Over the years, I have gotten the opportunity to be on both sides of the interview desk. My experience extends to serving as the interviewer and gutting it out as the interviewee. I have seen lots and lots of resumes and some of the curious things that people put on them. Some of these things will definitely make you go “You Put WHAT on Your Resume??”.
Here are some of the resume delights that I have seen or heard about that you will definitely want to avoid putting on your resume.
1. Your Vital Stats- No need to advertise your height and weight on your resume (even if you look like a Supermodel). If a company has specific physical requirements for a job that would directly relate to your height or weight, those will be addressed directly by the company. An example of a job where physical characteristics may be a consideration is a job such as a flight attendant, or someone who must work in very confined spaces.
2. Your Headshot– Unless you are under consideration for casting for the next big Hollywood blockbuster, you need not include your glamour shot. TMI out of the gate. This is a resume for a job, not a dating service.
3. Gobs of Whiteout– Yes indeed. I have received those resumes with enough globs of white goo on them to build ski jumps. Makes the interviewer think that you do not care enough to spring for a clean sheet of paper. Also, crossing out words and sending in your resume that way is a real deal killer.
4. Handwritten or Resume in Crayon– Oh yes they did! Some people get the bright idea that cracking out the crayon box and going to town on a resume is going to wow the employer. More like make them erupt in giggles and shake his or her head as they put the resume in the trashcan.
5. Resumes on Strange Paper Products– Maybe writing your great ideas on the back of a napkin is fine, but not a resume. Also, the lid of a pizza box, a crumpled up piece of paper with a coffee stain on it, or neon glittery stationery with stickers is NOT cool!
6. E-mail Addresses That Scream I Do Not Like to Put in a Day’s Work– Allergictowork@lazy.net and Idratherbesleeping@snooze.com don’t exactly inspire confidence in the work ethic of the applicant.
7. The Names of Pets, Your Nicknames, or a List of Your Unique Hobbies– That is great that your cat’s name is Ms. Mess, that your friends call you Sweet Cheeks, and you are really into spear fishing and hot yoga. Unless it specifically pertains to the job your seeking, it is just awkward and potentially creepy!
Ok, you say. This is advice is great and all, but don’t most employers these days use online applications or electronic resume submission? For many of the major companies out there, that is correct. But for the hundreds of thousands of smaller businesses out there, many still want the good ole paper resume.
If you have your own interesting resume stories, I would love to hear them. Leave a comment below and share in the discussion.
For more job search advice:
15 Places to Find Job Openings
oh my goodness, although I haven’t had the need to update my resume since 2005. I know these millennials are having a difficult time locating employment with these errors. #MommyMondayHop
Oh my word. I really hope by the time my kids have to write resumes we don’t have to deal with this. You would think with access to the internet people would not have this problem anymore. I’m sure you have great stories to tell. Stopping by from Turn it Up Tuesday.
Great ideas! Thanks for linking up! #bloggersbrag
No joke, I actually saw a resume that someone had used a picture of herself in a string bikini on, for a professional position!
Wow! That is kinda creepy no matter how she looked in a bikini. Kinda like the LinkedIn photos on “professional pages” that I see where people look like they are making out with the camera.
Crayon?? Really? I thought I had an advantage being able to speak proper English. Thanks for posting. Hello from Busy Monday.
I can’t believe people would put that on a resume.
I know it is so easy to mistake some things for common sense when they are apparently not.
So funny! I can’t believe some of these!
Yes, scary but true resume doozies.
Whiteout? Oh no! What i found interesting when we first started looking for jobs in East Asia is that they typically require you to submit a photo with your resume. My husband and I took passport-style headshots wearing collared shirts (and a tie for him) so that we looked our most professional.
That is so interesting about the photo requirement in East Asia. I had not heard that before and sure appreciate you sharing that information
Wow! I can’t believe people do some of these things! Crazy!!
Pretty wild isn’it.
Oh my goodness! These are both ridiculous and hilarious! I cannot believe that these things actually happened. Where was the common sense? I can’t decide which resume faux pas is worse because they are all soooooo equally bad, WOW! #TurnitupTuesday
Unfortunately these faux pas’s happen more than they should.
I no longer do the hiring at work BUT, I was always blown away by the lack of attention to detail that some people put in their resumes or applications. Misspelled words, inconsistent bullets zigzagging along like a snake, script font, employment history 2 pages long ect… I’d put as much time looking at them as they put into writing them.
A properly put together resume says, “HEY, Look at ME…I’m worth an interview. C’mon, you know you want to meet me.”
***Just a little tip, if you’re unsure about your resume, have a friend or old favorite high school teacher look at it. Try the local employment office and ask to see a job counselor. Good luck
Such a great tip about having a high school teacher or job counselor look over resume. I write lots of press releases in my day job and I always try to have someone else look over whenever possible as so easy to look over words omitted or common misspellings.
Great tips for obtaining that dream job !!! So many things have gone casual these days but a resume is not one of them. Thanks for sharing. Now I’m going to recopy my resume from the lipstick it was written in to black ink. LOL
That lipstick will sure make you stand out. It certainly won’t be forgotten.
Hello beautiful! Great post. Pinned and tweeted. I hope to see you on Monday at 7pm because we love to party with you! Happy Memorial Day! Lou Lou Girls
Yes, definitely will see you at the next link party.
Love it!!! I worked in recruiting for years and saw a lot of these same things. It’s crazy what people think is acceptable, especially the email addresses. I had one that was filled with all sorts of religious information for a job that wasn’t at all related to religion. I couldn’t figure out why 4 lines of religion was necessary….
Thanks for sharing!
Indeed. What some people put on their resumes never ceases to amaze.