Your resume is a professional document, not a personal document. It has the potential to be reviewed by a hiring professional and digitally scanned by a computer and neither will spend more than a few seconds “reading” your resume. Within these few seconds, you can be assured that the professional and the computer have no interest in whether you are a golfer or a bowler, unless these are the positions you are applying for!
Here are a few things that should NOT be included in your professional resume:
Hobbies, religion, age, marital status, every job you’ve had since you were 16, political views, sexual preferences, photographs, physical characteristics, health issues, prejudices, negative or boring words and your criminal record.
You would think that this goes without saying, that common sense should prevail, but I just received comments today from someone who is positive that the professional reviewing a resume is interested in knowing about an individual’s hobbies!
Approximately 30 seconds will be allocated to reviewing one of potentially hundreds of resumes and in that time frame, here are a few things that will be noticed and will be of interest:
Your name and contact data, a neat format devoid of unequal spacing, indents, white space or formatting discrepancies, correct spelling and grammar, consistent font type and size, a clear, concise, quantified list of accomplishments beginning with enticing action words and significant keywords that relate to the position.
If you are not sure about what NOT to include in your resume or even if you are sure, it is best to consult with a professional resume writer. Call for a free resume critique!
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