If you have a relevant hobby, you can list it, but not otherwise.

For work at home positions, it is a very good idea to include your references. Three to six are sufficient. No family members or roommates, please. Former co-workers or people who work in management are good choices.

Keep your resume clean and straightforward. Do not change fonts all over place.

If you are emailing your resume, put it in plain text at end of your email. Do not send as an attachment unless requested. Many people will not read attachments for fear of viruses. Email your resume to yourself before sending it to an employer to ensure that text version comes through cleanly. You may want to consider formatting it to a 65 character line to ensure that lines wrap correctly. It’s pretty much only formatting you can do with plain text. Most people can receive HTML email now, so if you want to format, it is most likely okay, but there is always chance that they will not be able to read it correctly, so decide if you want to format your resume that way.

Consider having a webpage with your resume on it. A free hosting service works well enough for this if you are looking for a job, but not if you are freelancing. Do not get fancy with this page. You want your online resume and portfolio if relevant to be as clean as it would be on paper.

You will want to consider having more than one version of your resume. Tailor to each job title you are considering, so that you can emphasize skills most relevant to that job. It’s not much extra work, but might just get you that job.

Finally, write a good cover letter. It should give more detail to your most important points on your resume. Do your best to give impression of a hard worker who can work independently.

When asked why he wouldn’t be moving forward with a candidate who had applied for an Account Executive position within his organization, President of company replied, “His shirt was so wrinkled that it looked like he’d worn it day before, balled it up in a corner of his room, put it back on next morning and wore it to interview. He didn’t even bother to try and cover it up by putting a jacket over it. My thought was that if he couldn’t even take time to impress me at our first meeting, what was he going to be like with our customers?” “Dress for Success” was title of a popular business book in 70’s, and while rules have relaxed somewhat, employees at high tech or west coast companies may dress more casually than employees in traditional industries or companies on east coast, there is simply no excuse for wrinkled shirts, thigh-high skirts or coffee-stained ties at an interview.

Arrogance, overconfidence, bad manners, and sloppy attire are mistakes that no interviewee can afford to make. Professionals know that sure way to get offer is to back up their skill set and experience with a first impression that leaves no doubt in anyone’s mind that they’re right candidate for job.

So, if you’ve been wondering why you didn’t get offer for a job that you’re otherwise qualified for, you may want to take a second look at impression you left with people at company you interviewed with. Actions speak louder than words.