Have you ever been tempted to embellish the truth on your resume? Surveys show that up to 80% of people have lied on their resume’s. You don’t have to do that to stand out. Here are a few simple tricks to help you look impressive.

Format, format, format

We often receive resume’s that are poorly written, have spelling mistakes and all sorts of crimes that would raise a red flag with a potential employer, they’re also a red flag for us as recruiters. We want you to have taken the time to make sure spelling & grammar etc are all spot on.

Here we’re talking about formatting. Begin with a simple format that showcases your ability to arrange information in a manner that benefits the reader. This skill will make you stand out from the majority of other job applicants and instantly boost your appeal for most positions. Don’t confuse narrative resume’s with visually creative portfolios. A hiring manager does not need to see how well you can create documents in Canva. Unless of course it’s a creative position, then you can showcase your portfolio in a separate document.

Less over exaggeration, more facts

Review the headline and introduction on your resume carefully. Job seekers often resort to clichéd and exaggerated language when they are not entirely sure of their worth. Unfortunately, recruiters & hiring managers can quickly identify these types of claims and may not find them impressive.

Nouns such as “disruptor,” “expert,” “guru,” “thought leader,” and “visionary” should only be there if you truly match up to the definition in the dictionary. Exaggerated adjectives such as “distinguished,” “outstanding,” and “unique” are more often opinions rather than fact so steer clear of using too many of these.

These examples demonstrate the types of words that can seem impressive to job seekers but don’t pass recruiters’ scrutiny, we want you to show us your value with facts rather than tell us.

Positively frame your experience

Highlight the elements of your experience that interest potential employers, and delete irrelevant (or potentially negative) information by reframing negatives to a positive. And example of this might be changing “reduced turnover to 10%” to “increased retention to 90%.”

Make sure this passes the LinkedIn test - would you be comfortable posting this resume on LinkedIn? How would your colleagues react if they read this on LinkedIn?

Show off who you’ve worked with

Analyse a job posting to see if you can pinpoint any parts of the job that involve working with the same type of people you’ve worked with in the past. If a role will have contact with lawyers, note down which firms or lawyers you’ve worked with in the past. If you’ve worked for or had experience dealing with High-Net-Worth Individuals & the role requires the same, note down who they were. Being able to name firms or individuals will show that you’ve had these dealings in the past and will be able to confidently do this part of the job.

Eliminate outdated information

Depending on your experience, you might be able to cull some roles form the past that are of no benefit to your current position. Do you still list the supermarket you worked in while at school, or the bar job you had throughout Uni? If you’ve been in a corporate job for a while & are looking to move on, you will safely be able to eliminate those positions you had while studying as they are no longer relevant to your professional career.

Similarly, if you worked in product development for a product that failed, you may be able to omit this from your resume.

Check if your resume would benefit from a little overhaul by deciding which relevant, positive information to present, and crafting compelling framing.