Clarity in a CV is as essential as a neat and tidy house when it comes to selling it. You may find someone who like garish paint schemes and a lived...
Clarity in a CV is as essential as a neat and tidy house when it comes to selling it. You may find someone who like garish paint schemes and a lived in look but most people prefer neatness. Your CV is not the place to express individualism in layout- you can show your achievements in another way
CV content. Start with your name and contact details, namely your full address, telephone number(s) and email address (private if at all possible). Avoid email addresses with funky terms- plain is absolutely the best- get a new gmail account if you need one
Your CV profile or career objective is one and the same thing. A short paragraph of a couple of sentences showing what you can do, for whom, in what sector of industry. The purpose of the profile is to engage the reader to carry on reading more. Given that you have about 20 seconds to get a recruiters attention, getting your profile right is just about the single most important thing to get right on your professional CV
Career history needs to be detailed in reverse chronological order. Basically, start with your most recent work experience and work back wards. Achievements are far more impressive that responsibilities. Itemizing your achievements makes your CV stand out from the crowd. This is one area where the use of a professional CV service can make a real difference in how you sell yourself to an employer
Professional and Educational qualifications are two completely different things. A professional CV writer will separate out these two different qualifications to make it easier for an employer to look at your vocational and your educational qualifications. This is a subtle, yet important component of a professional CV
Your CV should be finalized with a very brief section detailing your interests, hobbies, driving license, etc. Please make sure that you tell the truth in this section. You really can get caught out here. This is the spice in the meal- a recruiter may invite you for interview if they hold a common interest. If you lie, you will definitely get caught out!
Gaps in your career stand out like the proverbial sore thumb. Recruiters are trained to look out for them and almost above everything else on your CV, having a gap will at least ask a question in the employers mind. Your job with your CV is to answer questions before the need for the question to be raised. Don’t be a rookie, be professional and explain your career gaps
About the author: Glenn Hughes is the owner and consultant of a business located in the UK. A can really improve your chances of getting a better job
Is it ok to lie on your CV? Whilst this might seem acceptable as seen on the recent series of The Apprentice on the BBC, the truth is that it is never alright to lie on your CV. You knew that already? Lying on a CV is a quite reasonable reason to sack someone if the employer finds out. Stay safe, tell the truth
Is it necessary to have a cover letter to accompany my CV? The simple truth is that it isn’t necessary- but then, survival isn’t compulsory either. Setting yourself apart from the competition in a positive way is always a good idea. There are plenty of applications for every job, make your application stand out from all the rest
Having a professionally written CV available at all times can be a very useful asset. It doesn’t matter how well one person may know you as it is always useful for them to have something readily available to show to a colleague. The ability to be able to produce a CV quickly shows that you are serious about your intention to progress in your career. It also shows that you are well prepared and should not be taken lightly
Q: Why don’t I just write my own CV or get a family member to do it? A: Many people actually do this- at the same time, most people don’t get interviews. You are too close to yourself to be objective. The other issue is that most people undersell themselves- British reserve has no place on a CV- you need a professionally produced CV- we have a success rate of over 95% having written over 1200 CVs for people in all sorts of occupations.
Mass mailing my CV is a great idea isn’t it? The answer is both yes and no. It is a complete waste of time if it is not targeted. Targeted mailing of your CV electronically through a service like CV Trumpet is, however a great idea. It gets you results
Surely I need to make my CV stand out using bright colors and wacky fonts? If you want to get your CV trashed straight away, go through this process. Of course sometimes this will work but you’re taking a serious risk with your career. You need as many people as possible to take a look at your CV. Never ruin your chances by trying to be too individualistic. Boring definitely is best
About the author: Mr. Hughes is the managing consultant and partner of the business, CV That Works. If your career is in need of assistance, consider employing their
The tone of any particular piece of writing comes across as clearly as the nose on your face. Many times that I read a CV that has been written by someone who is fearful, I can tell immediately. The tone of writing comes across very quickly and turns off the reader so quickly that the CV gets rejected almost immediately even though nothing else is actually wrong with the document
You cannot help the way you feel about an event that is going on in your life. Feelings of desperation, despair, loneliness, etc. find a way of getting in to your subconscious mind and this definitely transmits through to the things you say and write about. One of the first things to do to resolve this issue is to understand it in the first place. Once you understand that your feelings definitely transmit into writing, you can start to do something about it
Just the simple fact of understanding that your feelings affect the way you come across in writing can help you get the results that you desire from your writing. For example, if you are at your best first thing in the morning, clearly it makes sense to write then. We all have some degree of flexibility in our schedule and choosing to write at the time when we are at our best and perhaps just planning when we are not so good
Feeling great about yourself is bond to come over in your writing. When you feel the most positive, drop everything (if that is possible for you) and get down to writing that important sales letter, job application, resume, etc. Be aware of your feelings and moods and monitor your writing for positivity. Get someone else to read through your work and make sure that you are projecting the message that you are trying to achieve
Writing when you are tired is definitely not to recommended. Whilst this may sound like stating the obvious, you would be amazed at the times when we have reviewed CVs that have clearly been written when the writer was feeling tired. This can certainly be the case when a CV is produced by one of the word processing CV factories that mass produce CVs that all look and feel the same
The best writers of every generation have always put something of themselves into their writing. Giving of yourself enables you to connect with he reader in a powerful way that stays with the reader long after the piece of writing is put down. Try and make your writing memorable. Connect with your audience at an emotional level and you’re part way there
Incredible results come from taking a few risks. Make the effort to really connect with your reader and you will stand out from the crowd. this is particularly important in a document like a CV which is a selling document. It is designed to sell you to an employer,so connecting is vital. In fact it is often the difference between getting an interview or a rejection letter
About the author: Glenn Hughes is part of a group of professional . If you need help with your resume or CV, consider a service to get the reults that you need
