Your Resume Doesnt Need These 4 Things Anymore

Your Resume Doesnt Need These 4 Things Anymore Your Resume Doesnt Need These 4 Things Anymore 9Your resume should be a living, breathing document. And as such, not every section or piece of information you included on your resume last year, or five years ago, should still be there. To make sure your resume will stand out to employers for the great info it contains, and not for its outdated formatting or unnecessary information, here are four things you can leave off your resume. 1. An objective. This is the statement at the top of a resume that tells an employer what youre looking for, and about 10 years ago, it was everywhere, especially for entry-level job seekers or college students. But, no longer. Employers already know youre looking for their job, so an objective statement telling them that is unnecessary. Instead, use a well-written  Summary of Qualifications to introduce employers to your most relevant skills and experience and tell them why they need you, rather than why you need them. 2. Unrelated awards, hobbies, and interests. CEO Sara Sutton remembers years ago when she received a job seekers resume that mentioned his distinction as a pig wrestling champion. It was certainly interesting, but because it had nothing to do with the job he applied for, it was more of a distraction from his other qualifications than anything else. 3. Too much formatting. Keep your resume simple so recruiters can read it quickly and easily. Dont use bold, italics, and underlines all at once. Stick to one or two fonts, and if youre using more than one, be consistent in how you use each one, making sure they are complementary rather than clashing. Some modern resume formatting trends use colors, graphics, and charts, which are all useful if done well. Any formatting you use should help employers to see and remember your most important qualifications. 4. A list of tasks for  each job. Instead of telling employers what you did at your past jobs, tell them what you accomplished. What were the overarching results of your day-to-day tasks? If an employer is hiring you for a specific role, they probably understand what that role entails. Instead, employers want to know HOW you did what you did and WHY it made a difference to your previous employers. When youre starting a job search, one of the first things youll probably do is update your resume. But to be prepared for career opportunities anytime, try browsing your resume at least once or twice each year, making updates, adding accomplishments, and removing pieces that are no longer relevant to your professional story.