Make your CV tell an exciting story

UK-based millionaire businessman James Caan advocates ‘unusual’ details, such as telling a woman who stood six feet two before stepping into her heels that she should put the fact in her CV. “It will make her CV different from all the others, get her noticed, an perhaps open the door to an interview,” he said.

And he also believes it can be an advantage to shun modern means of communication too. “These days most CVs are sent electronically, but now and again one will come through the post. I’m more likely to read that one all the way through than I am ones sent via e-mail,” he says.

But it must be readable too. CMR principal Steve Cameron says even the most successful senior people are not necessarily good at creating a CV. “They take their skills for granted, and don’t put them into a CV. As a result it’s surprising how dry those CVs can be. So many of them are written in the third person; they look much the same as so many others, and frankly, they’re uninteresting.

“What’s important is to have an opening paragraph that captures the attention in such a way that if the reader has to break off to answer the telephone, for instance, they’ll want to come back to it, rather than push it to the bottom of the pile.”

He urges CV writers to let passion shine through. “Make it inspirational. Talk about your motivation; talk about what you’re good at, and talk specifically about what you’ve done. Back that up with a paragraph of bullet points showing what you’ve achieved; the value you’ve added, sales you’ve generated, extra revenue you’ve created, or savings you’ve made.”

Phil Parry, Chairman cf Spinnaker Recruitment, agrees that it’s crucial to demonstrate achievement. “People so often fail to sell themselves in terms of their own successes and the people they know, or have dealt with in the past, who might contribute in some way to similar success in the future.”

There’s also a good case here for ‘name dropping’, says Mr Parry. “If you’re applying for a business development role, for example, show that you have connections with people who can help a potential new port employer realise their aspirations.

“The successful applicant for any job will always be the person who can bring something new to the party,” he adds.