CV Advice: Writing a CV well means...

Including the kind of information that matches the type and level of job that you plan to apply for in such a way that recruiters find you interesting as a candidate.
Selecting where to place your emphasis: it could be knowledge and education (recent graduate, for example); it could be results.Selecting where to place your emphasis: it could be knowledge and education (recent graduate, for example); it could be results.it could be knowledge and education (recent graduate, for example); it could be resultsit could be knowledge and education (recent graduate, for example);
it could be results; it could be intangibles such as changing organisational culture – this depends on what stage you are in life and what type of professional roles you have  (For examples see section 2 below).
    Prioritising your information so that what is most important catches attention first, so that you do not look naïve enough to focus on trivia and so that the detail is left for them to ask at your interview.
    Including enough evidence of what you have to offer to appear convincing and professional, without boring people to death or sounding like a job definition.
    Stretching yourself in terms of the way you write and the words you use: the CV has its own grammar that need not use sentences and paragraphs but if you think of a recruitment consultant writing a very concise report about you - then you will not go far wrong.


    Choosing an attractive style, which means simplicity: avoid boxes, graphics, templates in your WP programme, photos (unless you are a performer) and get your fonts right (Tahoma and Verdana are the best when you email your CV to recruiters and you can use 9.5 point size to give yourself space).


    Testing and checking your new document: try your CV out on friends and partners and have at least one person proof-read it; there is no room for error and spell-checkers do not find every mistake; switch off your grammar checker because it does not apply to CVs at all

2 - The thought process behind a good CV

Before you ever write any kind of application it would help to pause, take out a clean sheet of paper and write the title: What do I want them to know about me?

Forget about your personality: do not tell them you are enthusiastic, tenacious, good at teamwork and kind to lost kittens! You can send these messages, but it must be in a professional way:

Example: I want to tell them that I am such a good sales manager that my team has consistently over-performed despite the industry downturn and adverse factors such as a delay in new product launches.

Example: I want recruiters to know that the ways of dealing with people that I set up have made it possible for this organisation to hold together despite the merger and subsequent redundancies.

For the moment, pay no heed whatsoever to the form of words; simply note down the most important messages that would impress someone who might recruit you.

Now take these messages and mould them into recruitment language

Remove the personalisation such as “I”, “my”, “our” and “we” – and then try to think like a journalist in your approach. What might a good headline about one of your skills be saying?

Example: Accomplished sales professional, with a track record of year-on-year over target, achieved even against a climate of sector decline…

Once you have isolated a core message you can substantiate it, either in bullet points straight away if this is the main introduction to your CV, or when you come to describe your most important, most recent job. In general, I prefer my bullet points and headlines to form a coherent story rather than appearing as brash claims that don’t connect with evidence.