It’s a busy recruitment market now, but if you’re a candidate you need to stand out from other applicants. That’s why we always recommend that you spend some time on your CV, making it the best, and most engaging that it can be, so that potential employers will want to meet you.
What are employers looking for?
You need to remember that your CV is an essential piece of personal marketing, it’s your chance to promote yourself. Of course, it is obvious that you need to include your education, qualifications, work experience, skills and achievements, but equally as important is your need to ensure it is:
- Appropriate to the job you are applying for (customise it if you can)
- Honest/authentic
- Factually correct
- Written simply and clearly
- Free of spelling mistakes, punctuation blunders and grammar errors
- Original and gives an insight into your personality
- No more than two pages long
Tell your story
In addition, we encourage you to a use a font that is easy to read and a simple layout that is not too distracting design-wise. Because in the absence of you being able to tell a potential employer face to face that you are perfect for the job, your CV needs to spell out the fact that you:
- Have the skills required
- Understand what will be required of you
- Use terms, language and phrases to illustrate that you know their industry/sector or business
- Have the potential and willingness to learn, adapt and develop
- Can demonstrate that you have a record of delivering results
- Are motivated to meet the jobs goals and objectives
- Are an approachable, likeable and interesting person
Things to avoid
Ok, so we’ve highlighted what your CV should contain, but equally as important is what it doesn’t need to make mention of. These include, age (date of birth), ethnicity, political affiliation, religious preference, marital status, sexual orientation, place of birth, photographs, references (names and addresses or the phrase – references can be supplied on request), height/weight/health details and unexplained gaps in employment.
To conclude, your CV has a tough job. It needs to grab someone’s attention quickly and successfully answer the “so what” question. This is a hypothetical question that someone will ask if they can’t see why your application is relevant. Essentially, your CV must make you sound as though you will fit easily into an organisation and that you will quickly be able to make a real difference.
How can I help?
If you are struggling to write your CV so that it gets you noticed for all the right reasons, please get in touch – 07780 692784 or debby@total-spectrum.com. We offer a tailored CV writing service as well as interview preparation and coaching sessions, so you can get the job results you need.
