Should You Include Hobbies in Your Resume?

Depending on the type of job that you’re trying to get, your prospective employers are looking for information that’s relevant to the position that you’re aiming for. So let’s say that you’re applying for the Director of Operations in a certain company, those in charge of the hiring committee are going to look for the experiences and skills that let them know that you’re able to handle the responsibilities of being the Director of Operations.

This is the reason why you need to learn how to make a resume. If you make one that’s professional and is able to show your employer what he or she wants, then you’re just about guaranteed that you’re going to get that job that you’re applying for. So this article is going to focus on what you should write on your resume and if your hobbies are worth mentioning in it.

Should You Include Hobbies?

Your resume is the most important factor that will help determine whether you get an interview for a job or not. Sometimes you wonder whether or not your interests and hobbies should be included in your resume. To help you with this, the first thing you should be asking is “Are the hobbies and interests relevant to the position that I’m applying for?”. Let’s say that you have a hobby of collecting and reading through a lot of books. This is the kind of hobby that could help you out if you’re applying for a writer or even a teacher position. All you have to make sure is that the hobbies or interest you place show that you’ll be devoted to the job that you’re trying to apply for. The point isn’t listing what you like doing, it’s to point out what you can do that’s relevant to whatever you’re trying to apply for.

Do Hiring Companies Want Hobbies in Your Resume?

Companies don’t necessarily want to hear about what your hobbies and interests outside of work. They won’t exactly care that you like to collect figurines or play sports unless it has major significance to whatever job you’re trying to get. However, you can get a good understanding of what your employer wants to see by knowing the type of personality that he or she wants. If your employer is looking for someone who is motivated and serious in upcoming tasks, then it’s best to leave out your hobbies. However, if your employer is looking for someone who’s really innovative and creative, then listing down hobbies such as photography blog or video blogging may just help you out. If you aren’t sure that your hobbies can actually help you get the job, then it’s best that you don’t include them and stick to stating your education and experiences.

Do Hobbies Translate to Skills?

Hiring managers won’t care about what you do during your spare time unless it’s something that should really be taken note of. Let’s say that you place in your resume that you’ve done multiple volunteer jobs. This will show your possible employer that you’re someone who’s willing to take on different tasks and responsibilities. If you place a hobby that has no significance to the job that you’re applying for whatsoever, then it can only have a negative impact on your chances of getting the job.

What to Include in Your Resume

Now that you know that you have the choice as to whether or not you would like to place your hobbies on your resume, you should also learn about the basic elements that you have to include. They are the following:

• You have to be sure that you include your contact information on your resume. People sometimes forget to place their contact information in a place that the reader can see them, or they might not even place any at all. This is really bad as this information is what the reader is going to use in the event that he or she wishes to contact you for an interview. So be sure that you make it easy and place your e-mail address as well as your phone and possibly even your home number.

• Make sure that your resume has a professional title. When an employer goes over your resume, then you’d want to make it clear as to the type of role that you’re seeking out. If you want to make it clear, then you’re going to have to include a professional title at the top of the resume. These titles would include “Chief Executive Officer” or “Marketing and Sales Assistant“.

• accomplishments and achievements from the previous company that you’ve worked for. Employers need to know what you are capable of doing to see if you can contribute anything to their company. They’re going to go through your different strengths and see whether or not they’re able to align with the needs of the company. So when you’re making the resume, be sure that you choose the most important, impressive, and relevant achievements.

• Show you metrics. Metrics are numbers that will help employers determine whether someone is capable of leading a team, managing clients, and even developing the business. Metrics are also a great way of helping you back up all of the achievements and accomplishments that you’ve stated in your resume. For example, let’s say that you’ve increased the sales for the previous company that you’ve worked for. You don’t just say “Helped increase sales”, it’s better than you say something like “Was able to increase sales by 80% within a 5 month period by doing (the task).”

Making a resume is one of the things people are going to have to learn. This is especially true for those that have been in the business for a long time and who would like to either move higher or enter a different career. So if you would like to know more about resumes, then you can view our resume formats and templates to help you learn more about how they’re supposed to be used and written.

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