Three CV Wreckers: avoiding common pitfalls in your profile when CV writing
- Timothy Cox
- Feb 19, 2024
- 2 min read
In a highly competitive job market, your CV is often your first introduction to potential employers, serving as a snapshot of your professional journey, skills, and accomplishments. However, despite your own best efforts, mistakes can wreak havoc on your CV, potentially ruining your chances of landing your next role.
In this blog post, I will explore the three most common CV 'wreckers' that I see in my coaching and CV writing practice, and discuss how to avoid them.
1 - Poor Formatting and Structure
The visual appeal of your CV is the first thing a reader will notice. A CV with poor or inconsistent formatting or a confusing structure will certainly be a major turn-off. Never forget that a busy recruiter or HR professional will be seeing lots of CVs and they want to be able to pick out the most relevant information quickly.
Bullet points, clear headings, and a logical flow are essential for easy readability. Use a professional font and ensure that your document is free from grammatical errors and typos. If your CV is visually chaotic, it reflects poorly on your attention to detail, which is a crucial skill in most professions.
How to Avoid:
Use a clean and simple template.
Keep formatting consistent throughout the document.
Proofread your CV multiple times and ideally ask a friend to review it.
2 - Lack of Quantifiable Achievements
A CV that lacks quantifiable achievements can come across as vague and fail to differentiate you from other candidates. Instead of listing responsibilities, emphasise your impact by showcasing real, tangible results. Whether it's revenue growth, cost savings, leadership or project success, quantifying your achievements adds credibility to your profile and helps a reader to understand exactly what you offer.
How to Avoid:
Focus on specific accomplishments, and lead each bullet point with a real success.
Use metrics and percentages to quantify your contributions.
Mention the direct impact of your work on the success of projects or teams.
3 - Incomplete or Irrelevant Information
Your CV should provide a comprehensive overview of your professional history and omitting key details about your work experience, education or skills may leave an employer with unanswered questions. On the other hand, including too much information, such as unrelated hobbies or huge detail on a role from 15 years ago, can clutter your CV and make the overall document too long.
How to Avoid:
Include relevant details about your education, work experience, and skills.
Focus on recent and significant achievements, mainly from the past ten years.
Remove outdated or irrelevant information.
Conclusion
In conclusion, your CV is your ticket to an interview. By sidestepping these three common CV wreckers, you can ensure your own profile stands out for all the right reasons.
If you would welcome an conversation with a professional career coach or CV writer about any of these issues, then please do not hesitate to contact Mercury Coaching.
