With winter dragging on, I\u2019ve been thinking about spring cleaning. Getting rid of what we don\u2019t need, making space for what we do, and letting our space shine. This got me thinking about how we can clean up and declutter our job applications to improve clarity, readability, and the overall impression made.<\/p>\n
Read on to find out what phrases to axe from your applications. As always, these are just examples, so use your own discretion and come to a drop-in session if you\u2019re not sure.<\/p>\n
Technically speaking, I am responsible for cleaning my kitchen. But just because I\u2019m responsible for it doesn\u2019t mean I actually do it. Now, I\u2019m not saying you don\u2019t<\/em> clean your kitchen, or undertake the responsibilities on your CV. But the problem with \u2018responsible for\u2019 is it doesn\u2019t tell the reader anything about the action you took. It only tells them that it was your responsibility.<\/p>\n Put yourself in the centre of the action. Instead of \u2018I am responsible for cleaning my kitchen\u2019, I could say \u2018I set calendar reminders to deep clean my kitchen every month\u2019, or \u2018I clean one thing in my kitchen while waiting for the kettle to boil\u2019. Do you see how these two examples still show how I take responsibility, without falling back on vague statements like \u2018responsible for\u2019? I\u2019d encourage you to do the same in your applications. Find examples that demonstrate your work ethic, instead of simply claiming this.<\/p>\n I see this a lot on cover letters and personal statements, though it can crop up on CVs too. It\u2019s similar to \u2018responsible for\u2019 in the sense that, technically, having an opportunity doesn\u2019t necessarily mean that you took it! But employers aren\u2019t daft \u2013 they\u2019ll know, or at least assume, that you\u2019re talking about an opportunity for a reason. The real issue with this phrase is that, again, it\u2019s passive \u2013 it puts the focus on the opportunity rather than the action you took.<\/p>\n Leading with the opportunity itself adds clutter to your application, and you could get the point quicker by leading with your behaviour. For example, \u2018I had the opportunity to network with a range of cleaning professionals\u2019 could simply become \u2018I networked with a range of cleaning professionals\u2019. This is frontloading: placing the most important information at the beginning of your sentence or paragraph, so that the reader immediately knows where you are taking them in the text. In my view, it\u2019s not the opportunity that matters \u2013 it\u2019s what you did when you took it.<\/p>\n Are you picking up on a theme here? Telling an employer you \u2018had to\u2019 do something uses the passive voice. It also risks sounding negative or unenthusiastic. Of course, you can still be positive and enthusiastic about a mandatory task, but you\u2019ll convey this more effectively by focusing on your initiative. Whether it\u2019s \u2018I had to<\/span> used<\/strong> VLOOKUPs to identify multiple values\u2019, or \u2018I was required to<\/span> washed<\/strong> my own pots after dinner\u2019, you can easily sound more action-driven by scrapping a few words.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not always possible to avoid using \u2018we\u2019 altogether. However, you should avoid downplaying your<\/em> contribution within a team. In my cleaning example, my husband and I work together to achieve a shared goal. We\u2019d never clean the oven together, simultaneously, because what would be the point? Hopefully this demonstrates how every act of teamwork is made up of unique, individual actions. Focus on what you<\/em> did, because this is what the employer is most interested in.<\/p>\nHad the opportunity to\u2026<\/h2>\n
Had to\/was required to\u2026<\/h2>\n
As a team, we\u2026<\/h2>\n