I am not an expert in human resources. I cannot tell you how to write the perfect resume. I wouldn’t even advise you on how to make a great impression on your first interview.
I am, however, an employer. I am the person at the other end of the email, to whom you send your resume and cover letter. Oh, you didn’t send a cover letter. You’d better sit down then, and read this post, because you’ve got a few things to learn.
As a fitness director, it is part of my job to recruit, interview, and hire the staff for my fitness center. Our staffing needs include personal trainers and Pilates trainers, group exercise instructors, massage therapists, estheticians, and receptionists. It is the latter position for which I am hiring right now, and it is sorting through the close to a hundred submissions that has sent me on this rant inspired me to write this post.
Our company had an online hiring process, but my go-to first step for recruiting is Craigslist. Since newspaper classifieds are a thing of the past, I turned to Craigslist for most of my hiring needs and I’ve had good success. I generally have interested parties email their resumes, and believe me, I see all kinds of mistakes being made that will potentially put even the most qualified candidate out of contention. So, if you want me to hire you, here are a few dos and don’ts that might help you the next time you apply for a job.
Include a Cover Letter
As I sort through all the emails, I want a quick glance at what the potential employee has to offer. If the email says nothing at all, or just “resume attached,” I might just pass it by. If, however, you write something like Paola did, “Hi, my name is Paola M…. I saw your ad on craigslist regarding the receptionist position. I’ve attached my résumé with my former qualifications and skills. I believe I’m a great candidate for this position, if given the opportunity. I have great communication skills, very organized, sales background, and a history of being a great employee who always goes above and beyond my duties. I look forward to speaking with you, please contact me at …” there is a good chance that not only will I read your resume, I will move it to the top of the pile.
An attached cover letter is also alright, just make sure to indicate that in your email.
A few other tips for that first contact: If an email says “Hi, I’m John and I’m interested in hearing more about the job, call me,” and doesn’t have a resume attached, it is not going to get a second look. And, worst of all, “I might want to take the job. How much does it pay?” That right there just gets the delete button.
Tailor Your Resume
If you are applying for a receptionist job, and your job experience does not include any work of that type, you might consider re-working your resume to highlight the skills that you could bring to the position. If, in this case, all your experience was in a retail environment, make sure to talk about the excellent customer service, your phone answering skills, and your bright upbeat personality.
If your resume has an Objective section, make sure to check that your objective is in line with the position being offered. I had one today that said their objective was to become part of a strong sales team. Huh?
Also, if you’re attaching your resume, make sure that it is in a format that most people can open. I received many today that were PDFs, which is great. Others were Word documents, or other files that Word can open. It never fails though, that I will receive a few attachments that will not open. Sorry, I don’t have the time to figure out how to see your resume. Delete!
Do You Live Here?
If you are moving to a new city and/or state, and all of your experience, education took place elsewhere, it is a good idea to mention that you are relocating. I had several resumes where even the address at the top was from out of town without explanation. What am I to think? That you are going to commute from LA (or Illinois in one case)? At the very least, update your address on your resume!
Are you qualified?
Most of the positions that I hire require certain certifications or licenses to even be considered for the job and I always make sure that it is clear in the advertisement. So why then, when I’m looking for certified personal trainers do I get resumes from people whose only job experience is working as a clerk at 7-11, have no fitness-specific education, and most certainly do not have a certification?
I appreciate that many jobs can be learned with a base of little or no experience (like the receptionist position), but please, you either have the license or certification or you do not.
Spell Check
Please take the time to spell- and grammar check your email, cover letter, and resume. And don’t use texting shortcuts. I had one that stated “Kindly find my attached resume for the suitable post if u have any reference anywhere.” While the wording is a little odd, the one thing that really bothers me is the “u.” I’m picky like that.
I do understand that people make mistakes, sometimes English is their second language, or that they just missed the error. It happens. And I’m not trying to hire an English major. I just want someone who cares enough to take the time to check for errors. Sometimes that tells you more than the words themselves.
Do you have any tips to add that can make a resume stand out from the rest? Or any suggestions to get that first interview?
Great post! I worked for career management firms and was responsible for executive resumes before having my kids. A cover letter is often rushed and overlooked when it is the most important aspect. It allows you to highlight how your skills match the position 🙂 Thank you for sharing!
I agree! When I have an overwhelming number of emails responding to an ad, I always take the ones with a cover letter first. So important.
Debbie, this is so helpful! I am graduating with my masters in a week, and I will be out in the big, bad world looking for a job. These tips will be very useful, and hopefully they can land me the job of my dreams! Scary stuff, but I am confident I have a lot to offer 🙂
Good luck in your search. Most of this stuff is common sense, but it is amazing how many people just don’t seem to thing! It kind of drives me crazy, but I guess I should appreciate it because it makes it easy to pass up on most applicants 🙂
Great post! Thanks for sharing your knowledge!
Really great post Debbie!! Being out there, I have found it even goes beyond this & it is tough for sure… great tips for anyone!
Thanks Jody. A lot of this stuff should be common sense, but based on the resumes that I get, it is not.
I so agree with everything you lay out here! Suggestion – submit this to IDEA for their journal. Perfect
Thank you! I will do that!
Great tips! I hire people as consultants to support my new business and I find all kinds of craziness and these folks are supposed to be professionals. Stopping by from the SITS linkup. http://www.LivingHappierAfter.com
Thanks for stopping by! Apparently what seems to you and me to be common sense…isn’t.
Debbie – I AM a Human Resources Director and I would say you did an expert job with your tips! I would also caution people to use a professional email address and not something like “damidnightlover@company.com.” Yup, that really happened!
Haha Tara! You are right! I’ve seen a few crazy emails too. People just don’t think sometimes how important the first impression that they make is.
It is funny- I think I have all of those things down- I have been on probably 15 interviews in the past 2 years. I have made it down to the last 2 “contestants” at least 4 times. I was called back for second, third and even fourth interviews in some cases. And yet did not get chosen. It is a tight market, and I have great experience, but something is just a little bit better in my competition, and I just can’t figure it out.
Of course the employer just says the other is a better fit.. but how? I guess I will never know. Maddening I say!
That must be pretty frustrating, especially when you know you’re qualified and you’re giving it your all. I have had similar things happen. Years ago I ended up getting hired for a job for which I was the second choice because the person who was the first choice happened to meet the person who would be her (and was eventually my) boss and got so many bad vibes she turned down the job. She was right, but I still hung in there for about 5 years!
Excellent post and tips! If a candidate wants to be bold and creative, they could always create a brief video or graphic presentation introducing themselves and why they want to work for a company. If nothing else, they’ll stand out from the crowd!
Great tips! Definitely needed for today’s college grads who have no clue.
Excellent post! Another piece of advice if you apply to the government throw out the notion of a short resume. Those resumes are pages long and you get points for each area of experience that you have so the more items you list the better. I worked for the government for a 2 years and apply for jobs even within was cumbersome.
The college I went to for my therapy degree also required you to take some business classes. I’m so glad they did though. One of the most helpful things I learned was how to write cover letters and resume writing. I truly think it helped me get my foot in the door for an interview a few times.