Today’s Sound Off is about writing and submitting a resumé:
Dear Heloise: For the past 12 years, I’ve worked in human resources for a Fortune 500 company. We receive resumés every day from college graduates who seem to think a resumé is unnecessary or old-fashioned, or that they don’t need one because their sparkling wit and charm will see them through.
A resumé is our first impression of an applicant, and I can’t stress enough how much a good resumé makes a person stand out from the crowd. Sometimes, a resume is all that’s needed to get an interview. I thought I’d pass along some important hints on resumé writing:
1. Choose good quality paper in a white or off-white color. There should be no white-out, crossed-out or broken-out words and no fingerprints. Your resumé should be very clean. Try to condense your resumé to one or two pages, but never anything more than two pages.
2. A brief summary/objective can be added at the top. Never put this at the bottom of your resumé.
3. Tailor your resumé to the job you want.
4. List your education and any volunteer work you’ve done.
5. You can also list any other languages that you speak.
6. List all awards and projects that you have been a part of.
7. Don’t forget to list your contact information. It might surprise you to learn how many people don’t know how to contact them.
8. Have your resumé printed at a print shop. Please, no handwritten resumés and no misspelling. I can assure you, handwritten resumés, poor spelling, careless grammar and sloppy formats are dumped right into the wastebasket.
9. There are templates online to help you organize your thoughts and show you what your resumé should look like. Just type in “how to write a resumé” in the search bar.
10. Remember, a good resumé is the first step to getting the position you want. Don’t be shy. Brag about your accomplishments. But be honest, because we do check everyone’s background.
Good luck with your job hunt.
— Deanna R., San Francisco, Calif.
Do you get sick of the mothball smell? Here are some options to store wool clothing without mothball odor.
• Use cedar blocks in a closet where you plan to store your wool items, but do not lay the cedar on your clothing. It can stain clothing.
• Use cloth garment bags to store clothing or blankets.
• Store blankets, scarves and other wool items in giant, plastic tubs, and make sure the lid is on securely.