I recently had a resume emailed to me for review, and the first thing that stood out to me was the headline, and it did not make a good impression. The headlining statement discussed this person’s love for animals, yoga, and drinking wine. This should be common knowledge, but your resume is not your social profile. When I look at a resume, I look for a candidate who will fit with the company culture, someone who has all of the required skills to do the job at hand, and someone who will work their hardest. Frankly, when looking at a resume, I don’t care what the person does on the weekends or after work, and I actually don’t want to know. If I were looking for a candidate and came across a headlining statement focusing on personal details which have nothing to do with the position available, I would immediately toss it aside without reading the rest. Work is work, and discussing your drinking and social habits in your resume, let alone at the top of your resume, is a complete no-no. Save it for Tinder or Instagram or wherever else you’re comfortable discussing that information, but always remember that your resume is not your social profile.
In a society where social media often blurs the lines between personal and professional life, it’s easy to forget the level of formality and importance your resume should hold, but it is a crucial fact to remember. If you’re in the running for a job, your resume will likely be viewed by numerous people including HR, your prospective boss, and potentially even your prospective peers. When writing your resume, it is important to realize that this is the first impression people have of you. If I saw a candidate with a headlining statement about drinking, it would be very hard for me to ever take that person seriously in the office, or at the very least forget what they wrote on their resume. Whether or not it is the right thing, it is human nature to judge, so remember that you’re going to be judged on the resume you send in no matter what.
My rule of thumb with social media is this: If you’d be embarrassed for your grandmother and/or your boss to see it, it shouldn’t be on the internet. Similarly, with your resume, if you don’t want your boss, your future staff, and/or peer members to see it, don’t include it. A resume is a formal document that accrues a lot of critiques, judgement, and gives people a first impression of who you are. Treat this document with the respect that it deserves, and paint yourself in the light you’d like others to see you in. Think of your resume as way to portray the version of yourself that you want to be. Highlight all of your skills and achievements, do the research, and put forth the best document possible. Your resume is not your social profile, so don’t ever treat it like one.