1) If you are using a recruitment agency make sure they handle vacancies in your field of expertise. There is no point in placing your details with a company if they don't handle your type of positions. They will simply put it to one side and ignore it.
2) If you are asked for further information - provide it. If you don't there is a chance that your CV will go nowhere.
3) Ditch the silly e-mail address!. It may have seemed thigh-slappingly funny to you and your mates when you thought it up but a Tax Accountant with an email address of ihavabigone@hotmail.com or princesstrixiebelle69@gmail.com is not going to impress a prospective employer. They expect to see you treating the process seriously.
4) Be prepared to put yourself out to attend an interview. You will be amazed at how many people are surprised that they are not given a job on the strength of their CV! All too often we are told, "Sorry, I can only get away for 30 minutes at lunchtime or after 6:00pm on Tuesday, but not next Tuesday as I'm meeeting my mate for a coffee". Employers expect you to attend at THEIR convenience, not yours.
5) Remember the recruitment company is employed by their client, not by you. They should do everything possible to match you with the right role but they are working for, and being paid by, the employer. If you rant at them for not finding you a new job you are reducing, not increasing, your chances. Ranters go to the back of the queue.
6) Don't get too clever with your CV. It should be in a standard Microsoft Word Document format and not include pictures or fancy bits. Avoid using PDFs or unusual formats. Not all clients can open these files. Don't worry too much about keeping to two pages as some recruitment companies tell you. That's for their benefit. If your story goes to three or even four pages - tell it. It is your advertisement for yourself. Equally, don't over-egg it.
7) Make sure ALL your contact information is on the CV. Address, land line telephone number, mobile number, email address and any relevant information about when to contact you. There is nothing more annoying than going back to a CV and finding information missing. If you want your chosen recruiter to communicate with you give them the tools. There are, of course, privacy issues but not including your full contact information is a bit like winking at someone in a darkened room. You know you are doing it but no one else does.
8) Be patient. When you are job seeking patience is most definitely a virtue. Keep in mind that, while job seeking is uppermost in your mind, the recruitment process is only a small part of what your prospective employer is doing in their day. You may not always get responses back as quickly as you would wish. A good recruitment company is working away to get a result without becoming a nuisance to your new employer.
9) Thomas Edison invented ninety-nine light bulbs before he came upon one that worked. You only want one job. It will come along, just give it time. Don't get depressed by the process as this will come across at an interview and you will fail again as a self fulfilling prophecy.
10) Never, moan at interview about your misfortunes or about what a bunch of tossers your previous employers were. The person sitting opposite you is imagining you working for him/her and is feeling distinctly uncomfortable. They can hear you saying the same things about them and their company in the future. All companies want positive people working with them.
11) Finally a very important one! Don't use little "i" in emails when you are referring to yourself . It's not trendy, it's sloppy. While we are on "things not to do" - don't use all capital letters in your CV. It's akin to shouting at people. It's also very difficult to read. That's why all road signs in the UK are in upper and lower case.
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