No matter how many resumes I look at, there is always one constant problem that almost nobody can seem to get away from: Making something out of nothing. Wait a minute, isn’t that the point of a resume? To pull every last ounce of impressiveness (patent pending) out of your accomplishments? The answer is that both points are valid. Before your head explodes, let me explain.

There is a big difference between describing your accomplishments in glowing detail and attributing successes or skills where they don’t belong. Here’s an example:

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I came across this humorous resume on Reddit, and I thought it was a good Friday laugh for everybody. I especially like the reference to the Excel spreadsheets, as that is so damn true sometimes.

Happy Friday!

How to create a great Resume is a topic that triggers lots of advice and even more questions. Should you include a salary range? How many pages should it be? How many previous jobs do you list? However, while all these factors are well known, there are many others that go under the radar. They might not come immediately to mind when you think of the word “Resume”, but they are just as important as the most popular ones. That’s why I put together the following list of three resume factors that often look in the background but should definitely be considered along with the big boys:

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This is one of those very tricky subjects that can make or break your resume: Should you include a salary range that you’re looking for on your resume? Some would argue that if the company isn’t interested in paying you what you want, then you’re better off not bothering with them. However, the other camp argues that you shouldn’t include it, and sell them on you first. The salary negotiations can come during later interviews. So where do I stand? Firmly in the second camp, except when explicitly stated by the job opening. My decision is based on the following reasoning:

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Putting a resume together can be extremely difficult, simply because of the large amount of information that you can include on it. Obviously, you can’t pick everything, but what do you choose? What critical piece of information about yourself will land you that dream job and which piece will shut the door on you?

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A Cover Letter is basically the gateway to your resume. It can be a great asset to your existing resume and put you a cut above the other candidates. By the same token, it can be a detriment to your resume, even causing your potential employer to put your resume into their “circular file” without even looking at it. For this reason, you need to avoid making the following three mistakes when writing your cover letter:

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In Part II of this series, we will be discussing the advantages of knowing your resume like the back of your hand. If you missed Part I, you’ll find it here: The Interview Edge: Pre-Interview Research.

Believe it or not, I’ve seen people go into a job interview and be stumped when they get a question about part of their resume. I’m not sure there is anything that makes you look worse than getting a question about your resume and answering “Uhh…it was a long time ago….I really don’t remember”. After all, you wrote it, you should know the contents of it better than anybody. Here is what your potential employer is going to think: “If they can’t remember details about something they put together, what kind of value will they add to my company?”. This is the quickest way to receive a “Don’t call us, we’ll call you” email or letter in the mail.

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The resume: gateway to your future, toll booth on the road to success, and many more interesting metaphors. Whichever way you look at it, your resume is the key to landing a great job. However, even though this is a widely recognized fact, I still see resumes come across my desk with glaring errors and obvious problems. With this in mind, I’ve compiled a list of the biggest five resume mistakes that I see which are easily preventable.

Here’s the list I’ve put together (in no particular order):

Top Five Resume Mistakes

• Forget to include your contact information - This seems silly, but it happens more often than you might think, especially on resumes submitted through an internet form. ALWAYS double check to make sure you have all your appropriate contact information on your resume. This includes the following: Name, address, phone number (cell, home or both just make sure you can be reached at it), and email address (necessary in today’s workplace). Key points: Remember to always include this information, and to always make sure it’s up to date.


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I recently added a new sub-category for resume related articles under the Career Management category, as I think the topic is broad enough to warrant its own section. To initiate this category into our happy family, I have found a pretty decent article on EzineArticles about writing a good resume even if you might have some weak areas.

Here is the article; I’ve added my own thoughts at the end of the article right after the author resource box:

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Quitting your job might be one of the trickiest situations that you can encounter. However, even trickier than quitting your job occurs right before you quit your job: Looking for a new job. When it comes down to it, you could quit your job before getting a new one if you have to. In my experience, it’s much more preferable to have something lined up before you quit your job. The question then becomes, how do you go about doing this?

Here are three things you should do in order to look for a new job while still being employed AND not burning any bridges along the way:

• Tell your boss - Does this sound crazy? Actually, it’s exactly the opposite. This is probably the best thing that you can do before you start looking for a new job. More than likely, if a new employer is interested in you, they are going to call your references. If you are even on decent terms with your current job, then you have someone there as a reference on your resume. Even if it’s not your boss, if they get a call then your boss is going to find out about it. This is not the way you want to keep on good terms with your current job. Schedule a meeting and tell your boss that you are planning on looking for a new job. Make sure you have the reasons that you are leaving ready beforehand to discuss with them. They will appreciate that you are giving them a heads-up as to your imminent departure, and coming from you is the best way they can hear about it.

• Don’t look at work - This is another biggie. You should avoid looking for a new job while at work at all costs. Looking for a new job at work (basically not doing any work for your current job) will certainly rub people the wrong way. This is a surefire method for getting a bad reference from your current employer. If you absolutely have to, such as you need to call someone from a possible new employer, do it on your lunch break and/or in private. Also, you should minimize the time at work that you are using to do this (taking two hours out of your work day is not suggested).

• Keep working hard - I’ve seen this happen a lot. Once someone starts looking for a new job, they quickly lose all interest in working hard in their current position. Again, this can mean nothing but bad things for you. You need to keep working hard regardless of the fact that you plan on leaving. Not only will your boss appreciate this, but your co-workers as well. You never know who you will work with or for in the future, so it’s best to not anger anybody by slacking off at the last moment.

One of the most important rules of business is this: Don’t burn any bridges on your way out. This may not always be possible, but you should do your best to make it happen. As I stated above, you never know who you will be working with or for five years from now. One of the people you work with now could be the person who decides whether or not you get hired in the future.