11 Things You Should Never Include on Your Resume

The first impression recruiters get of you comes from your resume. But what if instead of creating opportunities, your content is destroying them?

Job seekers sometimes ruin their chances of getting interviews by including details that send the wrong message and alienate hiring managers.

Some mistakes like typos or bad formatting are obvious, others are subtle, lurking within your document. This makes recruiters question your competence as they move on to candidates who impressed them in all the right ways.

Before you apply for another job, make sure your content isn’t sabotaging you. In this article, we’ll take a look at the things you should never put in your resume.

What not to put on a resume

The goal is to have a well-written and logically structured resume to grab the attention of hiring managers. However, certain details that are outdated, unprofessional, or irrelevant can ruin this balance.

Some of these mistakes might seem harmless but they can make your content look unprofessional, cluttered, or even raise some red flags.

Here’s what you should avoid.

Unnecessary personal information

Too many personal details can make you appear unprofessional and put your privacy at risk. Hiring managers are only interested in information relevant to the role—anything beyond that is distracting and only takes up precious space on your document.

Here are the personal details you should NOT include:

• Date of birth or age: Unless it’s necessary to mention it for legal reasons, your age isn’t relevant and could lead to unintentional bias.
• Family details & marital status: Employers don’t need to know if you’re married, single, or if you have children.
• Social Security number: Having this on your resume is a huge privacy risk, never share such sensitive personal information.
• Home address: If relevant, you can add your city and state. No need for an exact address.

In other words, don’t put in anything that relates to your personal life. Keep your resume focused on your experience, professional accomplishments, and skills.

Irrelevant work experience

Your previous roles might have shaped you as a professional but this doesn’t mean you should feature every job you ever had. Listing unrelated or outdated jobs will only clutter your document and distract from your most relevant experience and skills.

Avoid the following:

• Jobs from over a decade ago: Older roles only take up space without adding value.
• Short-term, unrelated gigs: It’s best to not mention brief jobs that don’t align with your career goals.
• Internships or entry-level roles: If you’re mid-career, then you’ve already gained meaningful experience so focus on that.

Outdated or overused resume phrases

Keep in mind hiring managers go through countless resumes. It’s no surprise they lose interest when they see tired old phrases that add no real value. Overused buzzwords and vague statements weaken your resume, making it fade in the crowd.

Here are some common examples and what to replace them with:

• Hard worker: Don’t just say it, show it! Use a real achievement example. Tell recruiters what you accomplished with hard work.
• Responsible for: This is generic and passive. Instead, use a strong action verb such as led, implemented, spearheaded, optimized, or developed.
• Team player: This isn’t a soccer championship. Give an example of how you collaborated with your colleagues to achieve a common goal.
• Detail-oriented: Instead, mention how this quality has helped you in your work.

Inappropriate or unprofessional content

A resume is a professional document. Anything that doesn’t align with that standard can be detrimental to your job application. You might think of some details as harmless but they can distract hiring managers or make them question your competence.

Here’s what you should NEVER include:

• Political or religious views: These create unnecessary bias and cost you many job opportunities.
• Inappropriate email address: It’s best to have a dedicated work-safe email address, such as firstname.lastname@enhancv.com.
• Photos and headshots: Unless you’re applying for a role in modeling or acting, leave out photos as they can lead to bias.

Poor formatting and design mistakes

Your document should be easy to read and logically structured. A messy or complicated design can be offputting to recruiters. Remember hiring managers often spend just a few seconds to scan through a resume so visual appeal matters.

Here are some common mistakes:

• Fancy fonts: Stick to readable resume fonts like Arial, Calibri, and Rubik.
• Bright colors: They can be too distracting. Play it safe with black, dark grey, and subtle darker nuances of blue.
• Too many graphics: Avoid using unnecessary visuals unless you’re in a creative field.Resume icons can be used but sparingly.
• Large blocks of text: Longer paragraphs make your document hard to scan. Break down the text into bullet points.
• Sloppy formatting: Make sure headings, font sizes, and spacing are uniform throughout your document. Inconsistent formatting makes you look unorganized.

Incorrect or misleading information

Job candidates are sometimes tempted to lie on their resumes. But stretching the truth can backfire badly. Experienced hiring managers know how to spot a dishonest candidate—reference calls, background checks, and even simple online searches can uncover dishonesty.

Here’s where truth matters the most on a resume:

• Job titles and responsibilities: Don’t exaggerate your previous roles to appear more senior than you were.
• Employment dates: You might think gaps in work history are dealbreakers but it’s best to address them openly.
• Skills and certifications: Claiming expertise in a skill you don’t really possess will be disastrous if you’re asked to demonstrate it.
• Education credentials: Listing a degree you don’t have is a big red flag. Recruiters can easily verify this information.
• Fake references: Asking a friend to pose as a former manager is unethical and can easily be discovered.

Salary expectations or demands

One of the ways to hurt your chances of landing an interview is to bring up the matter of salary too soon. Including salary expectations on your resume can signal to the hiring manager that you’re inflexible or out of sync with industry standards. This may lead to an immediate rejection if your expectations are unrealistic.

Here’s why salary details shouldn’t be on your resume:

• Limited negotiation power: If you list a number too soon, you’re locked in. Too low, and you undersell yourself. Too high, and you could price yourself out of consideration.
• Salary discussion happens later anyway: Compensation will eventually be discussed so there’s no need to address it in your resume.
• Change of focus: Your application should present your experience and skills, not your financial demands.

Poor writing

Employers expect attention to detail and if your content is poorly written, then this could raise some warning signs about your competence.

Here’s what you should watch out for:

• Spelling and grammar mistakes: Always proofread your content with a spell-check tool, you can use our AI resume checker.
• Autocorrect mistakes: Even AI and spell-check tools can fail you. Give your content a final proofread before you submit it.
• Passive voice: For example, instead of writing "A team was managed under my supervision," use the more engaging "Managed a team of five."
• Repetitive language: Don’t repeat the same words in every bullet. Each sentence should add unique value to your content.

Irrelevant skills

The skills section of your resume should only include the abilities relevant to the role you’re applying for. There’s no point in putting anything else there. Having unrelated skills there will only distract and take up space.

Here’s what NOT to include:

• Basic skills: Knowing how to use the internet, email, and Microsoft Word is expected. Such common skills make you look outdated.
• Unrelated technical skills: For example, if you’re applying for a role in digital marketing, listing you know how to code in Python won’t add any value to your resume.
• Soft skills without context: It’s best to have your soft skills woven into your content to describe how you used them.

Negative language or complaints about past employers

You want to present yourself as a positive, professional candidate—not someone who dwells on negative workplace experiences and holds grudges.

Any mention of job dissatisfaction or issues with former employers can make you seem unprofessional or difficult to work with.

Don’t put any of these on your resume:

• Reasons for leaving previous jobs
• Complaints about previous employers
• Excuses for past failures at work
• Putting blame on your colleagues

Generic job descriptions

Recruiters won’t be impressed if your experience section reads like a job ad. Remember they want to see how you brought value in your previous roles—not just what you were responsible for.

Here’s how to avoid generic job descriptions:

• Focus on achievements: Instead of listing your duties, tell hiring managers about what you achieved.
• Quantify your impact: Use numbers and metrics to make your accomplishments tangible and add credibility to your claims.
• Mention unique contributions: Did you solve a problem creatively? Did you implement a new process? Explain what sets you apart.

Resume myths that hurt your chances

Unfortunately for many job candidates, there’s a lot of misleading and outdated resume advice circulating the digital world. And following the wrong information could cost you career opportunities.

So let’s take a look at these “rules” about resumes and see if there’s any truth to them.

Myth 1. The more skills you list, the better

Myth 2. You should include all your education details

Myth 3. More pages make your resume look more impressive

Myth 4. Listing “open to any role” makes you more hireable

Myth 5. Job titles should always match official HR records

Conclusion

There are many ways a resume can go wrong. Тhe key is to focus on creating a professional, targeted document that highlights your qualifications effectively. A well-structured resume should be clear, concise, and tailored, telling a story of why you’re the right fit for the role.