how much do resume gaps matter? by Alison Green on November 19, 2015 A reader writes: My husband and I are moving in December to Wisconsin (from Texas) so he can start a new job on January 4th. I love my current job and am sad to leave it. However, from a financial standpoint, it seems to make the most sense for me to move with him in […] Read the full article →
I’ve been a job-hopper — how can I start fixing my work history? by Alison Green on October 27, 2015 A reader writes: I’m a young professional who, for various reasons, has had a lot of jobs in my adult life. Since I graduated from college in December 2011, I have held 11 positions at eight different companies/organizations in four different cities (all internal changes were promotions). In my opinion, I’ve changed jobs for very […] Read the full article →
do not cheat the one-page resume rule by using a tiny font and tiny margins by Alison Green on September 8, 2015 If you’re early in your career, you’ve probably heard that your resume should only be one page. And perhaps you’ve tried to wiggle your way around that rule by using a tiny font and non-existent margins so that you can cram more text into one page. If you’re done this, you’re violating the rule in spirit […] Read the full article →
stop claiming subjective traits on your resume by Alison Green on August 14, 2015 Do you have anything like the following on your resume? excellent written and oral communication skills strong initiative visionary leader creative innovator able to present strategic concepts clearly and persuasively If so, remove it! Remove it all! Your resume is for experience and accomplishments only. It’s not the place for subjective traits that anyone could […] Read the full article →
how can my resume show that I take charge and people like me? by Alison Green on June 22, 2015 A reader writes: What is the professional way of saying on a resume, “I always take charge of things and people like me”? Writing that is clearly cringy. Maybe the cover letter is a better place? At my current company, I started in more of a technical role, but I did not supervise anyone. My […] Read the full article →
these 5 resume mistakes are hurting your job search by Alison Green on June 15, 2015 As a former hiring manager who now helps clients with their own hiring, I look at a lot of resumes. Day after day, I see job candidates severely harming their own chances by submitting resumes that do a terrible job of making it easy for employers to spot why they might be the right person […] Read the full article →
is the one-page resume rule dead? by Alison Green on May 13, 2015 An awful lot of people have internalized the old rule that your resume can only be one page and go through incredible contortions to keep their resumes to one page, even when they have years of experience. Other people apparently have never heard that they should think about resume length at all and thus create […] Read the full article →
no one is reading my resume’s skills section by Alison Green on May 11, 2015 A reader writes: I was wondering what your thoughts are in general on having a skills section on resumes. I’ve seen pretty ambiguous skills sometimes, but I only list concrete technical skills, e.g. video editing with Adobe Premiere, NOT things like “engages with industry influencers.” For me especially, I thought it would be helpful because […] Read the full article →
yes, you can use Times New Roman on your resume by Alison Green on May 4, 2015 A bunch of people have sent me this article making its way around the internet that claims that you shouldn’t use Times New Roman on your resume. Like so much resume advice that focuses on the look of your resume rather than its substance, it’s wrong and you can ignore it. If you read the […] Read the full article →
my employer gives terrible resume advice to low-income people by Alison Green on April 22, 2015 A reader writes: I intern at a nonprofit organization that assists low-income community members with resumes. My supervisors provide us with very limited autonomy during the resume development process, and each resume we build must follow the style guidelines of our organization. We are required to have all resumes checked at least twice by a […] Read the full article →