Resumes Should Stand Out, Not Stick Out

When you’re looking for a job you’re looking to stand out as a single page in the midst of a pile of paperwork. It’ tempting to want to add some pizzazz to bring attention to your accomplishments but sometimes even the best intentions can backfire.

You don’t want to be noticed in a negative way so avoid these mistakes that make your resume stick out rather than shine.

1. Skip the scent – Squirting perfume on her resume may have worked for Elle Woods in Legally Blonde but that was a movie. In real life this tactic could trigger an allergy attack especially if someone else in the stack had the same not so bright idea. Swathing your credentials with cologne will send your resume straight to the trash, in another part of the building.


2. Forego funky fonts – If you insist comic sans is the best representation of your cheerful attitude then stop reading now as I can’t help you. Otherwise keep in mind that the whole point of submitting a resume is to have it read. You don’t have to stick to the standard Times New Roman or Arial but using an illegible font defeats the purpose.


3. Can the crazy colors – Whether it’s paper or ink, outrageous colors will leave hiring managers wondering what you were thinking. Never use yellow text and pass on pink paper too. There are acceptable colors of course but you won’t find any besides black in a standard 8 pack of crayons.


4. Lighten up – You want to show future employers that you’re flexible and that starts with your paper choice. Sheets a little thicker than printer paper are fine but there’s no need to print your resume on card stock. Unless maybe you want to be remembered as the resume that came with a paper cut. Most likely you’d prefer that human resources see the experience you’ve listed and not the blood they’ve lost on your resume.


5. Stay in shape – If you’re thinking of trying to cheat the one page rule by using legal sized paper, don’t. You will stick out in a way that says you just don’t fit in with the rest of the team. Juggling that many documents at one time can be difficult enough but throw in a resume with a renegade size and that spells paperwork problems. At that point it might just be easier for a potential employer to toss your resume rather than read it.

Tricks and gimmicks like these won’t be able to disguise if your resume is a dud. The best way to shine is to polish it to perfection and by building your experience you can hope to land on the top of the pile.

By Heather Fairchild - Heather is a multimedia developer with experience in web, film, photography and animation as well as traditional fine arts like painting and sculpting. In addition to writing for RealestateJobSiteBlog.com, she is co-founder of design and promotion company, Creative Kazoo with fellow Nexxt blogger, Staci Dennis. Heather’s spare time consists of making puppets, teaching Sunday School, building Legos and doing science experiments with her children.