How to solve the Biggest Resume Problems

How to solve the Biggest Resume Problems

Resume Problems - One of the most vital components leading one to a good job is a good resume. Framing a perfect resume involves a lot more effort than one speculates. And in doing so, a lot of many challenges are faced by the resume creator. Often people try solving these problems using their instinct but that is like hitting the arrow blindly and hoping that it would hit the bull’s eye. Resumes are a kind of thing where one cannot afford to take a chance since their being called for an interview solely depends on what they write on their resumes. So what are the most common problems that we face while writing resumes? And more importantly, how to solve these problems? Here we have a list of problems or dilemmas that every resume maker comes to terms with at some point in time. We also have listed plausible solutions to these problems to provide the resume writing help that you might be looking for:

1.) The predicament of how and what to write

There is always a tension and an air of uncertainty when we are about to begin something. And so is the case when one sits to write one’s resume. So what should you include in your professional resume? What is required to create great resumes is a good amount of research on resume designs and going through resume samples.

To give the employer what he seeks from an employee in your resume is the key to getting called for an interview. If your predicament of what to include and what not to include persists, then you probably need to seek the help of professional resume writers.

A part of your entire dilemma can be dealt with a good cover letter. If you can win the interest and heart of the employer in this part then this consequently reduces half the pressure of impressing the employer from your resume. Resume and cover letter together make up the selection criterion for a particular job and hence it is so crucial to have a thoughtfully framed resume.

In case you were off work for a long period, or are a job hopper, you can consider the cover letter to be the right platform to inform your prospective employer about that.

2.)Resume Gaps

Life isn’t a smooth journey, there come ups and downs which often compel you to give up what you’re doing, no matter how great you are at it and just sit back and act as required by the situation. You might have gaps in your professional life for various reasons and it is okay too. But that is definitely going to be one of the major problems you face while you’re at resume writing.

Employers are obviously going to be curious about your resume gap and you should, therefore, be prepared with good answers for the personal interview round. But these resume gaps may prove to be a hindrance in you getting called for an interview. So how to write a resume that makes your resume gap less questionable if not less prominent? We suggest you adopt these methods to solve the problem of gaps in your resume:

Be honest. Employers are always on the look-out for honest and bold employees. Mention about the career gap right at the outset, in your cover letter. Also, state your reason for being off-field. Be it your break to sit home and raise your children or a period when you chose to stay back and look after an older family member; state it clearly without any concealment of facts. This is sure to earn you brownie points! Follow a functional resume format rather than a chronological one. This simply means that you should try and focus more on the skills that you possess rather than stating where you have worked or your work-experience to be precise. When faced with a problem, always try rephrasing the truth. This is a lesson not just for resume making but for life itself. Instead of mentioning the start and end dates of a job, you could try mentioning the years and months you had been in that position. These may not guarantee that your resume gap will pass unnoticed but will definitely make them less prominent and questionable. It is, however, wise to have an answer prepared nonetheless!

3.) Long resumes and the dilemma of what to exclude

While the advice of keeping your resume strictly confined to one page is a vague one, the truth remains that employers don’t really have the time to go through a lengthy resume. Verbosity is a deadly habit; you must learn to mention details not in long paragraphs but in short and meaningful sentences. Make use of bullets and pointers or tabulate information but do not give the employer long paragraphs to describe your position and job-experience.

Also, make it a point to go back only fifteen years or five jobs (whichever is shorter), mentioning anything older than this is pointless. It is obviously wrong to hope to have a one-page resume if you are someone with 10-15 years of experience as it is vague trying to put in your years of previous experience and learning into a single piece of paper.

You are allowed to be a little elaborative there so as to give the employer the accurate idea of your potentials. All we are saying is that the way to avoid lengthy resumes is shedding away your verbose character.

4.) Being a job-hopper

Any person who frequently jumps from one job to another is known as a job-hopper. Job-hoppers face a major problem when it comes to applying for their next job as mentioning their work history often gives out wrong vibes to the employer.

It is better to mention about these job changes in your cover letter itself. Also, you must mention the reason behind the job changes so as to minimize dubious remarks from the employer. Stating the reason for your departure from one organization to the other might work in your favor by portraying you as someone who is adaptable, adventurous and on the look-out for various opportunities for progress.

Jessica Bedford’s words in this regard might provide the resume help that you are probably seeking, “If you have multiple gaps or have filled the time with several temporary projects, you might also create a section called ‘Consulting Work’ or ‘Freelance Work,’ and list all of them under the one section. With this approach, job seekers can account for a number of years at once,”

While it is vital to mention the various jobs and positions you held, you may as well consider omitting those where you have been associated for a period lesser than two months. Skipping these won’t bring you any loss and will save you from appearing as an inconsistent person before your prospective employer.

However, you can focus on the skills you gained from that job as skills weigh more than the tenure for which you served the organization.

5.) Discord between degree and job

This condition basically refers to two problems:

a.) Being over-qualified for a job –You may own a masters in computer science and probably the job that you seek fits a tenth or twelfth pass candidate then clearly you are over-qualified for the job. In spite of your credentials and experience, a company might just not be interested in hiring you because they might have a fear that if they do hire you then probably they will need to pay you more.

What needs to be done in such a situation is making minimal use of sophisticated terms to make your skills seem extravagant. Always remember, the key to getting called for an interview is giving the employer what he seeks. We do not advise you to not mention your degrees, we are just saying to keep it simple and in accordance with the requirements of the job.

b.) Seeking a job in a field different from your background – This is a problem faced by those who have changed fields or are seeking jobs in areas that are not really their domain. You may be thinking that being a Literature graduate will be a hindrance in you getting selected for a chef’s job but it is not so.

It is important that you mention your qualification though it isn’t in line with the job. Doing this acquaints the employer with the other skills you possess (which might be of use to them). And in case such a situation occurs when you are changing fields or applying for something not relevant to your subject-domain then try focusing more on those skills of yours which are most relevant to the sought job instead of on focusing on your work profile.

Apart from these vital problems, there are other minor problems that a resume maker might be faced with, such as, selection of proper words, grammatical errors etc. These can be corrected and avoided to a great extent by going through resume examples and tutorials on how to write a resume. Also to be remembered is the significance of cover letters. The knowledge of how to write a cover letter always comes to one’s rescue while job-hunting!

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