There is some information that simply does not belong in a resume. If you make the mistake of including it, at best, your resume will lose some strength; at worst, you will not even be considered for an initial interview.
Titles: Resume, Curriculum Vitae, Fact Sheet, etc.
There should be no need for a title on your resume. A title of this type on a well-written resume is redundant. If it is not apparent from the layout and content of the document that it is a resume, it requires more work. Also, including a title takes up an entire line, space that could be used more effectively. That extra line can be used for information with greater meaning, or as an extra line of white space to help in formatting.
Employment Availability
Statements relating to your employment availability are redundant. If you are not available for hire, why would you submit your resume? There is one exception to this rule: if you are expecting to be finishing a project and moving on in an expected length of time. Even in this rare instance, you should make reference to you employment availability in your cover letter, not your resume. In such a circumstance, your informed self-interest necessitates that you are always on the lookout for better career opportunities. You don't necessarily have to act on those opportunities, but you are best advised to at least be aware of them. If leaving your current employer prior to completion of a project could harm your integrity and/or references, alright, but bring it up once you have been given a job offer or when one is about to be extended to you.
It is very important to not burn any bridges when departing a position. It's amazing how many of the same people you will run into again and again, especially in certain industries. Besides, if you leave a company on good terms, many of your former colleagues can make good networking contacts.
As a rule, it is best to discuss your availability at the face-to-face interview. Once an employer has met you, he is much more likely to be prepared to wait until you are available, but will typically pass on the interview process if they already know that you are not currently available.
Reason for Leaving
There is no real reason for presenting your reason for leaving a position on a resume, but more often than not they are included-to the disadvantage of the writer. This topic will consistently be covered during the interview process anyway; if the employer isn't interested, do you really want to bring up an issue that could turn detrimental? It is likely that you could use the space more effectively. However, if you have been caught in a company downsizing or two, there is an argument for listing the reason to abolish any perception of willful job-hopping.
Salary
Leave out all references to wages, both past and present-it is far too dangerous. Too high or too low of a salary can remove you from the running before the race even starts. Even when you are responding to a job posting that specifically asks for salary requirements, don't list them on your resume. A well-written resume will still get you an interview, and during the course of the conversation with the company, you are definitely going to talk about salary anyway. If for some reason you still feel obligated to provide salary requirements, simply write "Competitive" or "Negotiable," and then only in your cover letter-never include salary on your resume.
Mention Of Race, Age, Sex, Religion, and National Origin
Government legislation enacted in the 1960's and 1970's prohibits employment discrimination in these areas under most circumstances. It is most wise to avoid any reference to these unless considered pertinent to the position.
Photographs
Many years ago, all resumes had a photo of the candidate in the top right hand corner. Today, however, photographs are no longer in vogue. Besides, including them takes up space and provides no information about your ability to perform the job. Of course, careers in acting, modeling, and some areas of media require photos. In these cases, your face is the money maker. Nevertheless, photos should not be included in a regular professional resume.
Health/ Physical Depiction
You are looking for a job, not a date. Unless your physical health (a fitness trainer, for instance) and appearance (actor, model, media personality) are directly related to the job, leave this information out.
Childhood History
For some reason, many people choose to include anecdotes from their childhood and upbringing. This information has no business in a resume. The earliest information that would relate to your job search would be your education in college and/or high school.
Weaknesses
Any weaknesses, lack of credentials, or information likely to be damaging to your objective should be avoided. Don't ever volunteer information to resume readers about what you don't have or what you can't or haven't had an opportunity to do yet-they may never ask.
Demands
Demands should never appear on a well-written resume. Don't summarize what you expect an employer to provide or give to you. The time for making demands is after an employer has presented a job offer with a job description and wage information attached. That is the time when an employer will be prepared to listen to your wants. Until that time, focus on what it takes to get to that desired end point by emphasizing what you can bring to the employer. In your resume, you need to focus on what you can do for the employer, not what the employer can do for you.
James Crocker is the Owner and CEO of Casual Robot Media. He writes informative articles to aid job seekers with tips for job searching, cover letter writing tips, resume writing tips, tips on professional networking, tips for interviewing, and tips for getting promotions on his website http://employmentgenius.com/
