A friend asked me to review her resume the other day. Overall, she has strong work experience and a well-formatted document. However, one thing immediately jumped out when I looked at her document: her objective statement.
WHY OBJECTIVE STATEMENTS ARE THE BAD GUYS
I generally recommend against using objective statements at all, as I generally believe that they hurt job candidates much more often than they help them. After all, your cover letter offers the opportunity to explain why you’re interested in a specific position. On the downside, many job seekers don’t adequately customize their objective statements for each job application. They end up submitting a resume that says, “I’m looking for an entry-level position in microbiology” when they’re applying for a customer service position at the phone company.
My friend’s resume did not contain this sort of error, but it did raise a red flag. In her objective section, she stated that she was “seeking a position with flexible, abbreviated hours, possible travel, growth potential, and awareness of work/life balance”. Now, don’t get me wrong, those are all fabulous qualities to seek out in a job. In fact, they’re very similar to other job seekers’ wish lists for the perfect company. However, I bristled upon seeing this information in the very first section of my friend’s resume.
SAVE SPACE & TIME—TELL THEM WHAT THEY WANT TO HEAR
The unfortunate reality is, employers generally don’t care what you’re looking for in a job. They want to know if you’re capable of doing the job they have open. Using valuable resume space to outline what you’re looking for rather than what you have to offer suggests that your focus in your job search is misplaced. Use the prime real estate on your resume (i.e., the top half of the first page) to make the case for why a company simply must call you for an interview. There’s no need to get into what YOU want until you get some face time!
We believe in using personal branding statements and powerful career summaries because they can be customized to each position you apply to and they provide the employer with a very clear picture of why YOU are the perfect fit for the job.
To find out more about how we can deliver results in your job search, call today – 800.991.5187.
Author:
Jessica Holbrook Hernandez is an expert resume writer, career and personal branding strategist, author, speaker and President/CEO of Great Resumes Fast. She creates high-impact, best-in-class, resumes and cover letters that transform job searches into interviews and ultimately job offers. For more information about professional resume writing or to read more career and job search related articles visit http://www.greatresumesfast.com/ or call 1.800.991.5187.
