Living in a ghetto, slum or trailer park does not make you trash. Mother Theresa lived in a slum. Her resume was good enough to get a Nobel Peace Prize.
I get some REALLY bad resumes. They say:
I can’t do this job. I have no skills or training. The reason I have the nerve to apply for it is because I really will work hard. I know I was fired from my last job. It wasn’t my fault. The job really was terrible. The job before that was terrible too. I’m not a freak.
We get at least one of these resumes or cover letters every week. Yes, this bad. Okay, only close to this bad. The resume is trash. It is literally worse than nothing.
Being laid off or fired tends to get workers, salespeople and executives to focus on the negatives from their previous job. They feel they have to explain things in their resumes. That is a mistake. Your resume has only one job, to get you an interview. It is not a confessional. It is not investigative journalism.
Here are 4 signs your resume will be thrown away in record time:
- Explain that you are part of a group that would normally not be hired (I want to learn to be a…)
- Tell why your boss was an idiot in your last job (I was not allowed to fix…)
- List excuses instead of accomplishments (Due to lack of…)
- List skills way below those really required for this job (As a carpenter I sawed boards…)
Are you sure you don’t do any of these? Usually these errors are hidden in a cover letter or large paragraph.
Something To Do Today
Seriously look at every line of your resume and cover letter. Every single line. Do you make excuses? Do you subtly or openly put down your previous boss or job? Were you smiling as you wrote it because of the subtle needle in a paragraph? Is a skill you list so basic it shows your lack of higher skills? Do you put yourself in a group of losers accidentally?