Try these tips when you add a position to your CV.
What to know when you add a position to your CV
When you add a position to your CV, there are certain details you should never, ever miss out. You may immediately think: “But I know what to write down!” Unfortunately, most people are lucky to get even 90% of it correct. And it shows straight away when a recruiter receives an incomplete résumé.
Writing down every single detail you can remember doesn’t work – your CV will be too long. Mostly, job seekers are simply lazy – they do not want to think carefully to write everything they need to in a shortened format. Less often, people leave out details on CVs to hide something, but why would you want to be in the running for that opinion? Give your CV some thought and keep it succinct. Attend to each of the details needed for each position and then add in some spice.
General details
The main details of a position in your career history should be clear to you and you should know most of them off by heart, even if the position’s duration ended ten years ago. These details are:
- The company’s name for whom you worked
- The title of the position you worked in
- The area or city in which you worked
- The months and years of the start and end of the position
- The description of your duties
- Achievements
- Your reason for leaving
I can’t stress it enough – include the month you started and finished in – otherwise you could be hiding almost a year of unemployment.
Achievements
But if there’s one things that job seekers don’t do, it’s add achievements. These are the only real thing on your CV that show you to stand out above the standard CV the potential employer is receiving. Why the heck, if you are presenting yourself, aren’t you putting your best foot forward? When you add a position to your CV, make very sure there is an achievement or two. Achievements are discussed in more detail in another article.
Ready to add a position to your CV
Most of the details above won’t take more than a minute to get on your CV – it’s the description and achievements that need to be clearly defined. Before adding the position’s information, sit down and craft a short, clear description of what you’ve done in that job. Only add the most important parts of the job and use bullet points, not paragraphs. For some, you simply write the answer to the question: “What was the main thing you were hired to do?”
So, from now on, when you add a position to your CV, please include all the relevant details and sell yourself! If you don’t like the sound of selling yourself, then just call it presenting yourself. After all, that’s what a CV does – present you.