How to Get Your Resume Looking Right

Experts advise brevity and a clean presentation that targets the job being applied for.

Although it nearly goes without saying, the old advice of having the best resume possible is so critical for any job seeker that it should be hammered into their mind until it's lodged there permanently. Many otherwise viable candidates who would make effective and well-paid employees scuttle their chances by being half-hearted, sloppy or careless about their resume.This applies to anyone looking for a steady paycheck, no matter if they're veteran workers with specific skills or less qualified people lacking a college degree.

This is a grave mistake, particularly in the current tight jobs environment in this country. So what can be done to fix and buff even the most modest of curriculum vitaes?

Every employment professional has a different toolbox of advice, but most agree on some of the basics. First of all, the look of the document should be simple, straightforward and clean. The people deciding whether a candidate is hired or politely told "no thanks" usually don't have the time or the inclination to trudge through a poorly-presented, ugly or confusing presentation. Candidates should make it easy on them by cleaning up the way it appears - one or, at most, two type fonts should be used, while descriptions of past jobs and biographical details are best done briefly and economically. A ten-page resume stands a good chance of being ignored or discarded, no matter how accomplished the candidate.