In 1974, at the age of 18, while still a student at Harvard, he wrote a resume that, as he himself admits today, was rather bad.
The co-founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, he may currently be the 5th richest man on earth, with a fortune of $113.5 billion, but like everyone, he had to start somewhere.
In 1974, at the age of 18, while still a student at Harvard, he wrote a resume which, as he himself admits today, was rather bad.
“Whether you’re a recent graduate or a college dropout, I’m pretty sure your resume is a lot better than mine was 48 years ago,” the billionaire philanthropist wrote on LinkedIn.
The truth is that the typewritten document looks more like a report than a resume.
It was written a year before Gates dropped out of Harvard to found Microsoft, but it already includes some impressive accomplishments: He had already learned a few programming languages ​​and had work experience.
But there are also four obvious mistakes.
1. Gates wrote his height, weight and dependents.
If a recruiter were to read such a resume today, they would probably burst out laughing. “Personal information makes everyone laugh,” Stacie Haller, career expert at ResumeBuilder.com, tells CNBC. “He even has his dorm number.”
Even then, it was not customary to write one’s height and weight on a resume. Such personal information is best left out of the CV.
2. He included his previous salary.
He wrote that his previous salary was $12,000 a year and added “open” to “salary desired.”
Experts recommend that these financial details not be listed on a resume. But during a job interview, one should be prepared to talk about finances.
3. Use bad format.
This style of writing, with paragraphs, is tedious for the reader as it makes it difficult for them to quickly find the important information.
Today, recruiters spend very little time on each resume. Evidence shows that they decide whether to consider further or ‘throw away’ a CV within 7.4 seconds. Therefore, it is very important that the format facilitates quick access to information.
Experts recommend using bullet points and writing down your previous jobs along with their dates.
4. He did not use persuasive phrasing.
There is ambiguity in how he described the work he did at TRW Systems Group from January to September 1973. Gates stated that as a systems programmer he was “involved in file design and modifications to the operating system.” The word “involved” is considered quite generic and meaningless, with experts recommending the use of stronger phraseology, such as “organised”, “delegated”, “directed”, “directed”, etc.
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