What with everything going on, it might feel like a tough time to be applying for jobs. Which is why you want to make sure you stand out for all the right reasons with every vacancy that you apply for.
A new report from Resume.io reveals the popular words often used on CVs that recruiters actually hate seeing, because they've basically just turned into massive cliches.
The resume specialists spoke to 562 hiring managers across several popular industries in the UK, and asked them what the most common words they see on CVs are, which they wish they wouldn't. The results were as followed.
Top 10 words hiring managers reportedly hate seeing on CVs:
- Best
- Motivated
- Dedicated
- Proven
- Reliable
- Passionate
- Excellent
- Enthusiastic
- Great
- Hardworking
While some of these are perhaps quite predictable (everyone always says 'passionate', don't they?), some of these are more surprising. Reliable? Dedicated? Hardworking?
We're better get our Thesaurus out for synonyms asap.
Everyone's clicking on...
Instead of using adjectives to describe your skill-set and work ethic, the data instead encouraged individuals to "give examples of their achievements as opposed to just using buzzwords and stating skills. If they can get into the habit of doing this, they will become a much more desirable proposition to potential employers”.
Good advice!
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Dusty Baxter-Wright is an award-winning journalist and the Entertainment and Lifestyle Director at Cosmopolitan, having previously worked at Sugarscape. She was named one of PPA’s 30 Under 30 for her work covering pop culture, careers, interiors and travel, and oversees the site’s Entertainment and Lifestyle strategy across print, digital and video. As a journalist for the best part of a decade, she has interviewed everyone from Louis Theroux and Channing Tatum to Margot Robbie and Ncuti Gatwa, while she has also spoken on Times Radio and BBC Radio. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram here.
