Job seekers repeatedly make numerous resume errors that knock them out of competition. Make sure your resume is not “dead upon arrival” by avoiding their frequently observed resume errors:

1. Not related to the reader’s interests or needs
2. Fail to represent the real candidate
3. Unrelated to the position in question
4. Too long or too short
5. Unattractive with a poorly designed format
6. Small type style, and crowded copy
7. Misspellings, poor grammar, wordiness, and repetition
8. Punctuation errors
9. Lengthy phrases, long sentences and awkward paragraphs
10. Slick, amateurish, or “gimmicky” – appears over-produced
11. Boastful, egocentric, and aggressive
12. Dishonest, untrustworthy, or suspicious information
13. Missing critical categories, such as experience, skills, and education
14. Difficult to interpret because of poor organization and lack of focus
15. Uncertain what the person has done or can do
16. Unexplained time gaps between jobs
17. Too many jobs in a short period of time
18. No evidence of past accomplishments
19. Lacks credibility and contact
20. Includes a great deal of fluff and “typical” resume language
21. State a strange, unclear, or vague objective
22. Appears over-qualified or under-qualified for the position
23. Include distracting and irrelevant personal information
24. Fails to include critical contact information (telephone and e-mail )
25. Uses an anonymous address (P.O. Box number)
26. Use jargon and abbreviations unfamiliar to the reader
27. Uses strange or odd formal titles, middle names, and nick-names
28. Repeatedly refer to “I” and appears self-centered
29. Includes obvious self-serving references that raise credibility questions
30. Sloppy, with hand writing corrections
31. Includes red flag information such as being incarcerated, fired, lawsuits or claims, health or performance problems, or stating salary figures, including salary requirements, that may be too high or too low

Employers also report encountering several of these production, distribution, and follow-up errors:

1. Poorly typed and reproduced – hard to read
2. Produced on odd-sized paper
3. Printed on poor quality paper or on extremely thin or thick paper
4. Soiled with coffee stains, fingerprints, or ink marks
5. Sent to the wrong person or department
6. Mailed, faxed, or e-mail to “To Whom It May Concern” or “Dear Sir”
7. E-mailed as an attachment which could have a virus if opened
8. Enclosed in a tiny envelope that :
9. requires the resume to be unfolded and flattened several times
10. Arrived without proper postage – the employer gets to pay the extra!
11. Sent the resume by the slowest postage rate possible
12. Envelope double-sealed with tape and is nearly impossible to open !
13. Back of envelope includes a handwritten note stating that something is missing on the resume, such as a telephone number, e-mail address, or new email address
14. Resume taped to the inside of the envelope, an old European habit practiced by paranoid letter writers. Need to destroy the envelope and perhaps also the resume to get it out of the envelope
15. Accompanied by extraneous or inappropriate enclosures which were not requested, such as copies of self-serving letters or recommendations, transcripts, or samples of work
16. Arrived too late for consideration
17. Came without a cover letter
18. Cover letter repeated what was on the resume – did not command attention nor move the reader to action
19. Sent the same or different versions of the resume to the same person as a seemingly clever follow-up method
20. Follow-up call made too soon – before the resume and letter arrived!
21. Follow-up call was too aggressive or the candidate seemed too “hungry” for the position – appeared needy or greedy

Since your resume is vitally important to getting a job interview, make sure your resume is error-free. Spend sufficient time crafting a resume that shouts loud and clear that you are someone who should be interviewed for a position.