Do’s and Don’ts in a resume

GrowVation
3 min readApr 1, 2021

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A resume is more than putting together your educational qualifications, skills you possess, and work experience. It is your most valued marketing document when you are on a job hunt, this is the first thing that reaches the hiring manager.

Employers see a lot of resumes and that is why it is important to create yours in such a way that it consists of things the recruiter is looking for. Here we have listed down the most important do’s and don’ts to make your resume recruiter-ready.

Do’s in a resume

1. Choose an authentic resume builder — Using a resume builder eases out your process in terms of designing and making your resume stand out.

2. Customize your resume as per the Job Role- Always customize your resume for each position that you’re applying for, highlighting your qualifications and expertise that match the job’s requirements.

3. Keep your resume concise — Make sure your resume has all the important information in points and in a concise manner.

4. Use data — Wherever possible try to throw in details of your achievements in a quantified manner, such as “Increased the sales by 150%”

5. Use powerful verbs — Try using powerful words such as administered, consolidated, or maximized, instead of cliched words such as led, handled, or managed, to give yourself an upper edge in the eyes of the recruiter.

6. Optimize for ATS — Most organizations use an applicant tracking system to manage their recruitment process. To ensure that your resume makes it to the recruiter/ human hands, keep your formatting simple and use the right keywords.

7. Consider Volunteer or other Non-work experience — If the volunteer work experience has helped you learn skills that are suitable for the job that you’re applying for.

8. Proofread — To make an impression of a detail-oriented person ensure that your resume has no typos or mistakes.

Don’ts in a resume

1. Don’t copy exact words from a job description — Instead of copying the exact words from the job description while customizing your resume, try to find ways of saying the same thing differently.

2. Don’t include anything confidential — If you don’t want it to be associated with your name, do not include it in your resume.

3. Don’t include random, unrelated, or off-putting hobbies — Eliminate everything from your resume that is not related to the work or the job role that you’re applying for.

4. Don’t try to hide gaps — it is almost certain that while you were not working professionally you did pick up some skills while doing whatever you did while you were not working. These skills can also help you get the job that you’re looking for.

5. Don’t use negative phrases — Always be careful while using negative connotations, even if they’re being used in a positive light.

6. Don’t squish it all in — Include all the necessary information that you can comfortably fit in one page, in a readable font and enough white space.

7. Don’t send it as a word document — Sharing your resume as a word document is most likely to mess up the formatting, so it is best if you share the resume as PDF always to ensure that everything stays just as is.

Therefore, always ensure you proofread your resume and pay attention to details while making your resume.

For a more convenient way of making a resume, try our resume builder — https://growvation.com/resume-builder

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