Take the time to make sure your polished CV can sell you
It is the key to their futures, yet so many job seekers continue to get it wrong. East London-based life coach Robert Brain said a CV was not just a document that told a person what skills you possed. It is your brand.
According to Brain, a CV is aimed to attract a company to you, so candidates should use it as a tool to sell themselves and their skills to the best of their abilities.
He said, on average, a CV attracted someone’s attention for not more than two minutes, meaning it had to be concise, accurate and straightforward. To ensure this, Brain gave some tips on how to draft an eye-catching CV.
These include:
● Your name, contact details and entire schooling history must be included;
● A covering letter is a must;
● Keep it short – while its important to include all past work experience, candidates should summarise past experience and only expand on more recent work;
● There should be no gaps or big time lapses in the CV – be clear about what happened or what you were doing;
● Because of qualification fraud, it could be helpful to include one’s identity number so the employer can perform background checks where necessary;
● Keep it professional – no borders or animated pictures should appear anywhere on the document;
● A head-and-shoulders picture makes the perfect CV accompaniment; and
● While not necessary, candidates can include just a line detailing what their interests are.
“There’s more to drafting a CV than candidates think. It’s almost like a trick question employers use to test the candidate’s ability to summarise and to be concise. Make it detailed, but remember to keep it short. It should not be longer than two pages, three at the most,” Brain said.
“Your CV should also be adapted for every single job application – not to change the facts but to focus it. Also, print a fresh CV every time you apply for a new job. Do not photocopy it. This is a professional document and it needs to be clean and crisp.
“Remember, a CV is your brand. Use it to sell yourself.”