Millennials, the job market can be tough, especially for workers who don’t have decades of experience under their belts. One way you can standout from the pool of other applicants is by sprucing up your resume. The first step is keeping these words off your resume.
“Hardworking”
Recruiters and hiring managers want to assume that every applicant is hardworking, so there’s really no need to explicitly say that you have this quality. The content of your resume should show that you’re hardworking so you don’t have to say it. For example, did you complete a graduate program while also working full-time? That will show that you know how to put your nose to the grind more than the word “hardworking” does.
“Team player”
If you write that one of your strengths is being a team player, but then you don’t back it up with experience, the word will mean nothing to hiring managers and recruiters. Strengthen your resume by removing this word and adding in experience that demonstrates how you were a team player. Talk about your contributions to a team project that your former boss assigned or how you successfully lead a group of wholesale distributors to achieve double digit sales growth.
“Detail oriented”
When you use detail oriented in a resume, you are almost challenging the hiring managers and recruiters to find a tiny mistake in your writing. If there is one word misspelled or one misplaced comma, the recruiter or hiring manager will question how detail oriented you really are. Instead of stating that you are detail oriented, show it by turning in a flawless resume.
“Go-to person”
Did you think of yourself as a go-to person at your previous job? Were your co-workers constantly turning to you for advice or assistance? You may be tempted to add this thought into your resume, but try to resist. A real go-to person in the office will have been given extra responsibilities or duties since managers know that they can handle the workload.
Therefore, if you were the go-to person that you claim, you should be able to show it by talking about the extra roles you took on in the position. For example, many companies will turn the “go-to people” into subject matter experts over a certain topic so that co-workers know who to talk to when issues arise. If this is the case, be sure to add this title to your resume, but leave out the “go-to person.”
“Responsible for ____”
Every employee has responsibilities, so showing that you were responsible for certain tasks does not impress any hiring manager or recruiter. Use other action verbs such as “led,” “managed,” or “transformed” to show what you actually did with those responsibilities instead of just listing them out. This will show hiring managers how much initiative you take when given a task instead of proving to them that you are capable of doing the basic work.
“Salary negotiable”
Hiring managers assume that every applicant is willing to negotiate when it comes to salary, so adding “salary negotiable” to your resume will just look like you’re trying to fill space because you ran out of achievements. The same can be said for the phrase “references available upon request”. Employers will assume that they can always ask an applicant for references, so there is no need to write this out on your resume. Keep a minimum salary in mind when you’re applying for jobs, but don’t put it on the actual resume. In fact, salaries should not be discussed until you receive an interview.
Managers, are there any words that you hate seeing on applicants’ resumes? What words do you look for on incoming resumes? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
