The key to secure you an interview for your dream job is a perfect CV(Curriculum Vitae). Today the only survivor is the best one. No one gives importance to the average people. In advanced companies,the interviewers will only look at your CV for a minute and your future will be decided in that brief overview.
Writing a perfect CV is a very challenging task. It is a complete detail of your personal and professional inormation plus your ambitions and interests. People often question how to write a perfect resume that is able to stand out from the crowd when everyone is using the same format to make a CV. Well! keep it in mind that its not the template that matters but the material inside. So instead of stressing learn the art of CV making.
What Should be in Your CV
- Personal Details
- Education & Qualifications
- Skills
- Achievements
- work Experience
- Interests
Tips for a Perfect CV
Once you learn the art of CV making, you just have to put together the details and qualification according to the desired job and thats it! I have gathered some tips that will definitely help you out in making a perfect resume:
Basics Must Be Right
Our personal information and all other basics must be correct like your name,status,address, qualification etc. Wrong information will give a very wrong impression and most likely you will lose the chance. So you must provide complete and accurate basic information.
Keep it Simple
Your CV must look simple and professional. I know it sounds tempting to add a lot of colours and pictures to make your cv stand out. But avoid it and keep it simple. You can show your creativity and personality but keep it classy not some colour book.
Perfect Presentation
Presentation is the key in making your resume perfect. CV must be carefully and clearly presented.It must be printed on a clean white paper.Avoid to crumple or fold your CV instead present it in A4 envelop. Remember that the hot spot of a CV is the upper middle area of front page so keep your main information there.Also your layout should be well structured.
CV must be According to the Job:
Your CV must be adapted according to the job. Avoid providing that information which is useless for that company. Emphasize on the elements that highlight that you are perfect for this job and they have come to the right person.If you havent that much experience then try to demonstrate other skills that you have.
Two Pages of A4 are Enough
A perfect CV is clear and precise. Dont waffle around instead only mention that information that is necessary. Avoid gathering too many pages as it will give a very bad impression. The interviewers receive dozens of CVs each day so they don’t have time to read your whole life story. So your resume should not exceed two pages of A4 and it must be precise.
Avoid Careless Mistakes
Your resume must be free from any stupid careless error like spelling mistake, change in the sequence etc. It gives an impression that you are careless about such an important task. So get your CV checked or read by someone else before handling it over.
Add References
If you can add some reference from the person who has employed you in the past and can vouch for your skills then its perfect.If you have no such reference then take the help of one or two teachers. It will create a very good impression and increase your credibility.
Mention All Experiences
Mention your every experience in the work field in a positive and assertive language.Relate your skills to the job that you are applying for. Show your skills and experiences from the past job position even if its a minor one.
Keep Your CV Updated
The CV must be up to date according to the needs. Keep reviewing your resume on a regular basis and add any new skill or experience that is missing from it. If you have volunteered at a new project or learned a new skill then mention it in your CV. If you want to get appointed for your dream job then do some effort.
Avoid Negative Words
A good CV is free from all negative comments. So avoid using negative terms like hate,quit,ignore,tried etc. Also negative experiences should not be mentioned.So steer away from such words and replace them with positive phrases.
New Professional Trends
So you have a CV ? You think that piece of Paper or some MS Word file is all you can give to your Potential Employer, as your Application? If you think so, you are very Wrong, and you are going to Learn something very Beneficial for your Career. Your CV is like your Brochure.
Lets understand the importance of Art of CV Making. Just imagine that you have 2 Cars and you want to sell them. Now for Car A, you just took a picture from your 3 pixel camera and posted it on Internet with a little Description. On the Other hand, for Car B, you used a DSLR Camera and took HD Quality images from different angles, you wrote a Detailed Description and even you Recorded a Video of it Driving perfectly. Now which Car will receive more Calls from Buyers ? Obviously Car B. So you need to Treat yourself just like Car B. Because your CV is actually your Advertisement.
You are selling yourself in the Job Market. Now it is up to you, that you want to be Car A or B. We all have seen that 2 persons with same Qualifications and Skills are sometimes getting different Salaries, even in the Same Company. It is all Because of the Presentation. It is because of the Human Nature, we all are Happily willing to pay Triple prices at Shiny & Expensive Looking Stores.
So if you will Follow the Instructions and Tips you are just going to Read in this Blog, i am 100% sure that you will not only Get a Job, but also a Huge Salary. You can follow these New Trends to Practice the Art of CV Making.
Its All about Presentation!
As i have already mentioned that CV is like a Brochure and Advertisement of a Person. So obviously a Nice Looking advertisement will Attract more Buyers. But lets discuss another aspect of Why Presentation is Important.
Being part of the Corporate World, i have witnessed that there are Lesser Jobs and More People. For whatever Job, you will put an Ad, and you will start receiving hundreds of CVs of Candidates. So do you really think that a Company has that much Free Staff to go through Each and Every received CV from Top to Bottom ? No Way !
Even if they open every CV, they will never Read it all. If you are Lucky, your CV will receive the attention of about 3-5 seconds. That is why the Presentation matters, because your CV Presentation can utilize those 3-5 seconds and keep the person interested. Otherwise an average looking CV will be in Trash after those few seconds.
CV Structure
You will have to imagine that your Employer will only Look at your CV for 3-5 seconds. Your CV should be prepared in that way. You have to understand the Natural Filter process. If a Company receive 100 CVs, they will first Filter them out according to Relevance. So if you are applying for a Job for Engineer, make sure that you mention this thing prominently in the beginning that you are an Engineer. Because Companies are not interested in your Address and Phone Numbers unless you are Relevant.
So they will filter out the Time Wasting CVs which are not Engineers. After that they will filter out the CVs according to Required Skills. So your CV should have a structure which displays the important things prominently. If you have the skills, please mention them in Bold. Make them appear in the Beginning using a short Summary. Because they are not interested in your Hobbies unless you have the Skills. So remember this thing that Every thing comes after your Relevance & Skills. They want an Engineer and you are an Engineer with Required skills, then your College Projects may also interest them, otherwise they are useless. Focus on the Following Parts :
- Your CV is Relevant to the Job Position.
- You have the Required Skills.
So your CV Structure should have a Quick Summary of these 2 Points. So that you could use those 3-5 seconds in your Favor.
Business Card
This is a very Basic Improvement which you can make in your Professional Life. However its effects are extremely Long Lasting. Simply Print Out a Business Card of yours. Mention your Name, Contacts & Profession on it. That card will be more helpful in Job Hunting than a CV.
It will also help you out in Professional Networking. Because when you are in some Meeting or Gathering, you can easily give your Card to anyone. On the other hand, giving your Printed CV to some guy in a Casual Gathering will be so inappropriate.
Social Media Profiles
Do not stop at having a Nice Looking CV. The World has changed and there is a Huge Competition in the Job market. So just having a Professional CV is not enough. You need to have Social Media accounts specially of LinkedIn. Now for those guys who already have Social Media accounts, try to look Graceful over there.
Do not upload your stupid selfies on these accounts because Serious companies check your LinkedIn profile. They may also read your Tweets and Facebook status to have an Idea about your personality. So Maintain a Graceful Reputation in Social Media. This will be your First step in doing something Additional than the Average candidates.
Website Portfolio
Now if you really want to be Special among all Candidates of any Job. Get a Personal Website. It will only Cost you few Dollars per Year. There are many Drag & Drop tools available on the Internet, and anyone can Design a Basic Website themselves. That website will have the Domain Name same like yours. You can keep that website updated with all Your Professional Information. Your website will be your Online CV. So instead of sending a File, you will be able to send just a Link of your Website to anyone, so that they can review your Online CV. It will be a very Unique Impression.
Additionally, you can Add your Portfolio in your website. It will be an Online Presentation of your Skills and Previous Experience. It will be an Outstanding activity as it will be a Proof of your Skills, and obviously Employers will happily Call you after Receiving Proof instead of Just Words.
Blogs & Tutorials
You can observe Thousands of Blogs and Tutorials on Internet. It is a very unique & Latest Trend among IT Professionals that they write Blogs about IT Stuff and even Upload Video Tutorials. Now just think about How much Impressive it will be for an Employer, to see that a Guy has Video Tutorials and Blogs, and he is teaching other people about doing these IT Activities. So this will Raise your worth to 500%.
If your Market Value is 2000 Dollars, but you have a Website and Blogs and even Video Tutorials, you can ask for 10,000 Dollars and Companies will pay you Happily. Because as i mentioned earlier, everyone pays triple price happily in Expensive Looking Stores.
Introductory Videos
You can imagine, How far people have gone to make themselves appear Prominent and Special among Crowd. Yes a Lot of Western Professionals have also started Recording their Introductory Videos in which they are telling about themselves and are very Well-dressed. It is to give the flavor of their personality to the Employers before hiring them. in other words, they are giving a Test-drive to the Companies that Hey ! this is me, this is how ui talk, this is how i look, this is how i dress, and this is my Communication skill.
To Conclude, the Art of CV Making is very Important to be Learnt. You should be aware of the Latest Trends being followed by Professionals all over the World. A Simple printed CV is not enough now. If you want Interview Calls, you will have to follow these 100% successful Ideas. You have to make progress in your Professional Profile using Business Card, Website, Blogs, Tutorials, Portfolio & even Videos. Once you will Master the Art of CV Making, you will be Receiving Interview calls from all the Companies you applied for.
