Not exactly funny material, but I do notice a lot of folks prep their resumes or attend job interviews like they go about prom or nominations for homecoming. Sure, you're supposed to make yourself look good, but not to the point of being audaciously idiotic. In fact, in an effort to stand out, most people end up looking like drones. Sitting in waiting rooms with interviewers, I'm still surprised to find people dressed as if they're going to prom
Or at least the college folk.... silk pastel shirts, jewelry, sharp contrast tie, cologne.
IMO, best resumes are those that have less verbage and focus on achievement and responsibility than time-task lists. If you've little or no experience, you definitely have to focus on attributes than time. If you're a consultant with extensive project experience, I've found that the best kind of resume isn't a 7-page one which details each and every task performed at every job--- that's less believable than, say, someone who talks in "mission critical" and "executive" terms --- the
big picture, so to speak, which is always easier to spot with brevity.
As for clothing and decorum, I personally have two favorite "business costumes".
The Accountant always has a crisply pressed white cotton dress shirt and plain blue or red tie under a conservative plain black or grey suit. No pinstripes necessary, or if ever, very subtle. Belt is worn no lower than an inch from the belly button and a tie clip is a nice add. Shiny shoes not optional. This garb suits a lot of finance and management-level jobs, connoting simplicity and direct-to-the-point a WYSIWYG kind of confidence.
The Big Blue attire suits more "people" jobs - sales and marketing, IT and business analysis,
PR, HR, etc. Lightly colored cotton dress shirt and lightly contrasting tie (i.e. baby blue/yellow, yellow/red; light green/black or grey). Slim fit suit and pants with more fashionable pinstripes allowed and in fact looks sharper to folks who like trendsetting new hires. I wouldn't mind a low-fitting set of dress pants for this. Still, nothing too flashy nor shiny.
One portfolio pad folder with a fresh, new pad looks better than a whole laptop bag. Only insert(s) should be (a) copy(ies) of your resume. Oh... and I wouldn't hand out business cards.
Finally, biggest faux pas folks have these days is giving out their "personal" online info - like "slippercream@yahoo" or putting social networking sites on any identifiable job profile or resume. Though employers' HR departments do search those these days, I'd still play it safe and try to keep work separate from fun while you're still on the search.
Wow... just realized this reads like an article...
