There are a lot of items you should not include on your resume if you want to land that dream job. If you are looking for a job, you should know that there are a few things that make a resume look outdated, unprofessional and even distracting to employers. You need to make sure that they only see the information that strengthens your candidacy, not anything that weakens it. Try not to concentrate only on what you should include on your resume and pay attention to what you shouldn’t put in that important document because this can mean the difference between landing an interview or no. Here are 7 important items you should not include on your resume if you want to be successful in your job search:
One of the most important items to leave off your resume is your objective. If you applied for the position, it’s already obvious that you want the job. Also, if you put an objective in your resume, you might give the impression that you only care about what you want while the hiring process is all about what the employer needs.
Instead, focus on crafting a professional summary that highlights your skills, experience, and accomplishments. Tailoring this section to show how you can meet the company's needs can make a powerful impact. It's a chance to show how your past achievements will translate into future success in the role, all while keeping the spotlight on how you can contribute to the organizational goals. Remember, it’s about making the employer see you as an asset they can't afford to pass up.
If you want to land an interview, try not to include in your resume those irrelevant work positions or even those short-term jobs that you've had, since they might make your potential employer question your work performance. They might wonder if you were fired, if you didn’t get along with your work colleagues or even if you couldn’t take care of your work responsibilities.
Do not include any personal information beyond your contact details, like your address, your e-mail or even your phone number. Leave out things like your date of birth, your religion, your political affiliation or your marital status. All that information is actually illegal for your employer to ask, so there’s really no need to include it.
You should not include you photo on your resume, unless you are applying for a job as a model or actor. Your appearance has actually nothing to do with your work performance or with your ability to do that job, so by adding a photo, you might appear unprofessional or even naïve.
If you want to land that dream job, then try to include only your experience and your accomplishments and avoid including any subjective traits like “creative innovator” or “great leadership skills.” Usually, smart hiring managers ignore the subjective things that the applicants wrote about themselves.
When you are looking for a job, just keep in mind that your resume is not your Facebook profile. Your hobbies are irrelevant to your job and most employers don’t really care how their employees are spending their free time, so try not to waste your potential employer’s time by including them in your resume.
Don’t put your salary in your resume! You’ll just seem unprofessional, naïve and even demanding. This aspect should be negotiated later during the interview, if you are offered the position. Don't hinder your chances of landing that job by adding this small little detail on your resume.
Also, if you are looking for a job, try not to include your grammar school or your high school, your physical characteristics, a less than professional e-mail account or anything that is false because your resume should be as accurate as possible. Do you know any other items that should not be put on a resume? Please share your thoughts with us in the comments section!
Sources:
money.usnews.com
businessinsider.com
salary.com
gotresumebuilder.com
finance.yahoo.com
jobsearch.about.com