I think that psychometric testing or personality profiling is great in its proper place.   It is a very useful tool for employers to be able to assess how a candidate will fit in with their team and from your point of view it is very useful to be able to find out what the test will say about you.   That is why we have included information about psychometric testing on our Website you can get a free mini test - why not try it - it can be very interesting.  

I do think, however,  that it’s a bit like carrots which are jolly good for you, but even the best of things  can be bad if taken to excess.   I’m not at all sure that the personality profile can really tell you anything about yourself that you didn’t know already.   The biggest downfall is where people take elements of the psychometric test and include them in the CV in an endeavour to describe the type of person they are.   I think this is a big mistake.   It’s a bad idea to include anything in the CV that is not demonstrable.  

The type of profile that I come across all the time, when doing assessments, goes something like this:  

"A highly dynamic and flexible person.  Intelligent and hard working with an agile mind.  A pro-active problem solver and excellent communicator  ………."

Now, this may all be true but how can it possibly be proved?  Because it is only a perception it is simply a waste of space.  The profile is a very important part of any CV but it needs to be an introduction that focuses upon your achievements and skills to demonstrate, in real terms, what you have to offer to a prospective employer    

I had an interesting day yesterday, which included a visit to the Osteopath but more interestingly  a telephone interview with a lady who is writing an article on CV writing for a popular Women’s Magazine.

The main subject under discussion was how to get around ’glitches’ in your career when you are writing your CV.   It was a very interesting discussion and raised all sorts of issues that people may face in their lives.   I have been inspired to write an article covering how to deal with problems that may face you when you are writing a CV, which I will be publishing some time very soon.  

One point that emerged from the discussion was one that I found really interesting.  It was the fact that some of the ‘problems’ were not problems at all.   For example, since one would never include ‘reason for leaving’ when writing a CV you don’t need to show that you were sacked.   The only problem here might be with references, but that doesn’t doesn’t arise in the CV writing process because you don’t include names of references either.   Incidentally I am fairly certain that most employers would prefer not to get involved in disputes so they would usually give a non-committal reference in any case. 

I would usually only include years when writing a CV, so short periods of unemployment would not show at all.   Long periods of unemployment can easily be shown as a ‘career break’.  This is perfectly acceptable, particularly where there are young families involved or if you can demonstrate that you were studying towards further qualifications. 

I recently had an e-mail from a lady who said ‘I’ve had five years out of work to bring up my family - what excuse can I make when I am writing my CV’.   A classic example of somebody who saw a problem where there wasn’t one.   Employers are human beings and they will understand the need for a mother to be with her children.   With a little careful thought it can even be turned to advantage, for example you might say in the covering letter that you are now eager to return to work and to commit yourself once again to developing your career.  

The subject of people taking time out to travel was discussed.   Again this is simply not a problem.   Many employers would regard this as an advantage, especially as it would enable the candidate to demonstrate that they were adaptable and had gained an understanding of different cultures.

So the lesson here is that when writing a CV think positive!  Remember that your CV is not an autobiography and is not all about your life history.   Writing your CV is your opportunity to demonstrate your transferable skills and competencies and what you can bring to the prospective employer’s organisation.   Don’t put in too much detail and never make excuses such as ’reason for leaving’.   Try to view everything from a positive viewpoint and use your previous experience to demonstrate what you have to offer. 

We all know that the chances are that an employer considering job applications will only allow a very short time for consideration of each CV.   Unlike a comment I had from a client recently who thought it was because they are lazy, it is actually because they are just very busy people.   

Now, many people believe that there are certain gimmicks that will get your CV noticed, and they are probably right, but it will be for all the wrong reasons.   The way to get your CV noticed is by making sure that the presentation is such that it can be clearly understood what you have to offer to the prospective employer.   Use short sentences and leave out those unnecessary adjectives.   Use bulleted lists rather than long paragraphs of prose.   Don’t use jargon or acronyms, unless you are very sure that they will be understood.

Be brave and don’t feel compelled to include too much detail in your CV - if the employer wants more information they can always ask for it.   A clear, concise presentation with emphasis upon skills and achievements will make you stand out from the crowd for all the right reasons.   

There are a number of ways that I would recommend for dealing with gaps in employment.

The functional or hybrid CV is particularly useful because it gives you the opportunity to lead with information about your abilities.  It placed less emphasis upon the detailed career history.  This type of CV also gives the opportunity to draw attention to skills which may have been gained through voluntary work or sport.

Always express dates in years without the months.   This means that short gaps in your employment will not show at all.

Gaps due to unemployment can be a little more difficult to deal with.  However, employers will understand that it can sometimes be difficult to find a job, and if all else fails you could put ‘job seeking’ opposite the dates. 

Sometimes gaps in employment can be due to family commitments.  If this is the case, then simply put in ‘family commitments’ opposite the date.  This is quite usual, especially where there are young families involved.

Probably the very best way of dealing with gaps in employment is by demonstrating that you were undertaking further training.   There are a large number of training agencies, suited to training for every type of employment.   

Try visiting this page http://www.jobcentrevacancies.co.uk/career-links.php where you will find loads of links relating to this and other job-related subjects.

Now when giving free CV Assessments, I frequently give the advice that employers are not interested in you as a person at all, only in what you can bring to their organisation.  However this week I was taken to task for giving that advice .   As a result of that I have reconsidered, and I think that, although it is true in essence, it is advice that can be easily misunderstood unless it is taken only in the context of writing a CV. 

When considering a CV, the employer will definitely not be interested in hearing all about ‘me’ and my perceived strengths, mainly because this information is too subjective and can’t be quantified.   I may say that I am wonderful in every way with superlative personality traits which are just what an employer is looking for.   However, it is only me who is saying that and there is no way of proving it.   What you really need to do is to demonstrate in your CV what you have achieved in your life, so that the employer can realise that in order to have done that you must be a certain kind of person.  

In order to find out how you will fit into a team, the employer will use psychometric testing techniques.   These tests are designed specifically for that purpose.

However, having thought this through I will modify the advice I give in future.   I will say that employers are only interested in what you can bring to their organisation.   Your qualities need to be demonstrated, an employer will be unlikely to  place any value upon your own assertions of your peceived strengths, so it’s not a good idea to include them in your CV.       

We all know that your CV is the first point of contact with a new employer and that you never get another chance to make a first impression.   So why do people continue to place so little value on a good CV?

There are CV writing firms who offer to help you ‘write your CV in minutes’ - do they think that the rest of your career is worth so little to you.  There are others who will offer to provide you with a professionally written CV from only £35.   Now common sense tells us that every firm is in business to make a profit.   So if the firm is to make a profit, how much out of the £35 can they afford to pay to their CV writers.   How much time are they investing in writing your CV?   Are their CV writers working for peanuts, or are they only spending a very little while on each CV.   It seems to me those are the only two alternatives.   Either way it seems quite mad to me so think that such an important document is worth so little time and effort. 

If you are on a limited budget and feel you need help with writing a CV you will get much better value by investing in a high quality CV writing template.   Don’t be tempted to go for a cheap service - if it sounds too good to be true, it almost certainly is.

The most important thing to remember here is the level of competition you are facing.   You may view the prospect of writing your CV with dismay because you don’t think you can find much to write about, but remember that as long as you are applying at the right level, employers will know what to expect from a school leaver or graduate.  The problems that face you will be the same as those faced by all the other candidates.

The biggest mistake that people make is in trying to ‘big up’ their achievements or work experience and trying to make it something that it wasn’t.   Remember that at starter level an employer will be looking for somebody who is willing to learn.  They won’t be attracted to the prospect of trying to teach somebody who already knows everything, or who appears to think that they are already able to function at a senior level. 

Make it clear that you understand that because you are only just starting out you still have a lot to learn.   If you have some work experience, then so much the better.   Try to demonstrate that you did what was expected of you.   If this involved some level of trust, eg cash handling, that would be good.   But even such mundane tasks as shelf stacking can be turned to good advantage by showing that you have self discipline, which is extremely important if you are going to take on the commitment of a full time job. 

Remember, you are trying to sell your services to the employer.   They will think far more of you if you tell the truth and keep it simple.

 What is the purpose of a covering letter?   Quite simply to present your job application and your CV to the prospective employer.  

There are many CV writing Companies who will offer to write a covering letter for you and will charge you for doing so.   I can’t see how this can be justified.   In any event you don’t just want one covering letter, you will need a separate one for each job application.  

Yes, I would always help a client who had a reason to express something particular in the covering letter.   They might, for example, want to draw attention to the reason for a gap in their employment, or say that they had relocated to a new area which was they were now job seeking.    But generally speaking, the shorter and more concise the covering letter is the better.   You want the employer to get on with the job in hand, that is considering your CV.   You certainly don’t want to repeat all the information in your CV only in different words.

Remember to keep it simple, keep it short, but also try to avoid making it look like a ’round robin’.   This can easily be achieved by including just one paragraph that is unique to each application.    This could be something like ‘I am particularly attracted to the position you are offering because I have always wanted to live and work in [anytown]‘.   Or ‘Having had a good look around your website, I believe that I would be really happy working for [your company]‘.   I’m sure that you know the type of thing I mean, and if you can give a genuine reason why you would like that particular job then I believe that would work wonders for your application.

Apart from that, unless you have something particular that you need to say, keep the covering letter as short as possible. 

That question is a like ‘how long is a piece of string’ because it all depends upon the templates. 

There are many sites on the web offering CV templates.  They range from free templates right up to high quality CV templates with full guidance notes and there is very little similarity between the two types of service.  

Free templates can be useful when you are doing research, but they won’t help you in presenting your CV in a businesslike way.   One of the worst mistakes is in using a pre-set format which makes use of tables for laying out the CV.   This is a very bad way to go.   The problem with tables on a CV is that the end result is invariably that some of the columns will be crammed with text and others will be almost empty.   Apart from the clutter of unnecessary lines on the page, tables will give a very unbalanced look to the all-important presentation of your CV.  But free CV templates don’t cost you anything so it’s probably worth having a look at a few to give you some ideas as to the type of information you might like to include in your CV.

Much worse than that are the sites which offer a number of CV templates for a small charge.   They are no use at all. The ‘CV templates’ you will get for your money are not even worth following as a guide to layout because they are mostly of such a poor standard.   You might just as well approach a number of your mates and ask them to give you copies of their CV’s for you to look at. 

However, if you are a person who would really like to know how to write a first class CV and feel that you need some support in doing so, then CV templates at their best can be the ideal solution.   The important thing to look out for is whether you will get just a template or whether you will get full guidance notes with examples.   In fact, you may find that the guidance notes will be of more use to you than the template itself.   If the site makes it clear which topics are covered in the guidance notes and what you will get for your money, then CV templates can be an excellent way of getting the support you need in writing your own CV.

Don’t be tempted to put in everything in your CV - if you put in too much detail nobody will be able to find the information they are looking for.  

Lots of people when writing a CV are simply afraid of leaving out the detail - they think it is important that the prospective employer should understand as much about them as possible so that they will be really impressed.   Unfortunately employers are seldom impressed by detail, because they don’t actually have the time to read it all.  

You need to make sure that your CV is easy to understand and clear.   Be very selective about what you put in - analyse every point and ask yourself "will this actually help me to get this job?".   When writing an excellent CV ‘less is more’ because every bit of information will have earned its place and be there for the specific purpose of improving your changes of getting an interview.