Dos and Donts of Resumes
The resume should represent your work and educational background and who you are to the hiring manager of the head-hunting firm. It should be a visual representation of your work experience and educational qualifications so that it would be easy for employers to assess your suitability.
Thus there are some things that would endear you to them while other unsavory bits of information, may be omitted. Writing your resume and designing it should be a matter of precision, with enough information about yourself to give employers a brief introduction of who you are before they take the next step in contacting you for the interview. The basic gist of the resume is really to impress the manager to the point of them wanting to get to know you more.
Resumes should be a reflection of your qualities and capabilities and not a 10,000 word thesis about your great humanitarian exploits in third world countries. While these extra curricular activities might show some depth to your personality and character as a person, it might be better if these qualities were communicated to the hiring panel during the interview rather than squeezing in every detail into the resume.
Ideally, resumes should be kept to a minimum length of one page. Maximize the space of that one page if you are still sending in your resume via postal mail. Sometimes sending in resumes electronically might lack the human touch. Social networking sites like LinkedIn while they may put your resume out for head-hunters, it does not display your ability to organize information about yourself in a clear and concise manner. The paper resume might be a little traditional, it will ensure that it reaches the hiring manager, where if it was sent electronically, there is always the possibility that it might be overlooked.
Remember to include only the highlights of your educational background from high school to your present day qualifications. Most employers would be keen to know the formative years of your schooling as opposed to knowing which elementary school you went to. It would be good also to indicate in your resume the type of sporting or social activities that may portray your leadership abilities as well as your soft skills.
If you are a leader in the toastmasters club in your area, it would be good to indicate that as well as employers generally look for people with the ability to lead others as well as be able to think on their feet. Your work experience is the next most important portion of your one page resume, and the information that you detail down, should show your innovative inspiration in project management as well as show your ability to lead. Highlight significant achievements in your present work, and promotional progressions from executive to management.
