Usually a CV should be no more than two pages – and that’s two pages of A4 paper! Employers spend, an average, just 8 seconds looking at any one CV, and a way of landing yourself on the no pile is to send them your entire life story. Keep it punchy, to the point, and save those little details for the interview.

We are a cynical bunch and leaving obvious gaps on your CV immediately makes employers suspicious – and they won’t give you the benefit of the doubt. If you’ve been out of work it can be a worry but just put a positive spin on it. Did you do a course, volunteer work or develop soft skills such as communication, teamwork or project management?

You should keep your CV up-to-date whether you’re looking for a job or not. Every time something significant occurs in your career, record it so you don’t later forget something that could be important.

Employers DO look for mistakes on CVs and if they find them, it makes you look really bad. If you’re unsure then use a spellchecker and ask someone else to double-check what you’ve written.

Using magic numbers to support your achievements – it makes selling yourself much easier. When writing your work history, don’t just say that you increased sales; tell them you increased sales by 70% over a six- month period.

We live in a world where image is everything, and that also goes for your CV. Take some time to pretty it up… Use bullet points and keep sentences short. Use the graphic design trick and make the layout easy on the eye.

If you’ve uploaded your CV to a job site so recruiters can find you, keywords are very important. Job titles and job buzzwords will help a search engine pick out your CV from the pile. … If you’re not sure, have a search online and see what words are commonly mentioned when you input your job title.