Never have this on your CV

We talked of how you could make a good first impression with your CV. A few additional tips have also been offered on what your CV should contain. Now lets move ahead and see what your resume should not have! Since this is the most valuable document of your job hunt you must take care not to have things on it which could put the recruiter off. Remember the sole purpose of your CV is to fetch you an interview call. Nothing more, nothing less. Enough talk! just try to avoid these mistakes:

• Fake Experience or lies about Actual Work Profile: I know many folks say why bother about it. However, it is common knowledge that many take this shot-cut to a job. Well, a few of your friends who landed up a job through this route might have been lucky, but don’t even consider it anymore. Most organizations these days go in for third party verification and spend a huge sum (up to Rs 25K) just to verify the credentials of a candidate. So just don’t lie about your past jobs or qualifications or anything which might have an impact on the job. Eventually it will be a better way to reach your intended end goal without making a mess of things.
• Domain specific jargon and Abbreviations: Agree you have a good knowledge of cutting edge technologies in your domain and you know about all the latest buzzwords. The trouble is your CV is going to be screened by people from HR department. While they are aware of the commonly used jargon and abbreviations from your domain they would not know the very specific ones. Just avoid over-using these, you’d have ample opportunity during the Interview!
• Past failures or health problems: You had an entrepreneurial streak and left your job to do your own business. Somehow things didn’t work out and you’re looking for a job again. All very well but you now have a gap in your employment which you need to fill. Similarly, you’ve suffered from certain health problems in the past. There’s nothing wrong with either, however why would you want to put it on your CV. Instead, explain it at the time of the interview.
• Current or expected salary: These days salary negotiation is an art (we would discuss about it in a different article). Why would you want to limit your chances of receiving an interview call or a better pay package by putting it on your CV.
• Reasons for leaving last job: Your prospective employer would ask it during the interview in any case, so why bother about it in your CV.

Some additional things you should take care to avoid would be:

• Spelling mistakes and grammatical errors on your CV. Always proof-read it two times or more.
• Putting your photograph unless it is asked for since most employers would ask you to bring them along when they need it.
• Don’t use ‘I’, ‘My’, ‘He’, ‘She’ while enlisting your achievements or even detailing your work profile. Instead of writing: “I was the Tech Lead on XYZ project. My team developed ABC module.” you should write: “Worked as Tech Lead for the team that developed ABC module for XYZ project”.
• Try to present your CV as a formal, official document. So keep it simple and avoid colorful or glossy paper and flashy fonts.

By: Moderator1229 days ago