by Lis McGuire | Nov 9, 2015 | CV tips, Graduate CV tips, News
Although words aren’t the only ingredient you’ll use to create your CV, let’s face it, without them it is just a blank sheet of paper. Words are pretty important in this context and your choice of words plays a huge role in making your CV either weak or wow.
What’s more, there’s quite a quantity of words you’ll need to select and string together to create a compelling career document. The word count of last three CVs I have written has ranged between 878 and 1027 words. That’s a whole heap of choices.
I admit, it’s not an easy task to choose the right words, ones that can carry forward your career aspirations until you have the opportunity to speak them in person. This week’s blog outlines some groups of words you should either treat with caution or give a wide berth.
#1 Slang
I love to hear the latest word on the street, whether I learn it from my 12-year-old, witness it online, or furtively clarify a term I’ve come across in the urban dictionary. Personally, I think it’s great that the English language is constantly evolving to accommodate and describe the changing world around us. In the last year, words like ‘tekkers’, ‘bae’, and ‘clean eating’ have crept into our household vocabulary, and they make me smile, but that doesn’t mean they should ever appear in a professional communication like a CV.
Slang can confuse the reader, and may be misinterpreted. Make sure your CV is ‘on fleek’ by using clear, appropriate, and professional language. Your words should be instantly recognisable, appropriate in context, and easily understandable to anyone reading your CV.
#2 Clichés
Using clichés on your CV is lazy, and does nothing to differentiate you from other applicants. It’s boring for the recruiter to read the same trite lines over and over, and it’s a missed opportunity to build your personal brand. Instead of saying you’re a hard-working team player, think about what really stands you apart, and express that in your CV profile. Outlining your unique strengths will make your CV more appealing than stringing together overused buzzwords. Jennifer Holloway recently wrote an excellent article about the difference between strengths and skills, you can check it out here.
#3 Negative or bland wording
Your CV is your opportunity to convey your prowess, passion, and potential to your target employer. It needs to carry forward your career hopes and dreams before you can make a more interactive face-to-face or verbal impression on the hiring manager. There is absolutely no place for negative or bland language on your CV.
You may feel compelled to explain a negative situation on your CV, but lengthy explanations of adverse circumstances can talk you out of an interview before you’ve even begun. Keep your CV positive, keep any explanations short and simple, and instead use your CV as it should be used – to showcase your positive traits and experience.
A lack of career confidence can sometimes seep onto a CV, resulting in a shy, restrained, and unassuming presentation that is unlikely to inspire or interest anyone reading it. Fear of bragging can also inhibit CV language choices. The results make an uninspiring read.
A negative or bland CV is not worth the paper it’s written on. This is your career, you’ve worked it, you’ve achieved it, now you need to use it to move forward. Be confident and own your history and achievements, and narrate your message in an assured and buoyant way.
#4 Words you don’t understand
When writing your CV, it can be tempting to up-level your language. It’s a bit like using your ‘telephone voice’ when answering your business line, your intention is to make a positive first impression. However, tread with caution. You don’t want to use words that you don’t fully understand, or ones that actually weaken your authenticity. Keep it real by using words you are comfortable speaking as well as writing.
#5 Words the reader won’t understand
It may seem natural to select words from your verbal vocabulary, but do check that your language is commonly recognised before hitting the send button. You may not give a second thought to including words you use in everyday speech, but are they real words and do they mean what you think they mean? Now’s the time to check. In speech, people often use words out of context, so it’s worth taking the time to check their legitimacy, relevance, and accepted meaning.
Enlist the help of several reviewers to check that your words make total sense. If your review panel questions one of your words, consider switching it for a more common term.
Acronyms fall under this category. Acronyms can easily become part of your day-to-day language at work, and it’s easy to assume that others outside your current circle will understand their meaning. If you really need to use acronyms on your CV, take time to explain them first, e.g. Management Information (MI), then you can confidently abbreviate all subsequent mentions.
by Lis McGuire | Sep 22, 2015 | CV tips, Graduate CV tips, News
I would estimate that one in every 20 CVs I review features a photo of the subject. These CVs are often from new or recent graduates, and picture them wearing a full mortar board and gown. I can see the logic – after all nothing says ‘graduate’ like the iconic mortar board. Also, it may be one of the few photos possessed that’s not a selfie, a group shot, or snapped after happy hour at the student union.
Even professionals can fall prey to the temptation of including a photo on their CV. If their company has splashed out on some corporate headshots, or they’ve been snapped looking smart at a wedding, it can seem like a logical and genius idea to use the flattering image in a professional context, but here’s why they shouldn’t.
In the UK, photos are not a standard CV feature, so I wouldn’t recommend including a photo unless it has been specifically requested, or you work in an industry where photos are the norm, such as modelling or television. If you’re seeking a role in front of the camera, then include a photo, otherwise leave it off.
Featuring a photo as part of your presentation can make recruiters uneasy, opening up concerns about age, race, disability, or gender discrimination, to name but a few. It could be seen to compromise the fair and non-discriminatory nature of the recruitment process.
It could also distract the recruiter from the skills and achievements showcased on your CV, which present your case for employment. In this professional context, it’s better to be judged on your experience than your face.
It may even cause a negative first impression, if the reader makes a snap judgement that you must be vain or self-absorbed.
It’s a slightly contrary topic, because a photo is a key requirement for your LinkedIn profile, which is arguably one of the first places recruiters will go to research you. However, I’d say it’s best to follow best practice in this case, and leave a photo off your CV, whilst making sure an engaging and professional photo is a key feature of your LinkedIn presence and other social media profiles.
Here’s a cautionary photo-related tale, warning of the perils of being remembered for the wrong reasons.
Over the course of my career, I have seen thousands of CVs; long ones, short ones, intentionally funny ones, unintentionally funny ones, ones that have made me sit up and take notice, and ones that have made me slump in my seat and sigh. Yet one CV sticks in my mind as the weirdest one I ever saw.
The candidate in question was a young and ambitious graduate (as I was saying!) seeking an entry-level role to get her career off the ground. Nothing new there. But what really stood out was the photo she included on her CV. The photo portrayed the individual in full riding regalia including hat, jodhpurs, boots, and crop (though my memory and vivid imagination might have embellished that last bit). She had posed for the camera in a very formal dining room, positioned against a cabinet of glassware.
The choice of photo was just so bizarre. The job she was applying for did not require this dress code; it was based in an office rather than an equestrian venue. I found it incomprehensible, and it raised so many more questions than it answered.
Why would this individual send such a photo?
What message was she trying to portray?
Was I missing something?
In hindsight, I imagine she was trying to portray herself as someone dedicated to her sport, with all the values that keen sportsmen and women hold dear, and which translate well into a working environment. She looked keen, clean and presentable, she was smartly dressed (even if it was a peculiar choice given the scenario), and had obviously spent some time trying to get her photo just right. But it just didn’t work. It was confusing.
Years later, it’s the photo that sticks in my mind, not the individual’s name or skillsets. I have often wondered what happened to this applicant, but I am sure she has gone on to have a very successful career, perhaps in show jumping.
To recap, do splash out on some professional headshots. You’ll be needing those for LinkedIn and your other online profiles. Don’t, however, be tempted to include your avatar on your CV.
by Lis McGuire | May 11, 2015 | CV tips, Graduate CV tips, News
Last month, I received an email from someone I had worked with five years ago, back in 2010. The individual requested a CV update service, and I was happy to oblige. At the first contact, I suspected that using the word ‘update’ was simplifying the situation, and I was right.
The individual – let’s call him Colin Candidate – had changed beyond all recognition within the five-year timespan, and there was no way a few tweaks to the original CV I had written would suffice. We needed to go back to the drawing board.
In 2010, Colin Candidate was a fresh graduate, with a little experience under his belt. He had ordered a graduate CV service to achieve that all-important first rung on the ladder. I’m happy to report that it helped him to secure that first step, and from there on in his career progression with his blue chip employer was meteoric.
In the proceeding five years, Colin has received four promotions, completed a number of meaty projects, and played a key role in skyrocketing this start-up to become a major industry player. Colin had changed so much that he was unrecognisable from his 2010 CV.
With all this compelling new information to include on his CV, we needed to scrap the 2010 version and start afresh by working to understand each role, its challenges, and actions, leading to tangible results.
Aside from changes in CV style and presentation to reflect the evolution of CVs between 2010 and 2015, the content was literally all new.
Colin was no longer positioned as a graduate, but as an experienced hire.
His target was no longer an entry-level role, but a senior position.
His address and contact details had changed, reflecting his upward mobility.
His headline had changed.
His profile had changed.
His key skills had changed.
His experience had changed, and the roles we sold him on, back in 2010, were minimised or totally dropped from his career history.
His degree made the transition from the 2010 to 2015 version of his CV, to a slimmed down education section on page two, rather than prominently displayed on page one.
That was all. Looking at the two CVs, 2010 and 2015, side by side, you wouldn’t recognise Colin Candidate. ‘Man, Colin,’ you’d say, ‘you have changed.’
When everything about you has changed, why would your CV remain the same? Rip it up, go back to the drawing board, and write a CV that reflects your here and now.
It’s worth it.
Colin is worth it.
You are worth it.
In fact, writing your CV when you’ve changed completely can be easier than writing your CV when the changes aren’t as obvious. Still, I’d recommend that you analyse your CV on a regular basis, and drop the content that no longer reflects your needs. If it served the old you, but no longer serves the new you, just drop it and add new content that works harder for your goals.
by Lis McGuire | Apr 20, 2015 | CV tips, Graduate CV tips, News
When writing your CV, sometimes the hardest thing can be knowing where to start. You can stare at a blank Word document for what seems like eternity, devoid of ideas that will turn the shiny white backdrop into a stunning presentation of your credentials and capabilities.
Sound familiar? Don’t worry, help is at hand. In this week’s blog, I will share nine helpful and potentially overlooked sources of information that can kick-start content creation, setting you on track to achieve a full and compelling CV in no time at all.
#1 Your original job advert
If you have been a diligent and well organised job seeker, you may have saved the original job advert for your current role, the notice that originally caught your attention, inspiring you to apply for your job. This advert should outline the key aspects of your current role, or at least represent the role as it was perceived at that point in time. If your own job advert has gone AWOL, then perhaps a similar role has been advertised since. Dig it out, it may provide some inspiration.
#2 Your job description and person specification
Along the same lines, you may be able to lay your hands on the original job description and person specification that formed part of your original application materials. If your job has evolved over time, you may even have been issued with a revised version. Again, take a look. These documents will give you a framework to use and build your CV content around.
#3 Your annual appraisal
Your appraisal should contact specific and quantified data on your contribution, performance, and achievements. Uncover valuable nuggets, then rework them as required before transferring to your CV.
#4 Case studies and project descriptions
These client and public facing write-ups may be featured on your company website, or in offline marketing materials, and can inspire some golden CV content. If your company is proud of it, and you have had a hand in it, then there’s just cause for featuring it on your CV.
#5 Your company bio
Perhaps you have a company bio, produced for the company website, annual report, marketing brochure, or similar. Revisit these to find out how your company has presented you, there may be some forgotten facts or a new angle you hadn’t thought of.
#6 Your company’s annual report
If your organisation produces an annual report, this should capture the cut and thrust of priorities and activities for the past year. Reading through will remind you of the bigger picture, and your contribution to it as a cog in a bigger wheel. Can you reflect this on your CV?
#7 Your performance targets
If your current performance is graded against defined targets, then these targets can be useful on your CV. Whether your targets are personal, relate to your team, department, or company as a whole, your attainment of them makes interesting reading.
#8 Your predecessor’s profile
I’m not for a second suggesting that you plagiarise someone else’s CV content, but you can spark some ideas by visiting the LinkedIn profile of your predecessor. Which aspects of your role have they featured? What results do they proudly showcase? How have you taken their work forward? What have you done differently?
#9 Industry associations
Industry associations can be an untapped source of information, providing a useful starting point when writing your CV. Many outline the main tasks and responsibilities connected to your line of work, providing a useful checklist against which to benchmark your role.
These untapped information sources are intended to spark ideas that you can lovingly nurture and shape into engaging CV content, peppered with tangible achievements and real results.
Don’t be tempted to transfer dull descriptions of tasks and responsibilities verbatim onto your CV. Instead, work with them, detail your personal contribution, and polish them to create an inspiring representation of your skills and achievements.
by Lis McGuire | Apr 14, 2015 | CV tips, Graduate CV tips, News
Last week, our friends at Find Share Connect shared some sound and actionable CV advice on Facebook as part of their #CVSpringClean. Alan and Dan rounded up the day by reminding followers that 8.8 seconds is the time it takes for a person to look at your CV. This fact was derived from research conducted by the UK’s youth programme, National Citizen Service, and based on the time recruiters now take to review entry level CV applications.
8.8 seconds. Not long, when you really think about it. To put the fleeting timeframe in context, I started playing around with the timer on my Samsung Galaxy, working out what was and was not possible in just under nine seconds. Then, when my family got bored with this craziness, I consulted Google.
I offer you my findings. Nine things that take less than nine seconds.
#1 It turns out that I can run up 25 stone steps. I put some welly into it but, in my defence, it was after a day of intense walking. It won’t surprise you to learn that the fitter members of my family could manage more.
#2 I can tie one shoelace. Again, not very impressive. I was all fingers and thumbs!
#3 I can eat three cheese balls. You know, cheese balls, those maize-based spherical crisps that appear at Christmas each year. My efforts were heckled and, by comparison, turned out to be pretty pathetic. Let’s just say I won’t be invited to a competitive eating event anytime soon!
#4 I can put an umbrella up and down. If you are superstitious and fretting, don’t worry, it was outside!
#5 I can insert my debit card and enter my pin number. I’m not sure the assistant at Pret A Manger knew what on earth was going on!
Number five sent my family over the edge, so I resorted to Google to identify four more activities that take less than nine seconds.
#6 Usain Bolt can run at least 85 metres, on the basis that he achieved the 100 metres gold medal for his 9.63 second time at the London 2012 Olympics.
#7 A rodeo cowboy can complete a qualified ride, the length of which is just eight seconds. (Source: http://rodeo.about.com/od/faqs/f/why8seconds.htm)
#8 The 0-60mph time of a Ford Escort XR3i MK4 (1986) is 8.8 seconds. Who knew? (Source: http://www.autosnout.com/0-60-Times/0-60mph-in-less-than-9-seconds.php)
#9 In August 2014, Karim Bellarabi earned his place in the record books by scoring the fastest ever Bundesliga goal. Within just nine seconds, the Bayer Leverkusen player found the back of the net and set his team for a win against Borussia Dortmund.
Some of these feats are truly amazing, given the nine second timeframe. Others less so (ahem). Impressive or not, the time they were completed in, nine seconds or less, is not long at all. That’s all the time your CV will have to win over the reader. In that fleeting time, the person reading your CV will have made a decision, one way or another, about your credentials and employability.
It can seem unfair, given the amount of time that it takes to craft your CV, and even worse when you consider the time it takes to acquire the skills and experience which form the building blocks of your CV.
Unfair or not, 8.8 seconds is the reality of today’s recruitment landscape. Accept the time limit and adapt accordingly, or accept that your CV will be tossed aside.
by Lis McGuire | Mar 9, 2015 | CV tips, Graduate CV tips, News
You’ve written a fantastic CV and covering letter (or even had them professionally written for you), your LinkedIn profile is up-to-date and fully optimised to reflect your current job search, your approach is focused and targeted, and yet you’re still not getting invited to interview.
Sound familiar? Believe it or not, your email address could be talking you out of a job.
Why? These reasons could be the big three:
#1 Your email address is inappropriate
As a professional CV writer, I see A LOT of email addresses every week and many stand out for the wrong reasons.
A surprising number of people use a personal email address that they’ve had for years on their job application, but these addresses are often highly inappropriate for job hunting. Email addresses beginning with names such as ‘pussycat69@….’, ‘lagerboy@….’, ‘ladykiller75@….’ or ‘iamawesomehireme@….’ all invite people to make judgements about your appearance, behaviour, or attitudes before they’ve even read your CV.
Even an email address that uses your favourite fictional character – ‘anastasiasteele@….’, ‘buffygirl@….’ or ‘walterwhite@….’ – makes a statement about your interests and personality. This invites a reaction from your target employer – they may relate to the statement, or even dislike it.
Also, using a personal email address that includes your birth year gives away a personal detail that you may not have wanted to disclose until your interview.
In my experience, it’s better to leave personal email addresses off your application form and opt for something that includes your first and last names or a form of them at least, e.g. firstname.lastname@…..‘ or ‘initiallastname@….’
#2 Your email address is outdated
Having read a lot of articles including this one on this topic and spoken to a number of employers, it would appear that certain domains are considered to be behind the times. This particularly relates to Hotmail, Yahoo!, and AOL.
Although some employers won’t think this way, there are others who will automatically reject people with a Hotmail, Yahoo!, or AOL email address, taking it as a sign that the candidate is resistant to change and possibly not tech savvy enough to create a newer, more relevant email address.
This perhaps seems unfair because Hotmail is still considered one of the best free email providers, but if you have a beloved Hotmail address, consider a little online research to inform your decision on whether to keep it.
#3 You’re using your current work email address
I would always avoid sending a job application from your current work email address. To many employers this is a red flag that you are job hunting while you’re on the clock and being paid to work. If this is how you behave in your current job, how will you behave if the new company recruits you?
Even if you are job hunting on your boss’s time (and I wouldn’t recommend it), log in to your Gmail account and send your application from there.
Which email addresses create the right impression?
To ensure that your email address doesn’t get your CV blackballed, we’d always recommend setting up and using a free Gmail address or a personal domain email address.
Gmail is a good option because employers tend to see people with Gmail addresses as current and tech savvy. It’s certainly the best free email service available at the moment and you need a Gmail address to use many of Google’s other services.
There are some that would argue though that Gmail may not always be the coolest and most popular email service around (after all, look at how we’re talking about Hotmail in this article!), in which case a popular and effective alternative is to secure a personal domain email address, such as firstname@lastname.com or hello@firstnamelastname.com.
Again, employers are more likely to view people with personal domain emails as technically aware and committed to keeping their skills up-to-date.
A word of caution – employers will sometimes investigate whether the personal domain is associated with a website, running a quick search for www.yourdomain.com to see what it brings up. It’s worth making sure that if people search for your domain, they at least find a holding page or are redirected to your LinkedIn profile, even if you don’t have a website. This can actually be a positive step that helps you build your personal brand, reinforces your credentials, and shows your attention to detail.
Your email address is a brand message
Whether it’s fair or not (and many people would argue that it’s not), your email address is an unintended brand message about you that can cause people to make a snap judgement about whether your job application should be rejected outright or you should be invited to interview.
By all means keep your personal email address but our advice would be to create a separate, professional address for job hunting. It just means you can be confident that you’ve ticked another box towards securing your next position.
So, ‘fess up! Do you have a dodgy email address that you use when job hunting? Would you consider changing it or do you think it helps you stand out from the crowd? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the Comments below.
