3 Mistakes You’re Making on Your Resume and How to Correct Them Now

> Quantify your accomplishments: For eg instead of "Used java to build a scalable trading platform" try "Build trading system used by YY people in ZZ countries that managed $XXX billion" . I'm sure it can be improved but the idea is QUANTIFY.

> After every bullet point you write ask "SO WHAT?". You used some cool technology to build something gee-whiz? ...SO WHAT? Why should your potential employer care. Explain how the skills matter to them.

>Resumes are eventually going to go away/get marginalized. Build a solid linkedin profile. You don't need 500 connections but try and get as many recommendations as you can. Put up a professional picture, link to a blog or a portfolio that showcases the work you've done.

>Attend meetups, network. In NYC the demand for good software talent is ridiculously high! Just show up for events and if you have even half decent coding skills people will be inviting you for interviews (so resume's matter even less).

I kind of recoiled in horror at this one. Whenever I'm working on my own resume or helping someone else with theirs, I go by one simple rule: your goal is to get the person reading to the END without going pffft. That's it. If you can get them to the bottom of the page without losing them, you'll be one huge step closer to an interview - if, along the way, you've proven that you're at least minimally competent, you've done everything a resume is meant to do.

One thing I did that caused a notable increase in responses was to put a dotted line down the right side, with horizontal lines at each break (school, work, volunteer) leading out from it. People were more likely to get to the end if they were following a little dotted path. And if someone reads your whole resume, that's a pretty good start.