If you’ve been struggling to find work, and have sent off application after application and posted what feels like hundreds of CVs, maybe it’s worth taking a look at that Curriculum Vitae, and giving it a fresh boost. After all, if it is your CV that is putting employers off, it can only help. And – if that has nothing to do with it – then it’s certainly not going to hurt!

Firstly – Headings
If you don’t have sub headings, like Employment History, Outside Interests, Personal Statement, Voluntary Work, Education etc. – put them in! Nobody wants to have to read through two pages of prose to find out the name of your university.

Secondly – Presentation
Sometimes it’s nice to have a little bit of style in there, like a separating bar between headings, or at the top and bottom of each page. Just something to make it look a little more than a block of text.

Thirdly – Waffle
Cut it out! There is no need to know about your 20m swimming badge from primary school. Be concise, relevant and sharp. To the point. Employers want to know you can express yourself [properly and relevantly in the space provided. They don’t want three pages if you’ve only had 2 jobs and a paper round.

It’s the worst thing about applying for jobs, or looking to be accepted onto a programme of study, or training. Writing that ‘personal statement’ section. You’re supposed to say how amazing you are and how committed and how dedicated you are to the cause, company or client.

Yuck. No-one likes it. But, nonetheless, it has to be done. An employer is not going to look favourably on you if you can’t muster anything positive to say about yourself, because grades and work experience actually tells them very little about you as a person.

If it helps, write down a list of all the skills you think employers look for in a person. Then (just for yourself) put a tick next to any that you honestly think you have. There you have it: a list of your attributes. You can just list them in your letter – but do try to put them into sentences at least. You can be self-confident and self assured without being cocky or arrogant, and that’s what employers want. So go for it – blow that trumpet!

If you want to make a good impression, make sure that you are prepared in advance for every interview – even if you don’t think you’d take the job.

The first thing to do is your homework on the company. In most interviews, you will be asked what you know about the company, and if your answer is ‘Um… not much, to be honest’ they are going to be pretty unimpressed. Look on their website, visit the shop, ask around. Find out their ethos, what they do, who they are, what other companies think of them.

Have your suit ironed and ready the day before. You don’t want to be rooting around in the washing basket trying to find a non-smelly shirt an hour before your interview, and putting on your lipstick at a red light on your way there. Arrive ten to fifteen minutes early, and make sure you know who it is you should ask for when you get there.

Even if you don’t get chance to tell them about all the wonderful things you’ve prepared and researched, it’ll mean you have a much better idea of the company and – let’s face it – you don’t want to accept a contract until you actually really know who you’re working for.

In interviews, the smarter the better is a general rule. So, what do you do if you have a tattoo, piercing, or fluorescent yellow hair? Show that you’ve made an effort.

So, if you have facial piercings, play them down by wearing clear studs, or smaller bars. If you have a tattoo somewhere easy to cover up, do so, but don’t lose sleep over it. Certainly don’t attempt to show it off or wear something that intentionally makes it visible.

Hair colour is a bit more tricky, as wearing a hat or scarf is generally a no-no. I’d recommend dyeing it so that there are only some parts of your hair a bright colour – like highlights, or a dyed fringe or undercolour – and then when you start work, ask them if they’d mind you dyeing more of it. With dreadlocks, tying them back makes them look more uniform and under control.

The bottom line is that you shouldn’t completely change the way you look, but you should certainly show that you have made an effort to smarten up.

Many people know to wear a suit for an interview. But what do you wear if you’re going to hand CVs round, or if you’re just popping in to see if there are any jobs? Many people would just do this whilst out shopping in their jeans and trainers, but if you want them to make an effort by considering your CV, you should make an effort to appear professional and interested.

If you go into an office or school wearing jeans and a crumpled t-shirt, your prospective employer is likely to believe that you are either careless, lazy, or ignorant. None of these are assumptions you want them to make.

Make your first impression count by starting as you mean to go on; dress smartly and appropriately, and you’re more likely to be remembered for your preparation. (You can always take some trainers in your bag to change into between places!)