Your CV
Formatting, tailoring, quantifying, gaps and what differs by market.
For a workplace-side overview of workforce optimisation, see this page.
For an independent public reference, consult Harvard career services resume guidance.
8 guides
The Formatting Rules That Matter and the Ones That Do Not
Most formatting advice defends against a parser failure that rarely happens. What genuinely helps, and what you have been told to fear for no reason.
Quantifying Achievements When Your Work Has No Numbers
Advice to add metrics assumes a job that produces them. Most do not. What to do instead, and why the invented percentage is worse than nothing.
Tailoring a CV Without Rewriting It Every Time
Tailoring works; rewriting from scratch every time does not scale. The parts that change, the parts that never do, and a method that takes minutes.
The Summary at the Top: What It Is For
Most summaries say nothing and occupy the most valuable space on the page. What the section is actually for, and when to leave it out.
Gaps, Career Changes and Non-Linear Histories
Most careers are not linear and CV advice assumes they are. How to present a gap or a change without apologising for it or hiding it.
One Page, Two Pages, or As Long As It Takes
The one-page rule is a US convention presented as a universal law. What length actually depends on, and what gets cut when it must be shorter.
What Differs by Market: US, UK, Europe and Asia
Photographs, dates of birth, length and the word for the document itself. What is standard in one market is a mistake in another.
Reading a Job Description Properly
Postings are written by several people with different purposes, which is why they are contradictory. How to find the three requirements that are real.