Ex-Amazon HR manager reveals she was shocked to find a picture of gun in a candidate’s resume
In the world of job hunting, resumes tell a story about a person’s work life. Lindsay Mustain knows this world well. She’s spent nearly 20 years working in Human Resources (HR) including Amazon and has seen a lot of resumes in her time.
She’s hired over 10,000 people and looked at more than a million resumes. But one resume from back in 2007 sticks out in her memory.
At the time, Mustain was working for Comcast, a big company. She was trying to find someone to work in their call center, which is a job where you answer phones and help customers. As she flipped through stacks of resumes, one caught her eye – and not in a good way.
Most of the resumes looked normal, with information about the person’s skills and past jobs. But when Mustain got to the last page, she was surprised to see a big picture. It was of the person holding a shotgun, like the kind hunters use. Even though the person wasn’t aiming the gun at the camera, Mustain couldn’t understand why they would put that picture on their job application, she said told CNBC Make It.
Looking back on it, Mustain shared some tips for people making resumes. She said it’s best to keep your resume short, just two pages long. That way, it’s easier for the person reading it to find the important stuff. She also advised against putting a picture on your resume unless it’s really necessary for the job.
And definitely don’t include any pictures with guns – it can make people feel uncomfortable and might make them think you’re not a safe person to work with.”Unless you’re a model or a real estate agent, I recommend you not put a photo on your resume,” she added. And never use firearms in the picture. It’s extremely off-putting, Mustain said. “Honestly with a person like that,” she said, “I would not want to be associated with him because they feel like they’re a danger.”
Mustain’s story shows that even with lots of experience, job hunting can still be surprising. It also reminds us that a resume is like a first impression – you want to make sure it gives the right message about who you are and why you’re a good fit for the job. By following Mustain’s advice, job seekers can make sure their resumes stand out for the right reasons.
