Crafting the Perfect C.V. - Perils, Pitfalls and Pratfalls
As Bob Dylan so succinctly put it, sooner or later you gotta' serve somebody. Whether you're an eager greenhorn looking to break into the industry or a salty old hand fishing for the more executive jobs, you'll have to offer a personal précis to the (wo)man in the driving seat. Here's an introductory guide to crafting the perfect C.V. by weeding out the errors one at a time.
Crafting the Perfect C.V. - Perils, Pitfalls and Pratfalls
School-Boy Errors
Including your Date of Birth: You're advised not to include your date of birth for discrimination purposes. Besides, if you do you run the, admittedly slight, risk of getting it wrong. You'll soon find that a few misplaced digits can cause a great deal of trouble. Very few firms will offer executive jobs to people younger than 14 or older than 140.
Using the wrong contact details: Perhaps the cruellest of mistakes. Re-check those digits or you'll be the only girl not at the dance.
Submitting an unprofessional Email address: Popping up in the inbox as 'hotmale@hotmail.com' or 'Suburbancowboy69@yahoo.com' will not result in your appointment as Travel Director. Jobs in the upper echelons just don't work like that.
Peppering your work with Misspellings: If you can't be trusted with a spellchecker you can't be trusted with a company. Don't even consider applying for executive travel jobs by claiming you used to work in 'Tennereefay'.
Redeemable Transgressions
Leaving Unexplained Gaps - Don't try and hide those 2 years you spent as a roadie for Metallica. Who knows what horrors they might imagine instead?
Breaking the two-page rule - The secret of 'image' is judicious editing. Let your C.V. present only the cream of your achievements and save a little something for date night.
Using empty clichés - Put yourself in the employer's position. Sooner or later phrases such as, 'Good communicator' and 'Works well in a team' begin to blur into obscurity. You might as well write 'Regularly digests solids' or 'Breathes 78% Nitrogen' for all the good it will do you. If you're aiming for executive jobs, show proof of your excellence, not a repertoire of empty claims.
Indefensible Indictments
Lying - If you once drove three of your mates to Dieppe on a 'Booze Cruise' then don't claim you spent 5 years as an International Travel Director. Jobs at that level often aren't as easy as them seem and one would like to think you'd be caught out.
Using friends as a reference - Unless your friend is a talented web-designer and a vocal impersonator on a level with the 'Fonejacker' you will not pull this off. In fact, like many Con Artists, you may end up putting more effort into the deception than it would take to make the same profit from legal pursuits.
The rest, of course, is up to the quality of your presentation. With competent, clear and direct writing there is no reason that you shouldn't secure the interview for the job that you deserve. If possible try and read as many of other people's C.V.s as you can and try and work out exactly what the employer is looking for. If you know that, and are confident you've the relevant experience, the most desirable executive jobs should be well within your grasp.
Gail Kenny is the managing director of Gail Kenny Executive Search, a recruitment agency specialising in executive travel jobs . The site caters exclusively to talented individuals with skills and experience to succeed in the travel management, and businesses looking for such candidates.
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