LinkedIn: Bosses don't want to hear you're responsible
"Responsible" tops the list of the 10 most overused buzzwords the social network's members use to describe themselves. Apparently, using these labels is no way to land a job.
What are the best words to avoid on a resume? Responsible, strategic, and creative.
It's not that potential employers aren't looking for people who are responsible, strategic, and creative, it's that these words are said to be painfully overused. This information comes from LinkedIn's fourth-annual most overused words list, which was released on Wednesday.
The professional social network comes up with its word lists by sorting through its nearly 260 million member profiles worldwide and tallying up what words people use most to describe themselves.
Besides responsible, strategic, and creative, the other top-10 most overused words are effective, patient, expert, organizational, driven, innovative, and analytical. Last year, creative was the buzzword that topped the list, followed by organizational and effective.
To get onto a potential employer's radar, LinkedIn career expert Nicole Williams said its best to avoid these words and instead use tactics to distinguish yourself from the herd.
"Differentiate yourself by uniquely describing what you have accomplished in your career and back it up with concrete examples of your work by adding photos, videos and presentations to your profile that demonstrate your best work," Williams said in a statement. "Providing concrete examples to demonstrate how you are responsible or strategic is always better than just simply using the words."