The 10-Step CV Overhaul
I have had the doubtful pleasure of sifting through several thousand CVs over the years, looking for the people we need to interview. In tough times like these, you need your CV to stand out. You are only as good as you appear on your CV. Here are my ten rules for a good CV.
- Follow the format. If the employer wants your information in a certain way, provide it that way. If you can not be bothered to format your experience, the employer will not be bothered to interview you.
- Avoid mistakes of substance, style, fact, grammar, spelling and layout. A sloppy CV makes for a very easy decision: goodbye. Check, check and check again before submitting your CV. Ideally, get a friend or trusted colleague to check it as well.
- Focus on your achievements, not on your responsibilities. Even the toilet cleaners have fancy titles nowadays. Titles do not impress: what counts is what you have done.
- Be positive. We all have setbacks and failures: they may come out in interview. The CV is where you present your best face to get the interview. And never be negative about a previous employer: if you are the sort of employee who whines about employers, you will be toxic to all employers.
- Demonstrate you have the relevant skills. Everyone says they are energetic, committed, great team workers, action focused. Blah blah blah. Instead of saying it, prove it by showing what you have done: "Organised a conference for 1500 people, doubled unit profitability over three years, led my sports team to promotion".
- Be truthful. Good interviewers and screeners spot gaps and hype fast. Even if you slip through the net and get a job, a false CV provides grounds for dismissal. Not worth the risk.
- Customise your CV. Highlight the experience and skills which the employer is looking for. Add a short covering letter saying why you are interested in them and why they ought to be interested in you. By implication, this means doing your homework on the employer to understand if you really fit with them.
- Avoid unnecessary detail. Irrelevant information may scupper you. Personal interests are a classic disaster zone where I have caught people claiming interests they know nothing about, or having wildly inappropriate interests for the sort of job on offer.
- Mind your language. Passive language is boring. Power language is not credible: it becomes hype. If you make a claim, support it with facts, not hype.
- Follow up. Be prepared to be quizzed in detail on every line of your CV.