7 things undermining your resume in 2026:
(Remove them if you want to get hired)
After reviewing >1,000 resumes and helping hundreds land jobs, I always see the same mistakes.
You get 7 seconds to convince a recruiter you're worth talking to.
Most don't manage it.
Why? Because they look âjust fineâ on paper and fine isnât enough.
When it is as competitive as it is right now⌠fine is forgettable and so even if you have the right degree, experience and skills, you get passed over.
I wish more people used tools like Teal's AI resume builder to help them get more SPECIFIC.
That is how you stand out when everyone is producing AI slop.
Here are the 7 things that are killing your opportunities in 2026:
1/ Generic soft skills
â âStrong communication and leadership skillsâ
â
"Led daily standup meetings for 15-person team, maintaining 98% on-time project delivery rate"
2/ Meaningless buzzwords
â âResults-driven high achiever with a proven track recordâ
â
ââGrew Company LinkedIn following from 2K to 15K driving 57 inbound leads in 2 monthsâ
3/ Novel-length job descriptions
â âResponsible for managing cross-functional initiatives including daily operations while maintaining...â
â
âLed a team of 23 across product, design, and opsâ
4/ Outdated experience
â âDesign internship [right after college]â, âEditor at [high-school paper]â
â
Highlight only roles relevant to your next move
5/ Achievements without evidence
â âImproved operational efficiency across teamsâ
â
âCut approval time from 1 week to 2 days by fixing the handoff processâ
6/ Irrelevant skills
â Irrelevant and obvious skills like Email, Excel etc.
â
Skills relevant to the job and interesting skills / experiences. Eg. Python (7 years), AWS (build 5 cloud architecture), Figma (led 3 product redesigns)â
7/ Huge walls of text
â âI was responsible for overseeing multiple workstreams while collaborating with cross-functional stakeholders to ensure timely delivery, alignment, and operational excellence across initiativesâŚâ
â
âRan a product rollout across 4 teams: Launch timeline: 6 weeks, Missed deadlines: 0, Post-launch bugs: â30%â
All of this really boils down to two things:
Clarity + Specificity + Impact = Best Chance Of Interview
When I last applied for jobs, I wish Teal's AI-resume builder had been around.
It would have saved me hours of late nights tweaking my CV!
Try it yourself today for free: https://tealhq.co/4bdglwn
âťď¸ Repost to help someone land their next role.
â Follow me (Will McTighe) for more.
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