Your Résumé and Difficult Questionsby Marjorie Dorfman | More from this Blogger 17 Oct 2006 09:04 AM It is very important for your résumé to speak for and not against you. Some questions can present problems and need to be handled very delicately. For example, if you recently left a job or know that your job is about to end, should you bring attention to that fact by highlighting an ending date on your résumé? Or should you simply say "to the present"? The answer depends on what feels right for you. You can go "to the present" route as long as you come clean when the interviewer asks you if you are still there. Most résumés are not completely up to date anyway and that is allowed. Remember that in these changing times, being out of work does not have the stigma associated with it that it once had. If you have been out of work for a long time, however, you will need to fill in the gaps for a potential employer. Remember that when an interviewer asks a question, it does not require the same type of response as when a friend does. Details have to be screened without being dishonest. One tack is to re-direct the question. For example, if an interviewer keeps going on about why you didn't go to college, you can talk about how much you wanted to learn on your own. Please let me tell you some of the things I have learned. If you are an older worker, you probably have left dates out of your résumé that would give your age away (date of college graduation, etc). We have all done this, but remember that whoever is interviewing you is going to try to guess your age anyway. Sometimes not putting the information in draws more attention to it. It is difficult to say which way is the best to go. Use your judgment. Each situation is different. Remember when creating your work history on paper to look before you leap, and don't forget as well that he who hesitates is lost! Good Luck! Related Reading: "Resume Format: Is There a Right Way?" "What Are Hard and Soft Skills?" http://forums.families.com/jobs,f122 Learn more about Marjorie Dorfman  Marjorie Dorfman is a freelance writer and former teacher originally from Brooklyn, New York. Relevantemployment tags User Comments No comments on this article yet. Be the first to comment! Community Tags employment history, employment practices, job seeker, résumé, work history Discuss this article
|
Jobs categories |
