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Resumé Tips #6: Avoid Clichéd Superlatives and Proclamations

November 11, 2008 By Nagesh Belludi Leave a Comment

Self-Declarations on Résumés

Consider the following assertions from résumés that I reviewed recently:

  • “Ambitious, career oriented, uniquely qualified, results-driven professional with outstanding academic preparation and exceptional industrial experience in applied research and design.”
  • “Extremely strong, aggressive, self-sufficient writer with excellent technical skills and ability to learn new technologies quickly.”

The trouble with these statements is that they amount to unoriginal self-declarations. It is as though these candidates put on a crown and proclaimed themselves the kings and queens of the land of have-everything-an-employer-needs-skills. Most candidates do not realize such jargon can, in fact, be a turn-off.

Show than Tell

Avoid clichéd superlatives and proclamations on résumés A résumé is, in essence, a documentation of your achievements and recognitions. Your résumé should not explicitly declare such characteristics as hard-working, entrepreneurial, self-starting, etc. Instead, your résumé should describe your accomplishments in such a way that a reader infers these skills in you.

Admittedly, describing your accomplishments to imply you are a “hard worker,” “self-starter,” or “team player” is difficult.

  • To present yourself as “hard-working,” describe your part-time employment, serving as captain of the soccer team, leading a student club. Mention your high GPA and academic projects.
  • To present yourself as “results-driven,” show how your projects contributed to your organization’s goals and bottom line: include phrases like, “saved 10% costs,” or “improved capacity by 18%,” etc.

Avoid proclamations, jargon and clichéd superlatives. Write your résumé to include more than a mere assemblage of personal particulars. Help the reader connect to you through your résumé and get a picture of your personality, unique skills and characteristics.

Wondering what to read next?

  1. Resumé Tips #1: Best Fonts and Text Size for Your Resumé
  2. Resumé Tips #2: The One-page Résumé Rule
  3. Resumé Tips #3: References Not Necessary
  4. Resumé Tips #4: The Hurry-Burry Résumé
  5. Resumé Tips #5: Résumé or Curriculum Vitae?

Filed Under: Career Development Tagged With: Resumé

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About: Nagesh Belludi [hire] is a St. Petersburg, Florida-based freethinker, investor, and leadership coach. He specializes in helping executives and companies ensure that the overall quality of their decision-making benefits isn’t compromised by a lack of a big-picture understanding.

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