"Have a keen eye for derail. (spelling matters)

[SoCalDem]

http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSTRE56D4XA20090715

Single spelling mistake can derail job application
Wed Jul 15, 2009 8:21am EDT

TORONTO (Reuters) - Typing mistakes in a job application can kill a would-be employee's chance of landing a job as employers bet that a sloppy resume means the applicant will do a sloppy job. A telephone survey of 100 senior Canadian executives showed that more than a fifth of executives said a single typo on a resume or cover letter could cost a potential employee a job, while 28 percent said two mistakes would kill their chances.

snip

"Mistakes on one's application materials may prompt employers to assume there also will be mistakes made on the job."

snip

Common mistakes include: "Dear Sir or Madman", "I'm attacking my resume for you to review", "Following is a grief overview of my skills" and "Have a keen eye for derail.

(Reporting by Nina Lex; editing by Janet Guttsman)

[Heidi]

1. The impotence of proofreading cannot be underestimated.

http://www.taylormali.com/index.cfm?webid=30

[tbyg52]

9. .

http://www.phys-astro.sonoma.edu/PEOPLE/faculty/tenn/SpellingChequer.html
http://www.cyberjackandsweetie.com/weblog/index.php?itemid=151&catid=49

[Heidi]

10. !

Soup herb! :thumbsup:

:rofl:

[willing dwarf]

2. Yeah, though you know it's bullshit really...

Introduce me to the person who never makes mistakes. If they exist I don't think you'd want to be around them. Defintely not the person to share office space with.

Perfection is the philosopher's stone of our age. And even if the form is all correct, it says nothing of the depth, meaning and wisdom of the content.

[tbyg52]

11. Well, yeah, but

a mistake on something as crucial as a resume is not the same, to me, as a mistake in, say, this post.... ;->

[CBGLuthier]

16. There is absolutely no excuse for mistakes on a resume

A small effort can guarantee perfection.

I would never hire anyone who didn't make that effort.

[elocs]

17. If a person does not care enough to produce their resume without spelling errors,

then as a potential employer I would consider that they would not care enough about doing their job either. There are no excuses for spelling errors on a resume or cover letter. None.

[elocs]

3. Even here at DU you would think if a post is important enough to be posted,

then it would be important enough to proofread the post, but you would often be wrong. An idea or a point to be made, but it's not important enough to check to see if there are misspellings. Then if anyone points it out they are accused of being "spelling Nazis". Maybe it's a reflection of how some people think details are not important, unless they are the numbers on their paychecks.

[LWolf]

15. Misplace a decimal point on a paycheck,

and suddenly paying attention to detail is important, lol.

I value literacy. That includes writing conventions.

[lapfog_1]

4. As my old old college friend would say "Derail Huh??"

(software interrupts on the old GE 635 GECOS system were known as "Derails").

Sorry, old standing joke that maybe 8 people in the world would get. But if any of them are reading DU, they are rolling on the floor with tears streaming right now.

[onyourleft]

5. Unfortunately, an individual is usually their own...

...worst proofreader. If possible, have someone else edit your resume for spelling errors and other problems.

[Lancer]

6. Classic misspellings and goofs

from my years as a proofreader for a real estate magazine publisher:

Many resort properties had "wraparound dicks." Some houses had laundry "shoots." Others had "palladium" windows or "vaunted" ceilings and crown "moldings" or "raucus" rooms.

And from the years I moonlighted grading 12th-grade student competency tests: "Uninformed cop," "all of the sudden," "supposably," "for all intensive purposes" and many more.

The teacher state competency test writing samples were appalling, but I've lost all the notes I jotted down from those.

[Berry Cool]

7. Not to diminish what you're saying, but what's wrong with "crown moldings"?

"Mouldings" is an alternative spelling, but "molding" is also correct.

As for "wraparound dicks," I'd love to see those...poor fellows. There is such a thing as too much...

[Historic NY]

12. Many people are not aware of the proper English spellings...

I've had people question some in written reports.

[zbdent]

8. I guess that I should have been a bit more careful when I asked "Do you want a fork?"

Really blew that job, when the interviewer took me out to lunch ...

[Stevenmarc]

13. I've tossed a lot of resumes in the circular file for spelling mistakes

Sorry but if they can't take their job of getting a job seriously then I don't really see a need to move a person along in the process.

[SoCalDem]

14. I'm ashamed to say it, but on slow nights, we would often pull apps & have a laugh

Some of the "essay" parts were hysterical..