Do you have a resume that is two pages long? It’s time you throw it out the window and make a fresh one for yourself that is crisp and to the point. You may have worked really hard to fill in those two pages, but when it comes to job interviews it is smart to work that counts. Remember that while checking your CV, your interviewer will only browse through it once. He will pick up all that is necessary and leave out everything irrelevant. So tailor your resume in a manner so as to facilitate easy reading for the interviewer and, thus, create a great impression.
Keep it crisp
Customize your resume and make it relevant to the job post you are applying to. Take out all unnecessary details and long, drawn sentences. Keep the sentences short and crisp and post all the important details on the top of the list of your qualifications and experience. By keeping your CV short and crisp, the interviewer gets to know about your qualifications and experiences in as less time as 30 seconds and you can have more conversation.
Be Specific
Do not use vague words to describe your professional experience. Remember you are trying to stand out of the crowd and your CV is the first impression that the interviewer gets of you. So specifically mention the number of years you have spent in an organization, the number of subordinates you had under you, the number of projects you have handled, etc. Such specific facts and figures are bound to catch the eye of the interviewer.
Always use first person
Your CV should be conversational. Give all Facts, descriptions about yourself and your objectives in life in the first person. You can also do without the pronoun, but the tone of your language should be in the first person. You can remove articles and derivates of the verb ‘be’ to shorten your sentences.
Check the tenses
Most people tend to make mistakes with tenses. Remember to use past tenses when speaking about your past work experience, use present when talking about your current work profile, use the future tense when you speak about your goals and objectives. Make sure your subject and verb are in agreement.
Use Active Voice
A good CV uses the choicest of words to describe the individual. For most people, a CV is just a statement of the individual’s qualifications and work experience, but a cleverly prepared CV presents the best aspects of an individual and effectively sells his skills. Use carefully chosen words while describing your job profile and experience. Instead of using sentences such as ‘selected for xyz job to manage 10 resources’, use sentences such as ‘Managed 10 resources’. This portrays the active side of you and is bound to create an impression on the interviewer.
Check your CV thoroughly
Proofread your resume well before sending it out. Manually go through all the sentences and check for typos, spelling, and grammatical mistakes. Usually, people who write their own CVs are unable to spot mistakes in their write-ups as their eyes get used to the text. So after you have checked once, ask a friend to go through your CV. Run a spell check test and then send out the CV.
