A well-written resume is the key to projecting your skills and highlighting your qualifications in front of the interview board. While it’s deceptively easier to make silly mistakes on a resume, it’s incredibly difficult to repair the damage done. As such, prevention is your only way out, whether you’re preparing your first career resume or just reviewing it. There are certain pitfalls in resume writing that can literally take away from you the job you’ve always wanted. Here’s how to avoid them:

#1: Beware the Beginning: The Career Goal Statement Is a Thing of the Past

A long time ago, resumes without a career goal statement were worthless. Students were forced to start their resume with a well-written statement describing their vision. However, times have changed and there is no scope for such statements anymore.

Hiring managers suggest that such statements are irrelevant to the preliminary selection. Initially, you have to go through the assessment, which will then take you to the next stage and you can work out your goals and objectives.

#2: Add job titles

It’s best to avoid adding quirky job titles to your resume. More often than not, these titles actually hurt your resume and leave you behind in the league of other applicants.

Job titles often lack context, making your resume unsuccessful. Since resumes are posted on job sites, being keyword specific or generic is a better way to present yourself. For example, a query for “associate editor” will get a better response than “writing guru.”

#3: Overwhelming work history

Recruiters, on average, spend 6 seconds reviewing a resume. Therefore, it’s best to keep your resume concise, crisp, and to the point, no longer than one page, especially for fresher ones. Including page after page dedicated to your work history can only get overwhelming.

#4: Unexplained employment gaps

The big gaps in the career should be pointed out in summary. If you had to take a break for personal or leisure reasons, describe it in one word.

#5: Details Gone Wrong

If your resume lacks details, it’s just ordinary writing. Emphasize your accomplishments, our roles and duties. Recruiters are not interested in menial duties and tasks. Specify the output.

#6: Grammatical errors and typos

Recruiters will simply ignore resumes with typos and grammatical errors. Use the spell check feature and grammar checkers to make sure it’s perfect. Also, have at least 2 people to review the document.

#7: Getting the format wrong

The format of your resume is a deciding factor. Shockingly, up to 75 percent of all qualified applicants are rejected due to incorrect resume formatting. Always use the .txt or .doc format for your resume, not .pdf files. Avoid the use of tables and graphs. Upload the resume as an attachment instead of typing it. Use relevant keywords to ensure that it is visible when searched.

#8: Not giving the correct contact details

If you don’t provide your correct contact details, employers will never be able to find you. Always provide your contact number, email id and mailing address.

#9: Promising Reference On Demand

This is the most obvious thing that does not need to be declared. Do not add words to the resume by including such points.

#10: Sharing Personal Information

You cannot violate the confidentiality rule while writing your resume. It’s not impressive at all. Any personal information related to your previous job cannot bring you another.