The 4 Resume Deal-Breakers

Howdy,

I've decided to include the 4 Resume Deal-Breakers that most employers strike when thumbing through a resume.

Pay close attention below are critical rules that, violated, are responsible For getting you SCREENED out!

Now this comes from my experience of working "hands on" with over 70 hard-hitters over a myriad of industries in the recruitment world.

1. Insufficient Experience - The best way to hit this target is to zero in on every piece of SIGNIFICANT experience you can muster - Don't JUST stay confined to your employment history, dig up any key ACCOMPLISHMENTS you've achieved in your hobbies, volunteer work, personal development or sporting activities.

2. Insufficient Personal Attributes - Now this blunder USUALLY steams from candidates, firing of cookie-cutter resumes and cover letters without scanning the ad/application looking for clues It's all there info such as ability to work with others or ability to motivate others. You need to peek into your PERSONAL history and demonstrate these attributes by sprinkling them throughout your resume.

3. Slow Career Advancement - Depending on the position the interviewer may have expected you to SHOOT up the career ladder a lot faster and higher than you have. This ones simple but also completely overlooked. Without being to long-winded about it you simply give a REASON why. For example you might EXPLAIN that you got married, relocated, started a family and was forced to turn down a promotion.

4. Employment Gaps - For most folks writing a resume, with a history stacked with GAPS causes immediate brain freeze. Don't let bumps in the road derail YOU! A super-quick explanation showing what you did DURING these gaps, and how this experience has given you an advantage in preparation for the role.

Just remember like all good MARKETING it's all in how you position your offer just make sure you put some teeth into the way you write it.

Talk soon,

Ben B.

Hi, my name is karen. I am 58 years old. Lived in Calif. most of my life, and worked in property menagement for over 15 years. I am now in Missouri, and for the last 2 years have been lookin gfor work here. My problem is now, the company's i worked for, have all been sold or no longer in business.
So now how do i explain my work history , with no one to give me a reference on these jobs? I also do not have or can i get any employee phone numbers to fall back on.

Hard for me to believe your info, Ben B., when your post has so many spelling and grammatical errors.

I agree with domino. Your post is rife with grammatical errors. Certainly does not instill trust!

klp in Springfield, Missouri said: Hi, my name is karen. I am 58 years old. Lived in Calif. most of my life, and worked in property menagement for over 15 years. I am now in Missouri, and for the last 2 years have been lookin gfor work here. My problem is now, the company's i worked for, have all been sold or no longer in business.
So now how do i explain my work history , with no one to give me a reference on these jobs? I also do not have or can i get any employee phone numbers to fall back on.

That's not uncommon. The trick is to write your experience in a way that draws a picture in the reader's mind of what you were doing in a believable way.

Another thing you can do is go to LinkedIn.com and search for some of the people you worked with. When you find them, ask them to give you a reference there. It's specifically designed for giving you a reference base to work from.

But again, if your job descriptions are accurate and believable, there won't be any need to check your references. You can also network in other ways. (career-hunter.blogspot.com/2008/11/networking-is-more-than-being-on.html)

domino in Virginia said: Hard for me to believe your info, Ben B., when your post has so many spelling and grammatical errors.

Hi Domino and Jenny...

Good point my post is full of grammatical errors and all kinds of bad punctuation!

Whoops...My bad!

But the good news is you don't have to "believe my info" just try it out for yourself if you get results cool, if not you were right not to believe me and you can pat yourself on the back...

:-)

Like I say in my profile I'm a "marketing professional" with a STRONG background in writing direct-response advertising copy...

Not strictly a resume writer.

And I've had some MAJOR success working one-on-one with people and getting them hired.

My approach is VERY unique...And if you are looking for standard resume, and job-getting tactics what I teach isn't for you.

But if you've been struggling to break into the job market, you can't get an interview or you can't get a call back or you simply crave an "unfair advantage" over your competition, then what I offer could be just what the doctor ordered!

What’s more I know a thing or two about how to get people to take action.

Here's a hint - spelling and grammatical errors don't have anything to do with it!

What does matter is your message, your positioning and your offer.

With the one exception being if you are trying to get a job in an academic field.

The cool thing is my clients are all pretty darn happy with what I've been able to do for them.

So that's all the matters to me.

More than that I'm just trying to add some value and if you've been able to look passed the bad grammar...and have been able to grab some value, then great!

I wish you all the best in your search.

Ben

Resume Assistant in BH, California said: Hi Domino and Jenny...

Good point my post is full of grammatical errors and all kinds of bad punctuation!

Whoops...My bad!

But the good news is you don't have to "believe my info" just try it out for yourself if you get results cool, if not you were right not to believe me and you can pat yourself on the back...

:-)

Like I say in my profile I'm a "marketing professional" with a STRONG background in writing direct-response advertising copy...

Not strictly a resume writer.

And I've had some MAJOR success working one-on-one with people and getting them hired.

My approach is VERY unique...And if you are looking for standard resume, and job-getting tactics what I teach isn't for you.

But if you've been struggling to break into the job market, you can't get an interview or you can't get a call back or you simply crave an "unfair advantage" over your competition, then what I offer could be just what the doctor ordered!

What’s more I know a thing or two about how to get people to take action.

Here's a hint - spelling and grammatical errors don't have anything to do with it!

What does matter is your message, your positioning and your offer.

With the one exception being if you are trying to get a job in an academic field.

The cool thing is my clients are all pretty darn happy with what I've been able to do for them.

So that's all the matters to me.

More than that I'm just trying to add some value and if you've been able to look passed the bad grammar...and have been able to grab some value, then great!

I wish you all the best in your search.

Ben

Ben don't worry about your errors it is online and sometimes we don't notice it ourselves and make the mistakes.

I do appreciate your informatin and I plan on using it.

Thank you,

I really like what you wrote!!! I feel like I finally found concrete advice that makes sense.A light bulb has turned on here.If I email you my resume would you be kind enough to tell me if I would be screend out?
I think you would be phenomenal at selling real estate, by the way.I would hire you in a heartbeat.

Grant013 in New York, New York said: I really like what you wrote!!! I feel like I finally found concrete advice that makes sense.A light bulb has turned on here.If I email you my resume would you be kind enough to tell me if I would be screend out?
I think you would be phenomenal at selling real estate, by the way.I would hire you in a heartbeat.

Hi Grant013,

I need to speak plainly with you - my schedule is crammed full of clients!

And they are the "front burner" priority for me.

Which is kinda why you haven’t seen me posting around here for some time.

However I'd still like to take a look at your resume for you - and see if I can
give you a powerful boost.

Just forgive me in advance if it takes me a couple of days to get back to you with my personal analysis.

One last thing, please do me a favor and read my latest blog post. There's a major announcement there you've gotta see...

yourresumeassistant.com/

And I could REALLY use your feedback...

Inside, I'll reveal why I haven't been posting much. And what's been weighing heavy on my mind as the U.S. economy continues to crater...

Plus something REALLY BIG.

But in the meantime… shoot a copy of your resume to yourresumeassistant@gmail.com I would be glad to check it out for you.

Best,

Ben

Resume Assistant in BH, California said: Hi Domino and Jenny...

Good point my post is full of grammatical errors and all kinds of bad punctuation!

Whoops...My bad!

But the good news is you don't have to "believe my info" just try it out for yourself if you get results cool, if not you were right not to believe me and you can pat yourself on the back...

:-)

Like I say in my profile I'm a "marketing professional" with a STRONG background in writing direct-response advertising copy...

Not strictly a resume writer.

And I've had some MAJOR success working one-on-one with people and getting them hired.

My approach is VERY unique...And if you are looking for standard resume, and job-getting tactics what I teach isn't for you.

But if you've been struggling to break into the job market, you can't get an interview or you can't get a call back or you simply crave an "unfair advantage" over your competition, then what I offer could be just what the doctor ordered!

What’s more I know a thing or two about how to get people to take action.

Here's a hint - spelling and grammatical errors don't have anything to do with it!

What does matter is your message, your positioning and your offer.

With the one exception being if you are trying to get a job in an academic field.

The cool thing is my clients are all pretty darn happy with what I've been able to do for them.

So that's all the matters to me.

More than that I'm just trying to add some value and if you've been able to look passed the bad grammar...and have been able to grab some value, then great!

I wish you all the best in your search.

Ben

THANK YOU FOR CARING TO HELP PEOPLE I AM SORRY FOR PEOPLE THAT ALWAYS LOOK TO FIND FAULTS YOUR INFORMATION IS VALUED

Hi there,

RD in Toronto, Grant and Donna in New York thanks for the support I'm glad I've been able to help add some value. If you want any thing covered specific to your unique situations - just let me know.

:-)

Ben

Howdy!
BH says grammar errors don't matter? BS!!! That's the FIRST PROCESS employers use to make eliminations.

BH is trying to sell you his services, folks. He just didn't tell you and you haven't caught on.

The information is useful. Who cares if there are errors? All that counts is that he makes good points. If people want to use his services,good for them.

Mary inTampa in Tampa, Florida said: Howdy!
BH says grammar errors don't matter? BS!!! That's the FIRST PROCESS employers use to make eliminations.

BH is trying to sell you his services, folks. He just didn't tell you and you haven't caught on.

Hi I have just joined this forum and I think he's doing a good job he doesn't say anywhere he wants people to buy his services and besides we are all capable of making our own minds up if that is what he is offering. I say thanks for the free help.

There are many people here (myself included) that hang out and give advice. If someone finds my advice valuable and they want to hire me, that's cool with me. :)

If they enjoy Ben's advice and they want to hire him, cool for him! That goes for Carla and the other resume writer types that hang out on the indeed forums.

I have been hanging out on forums for YEARS because it is one of the best ways for service professionals to establish credibility.

I don't see it as a huge problem.

FYI: We aren't making millions from people on forums lol. Most of our business comes from being published in books or getting a name mention in the press. I think having a presence on internet forums and sharing opinions makes service providers (like resume writers) seem more real in a business that is mostly virtual.

Sorry for the soap box rant...

Mary inTampa in Tampa, Florida said: BH says grammar errors don't matter? BS!!! That's the FIRST PROCESS employers use to make eliminations.

Absolutely correct. Grammatical errors, incorrect punctuation use, misspellings, typos and poor English say more about a candidate than mere words.

These gaffes kill the candidate's credibility. Among other things, they imply the candidate produces sloppy and slothful work. They imply the candidate is uneducated and ignorant of common business practices and courtesies. Right or wrong, they send the message the candidate would perform unprofessionally on the job.

Your written word product represents you to the employer. Do you want it to send the message I have just described? Well, maybe some people do...........