I read what I would call, a technically “excellent ” resume this morning. The reason I say it was technically excellent is because it was really quite bland. The layout, headings, descriptions and design was all text book. But the person who wrote the resume sent it to me asking for some feedback. “Be honest with me, I really want to know what you think.”

I read through it twice, at first unable to put my finger on exactly what it was about the resume that wasn’t quite right. Once I realized what it was though it became obvious. So I wrote back to him:

You’ve covered all the basics well, but your resume lacks personality. A dose of personality can really enhance your resume.

What does that mean though? Well, I can’t really tell you because it’s your personality. Maybe it’s the resume layout, design, the use of colour, and image, a photo, a logo, your mentioning of hobbies or awards. Maybe it’s not just using the most generic of resume templates. Adding personality to your resume can also be a risk – you don’t want to go over the top.

What I can tell you is this: recruiters see 100’s of resumes every day. Black words on white paper can certainly blur. If you have black words on white paper from a generic template you are ensuring that you are “covering the basics” but you aren’t standing out.

At the end of the day your resume is a SALES document. It’s got to be appealing, stand out and SELL you. It’s you on paper.

James Witcombe
The Candidate Coach