aligned.
Wrath
Never put anything negative on your CV. There’s no need to rant about why you left your old job. If you hated your boss, keep it to yourself, because the last thing your new boss wants is a team who can’t get on with each other.
Honesty may be the best policy, but understatement is your friend when it comes to talking about bad experiences. Instead of “My boss was and idiot and I hated my colleagues”, try “There was lots of healthy debate, but in the end I decided my approach would fit better in another company”.
Explain gaps in dates between jobs always putting a positive spin on the time you had off. Replace “I took a year off to bum around” with “I spent 12 months travelling, discovering new things and considering where I really want my career to go”.
Greed & Gluttony
Be sparing with your CV. Recruiters at an engineering firm don’t necessarily care that you got an A in art or that you’re a whizz in the kitchen. Tailor your CV to the recruiter and don’t be tempted to ‘over-design’ – presentation is key, but that means striking the right tone.
Going into too much detail in your personal interests is pointless and takes up valuable CV real estate which should be used on more substantial information. What you do in your spare time is up to you – leave it out unless it’s relevant.
Keep it professional. If you’re good at Photoshop or you know a ‘great little art shop’, don’t forget that employers are looking for substance over style. The paper and presentation is really just a frame for the detail, which is of course the most important part.
(Lack of) Lust
Your CV is not just there to convince recruiters that you can do a job, it’s also there to convince them that you want to do it. You need to express passion in your CV and real desire to do the job. Hitting the right pitch is key; you needn’t declare undying love for telecoms software, but a healthy interest is required if you’re going for an IT job.
There’s nothing that says “I don’t really care” more than a one-size-fits-all CV. People can spot a generic CV a mile off and it doesn’t take a recruitment genius to work out that you are not really up for it. Employers like to see a tailored CV, specific to their vacancy. Give them what they want.
Pride
We could all write a thesis about how amazing we are, but don’t make your CV too long – it should be kept to two pages, ideally, unless more information is requested. Long paragraphs and sentences should be avoided at all costs. They are boring.
And while it’s tempting to make up the odd porky pie, say by increasing your grades by a couple of letters or adding a few more accomplishments than you strictly achieved, it’s better to keep things true to life.
There’s a thin line between slightly enhancing the truth and lying your posterior off – and the later will unravel under close scrutiny at interview or through references. Avoid embarrassment and tell the truth.
(Instil) Envy
Make your employer need you. Good managers look to employ people that can do something they can’t. Make yourself indispensable by highlighting your unique skills. Then make the other candidates envy you when you’re called in for an interview!