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Break all resume writing rules except these 3

Just like anything else in this fast-paced world, resume writing has evolved tremendously. In today’s competitive market, it is extremely important to let go of harmful notions that we’ve been guilty of holding onto in the past.

  • I’ve seen people shooting themselves in the foot, thinking they had to follow some of these outdated resume writing “rules”:
  • Going into lots of detail about jobs that ended a decade ago instead of listing out high-level accomplishments.
  • Leaving out relevant accomplishments just because they were unpaid or because the day-to-day duties of that experience don’t align 100% with the target job.
  • Pushing the most relevant parts of the history down to the second page, buried under less relevant but more recent jobs, just because that’s how things are “supposed” to be.
  • Bolding or otherwise visually emphasizing things that leave a poor first impression, like poorly written summaries, job titles that aren’t completely relevant, bad GPAs, and employment gaps.
  • Mentioning salaries, listing out the number of years you’ve used a particular software, cramming a two-decade employment history into a single page, and following other bad advice given by recruiters who are only looking to identify “weaknesses” in your history!
All of the rules above can and should be broken if they aren’t helping you make the best impression. Remember, the purpose of your resume is to get you an interview. It’s not supposed to act as a portfolio. It’s supposed to give the hiring manager a quick view of your best, most relevant experiences.
7 min read
  • March 8, 2019
  • Editorial Team
Woman writing

Table of Contents

On that note, use my two-page, salary-doubling resume cheat sheet as inspiration for creating the ultimate, optimized resume. It breaks down exactly how a marketing manager was able to double the initial offer they received. Get your own copy by submitting your information right here:



   

These are the only three rules you should keep in mind when working on your resume:

#1. Keep things relevant to your reader.

– Leave out sentences that will distract your reader from the best accomplishments on your resume.
– Leave out keywords and certifications that aren’t relevant to the role you’re looking at.
– Dramatically shorten experiences that have nothing to do with what you’re interested in now.
– Don’t bold things that you don’t want your reader taking away as a first impression.
– Add keywords from job descriptions that you like.
– Add only duties and accomplishments that relate to your target job.
– Move your most relevant career assets to the top of your resume, whether it’s a technical skills table, a summary of your recent successes, your education, or a project that you recently worked on.

#2. Use accomplishments to back up each of your key strengths.

A step-by-step article that you can follow if you’re having trouble thinking of accomplishments to put on your resume.

#3. Don’t lie. 

Background checks are too powerful. It’s not worth the risk.

Comment below if you’re struggling with the resume writing process and allow us to help.

If you’re unsure about what might not be working for you, send over your resume for a free critique. Meanwhile, don’t forget to see the top resume mistakes you must avoid.

If you’re looking for more on how to perfect your resume, check out these links:

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