Many people are currently searching for employment today, so having the right skills to land the perfect job is important. However, there are 5 common mistakes job-seekers make in online tests that can be avoided.

Skimming Quickly
One common mistake is that job-seekers sometimes skim the recruitment test quickly instead of reading slowly to understand the questions and possible answer choices. When this happens, job-seekers tend to choose incorrect answers or not follow the directions on the screen. There is one way to avoid this. A test taker can slow down his reading pace by reading the words on the screen orally. Another tip to slow down is to write down each question on a sheet of paper to make sure the meaning is understood.

Spelling
Some job-seekers don’t take the time to check the spelling of the words they type into the recruitment tests. This is definite mistake because a potential employer will think the test taker doesn’t take time to pay attention to details. To avoid spelling errors, take time to check the dictionary. Read back through your answers paying close attention to the letters in each word. Sounding out words as they are being typed can also help.

Grammatical Errors
When recruitment tests require test takers to type their responses, some test-takers worry about the content of their answers so much that they forget to use grammar rules. This can be disastrous as employers don’t want to hire workers who cannot express themselves in writing. An employer will not want to hire someone they cannot trust to send out written information in their companies. Employees reflect on their employers. Therefore, companies don’t want to hire bad writers. To avoid grammar errors, write in straightforward sentences that aren’t flowery. Reread each sentence after typing it. Look specifically for missing punctuation, capitalization errors, sentence fragments, sentence run-ons, or wordy sentences that may confuse the reader.

Nerves Can Stress You
Many job-seekers are understandably nervous when they have to take recruitment tests. They want to do their best and put stress on themselves to perform well. Competition among job-seekers also causes anxiety. Sometimes, when nerves take over, job-seekers don’t answer the questions to the best of their abilities. The answers they choose may not be the answers they would have chosen if they were calm and thinking clearly. While it can be hard to gain control of the situation, job-seekers must find a way to gain control so that nerves don’t affect the outcome of the testing results. One tip is for test-takers to eat before taking the test to make sure that an empty stomach doesn’t make the problem worse. Test takers should envision themselves performing well on the test, and think positively during the assessment. Deep breathing can also help. Try to read each question in depth, which will take the mind off the anxiety and keep it busy answering questions.

The Right Answer
Another common mistake job-seekers make is that they tend to worry more about what the answer should be or which answer is the right answer instead of concentrating on what their answer actually is. Some test takers suffer from feelings of self-doubt and believe their own answers are not good enough or wrong. Then, they begin to think about what answers employers would perceive as being correct. This leads to a job-seeker not answering a question honestly or to the best of his abilities. To avoid this, put feelings of self-doubt aside, and answer honestly.

The 5 common mistakes jobseekers make in online tests can be avoided with these simple tips.

As I’ve spoken with and met with more and more people during my time as a recruiter, it is interesting to see how some of the same sorts of things often pop up during the course of a conversation.

Specifically, people often think about things related to their career and to job searches that aren’t necessarily correct. Here are some of the common myths:

Recruiters get paid to help you get a new job: You don’t pay a recruiter so they’re not working for you. If you are paying a recruiter, you’re getting ripped off. Just like the person selling the house pays the real estate fees, the hiring company pays a recruiter, not the job searcher. Recruiters don’t get paid to help you get a new job. They get paid when they help someone – anyone – get a job with one of their clients. It could be you, or someone else, it doesn’t matter. Their job is to fill the job, not help you get a job specifically. If they help you get the job, great. If it’s another of their candidates who gets the job, that’s great too. Obviously that not great for you of course but the recruiter is happy.

Education can make up for hands-on experience: In my experience mostly as an IT recruiter, this isn’t the case. I’ve lost count of how times I’ve asked someone if they hands-on experience with a particular skill or platform and they respond by saying that they don’t have this experience but they took a course on it or they can learn it. Employers typically want someone who has the experience they are looking for unless such a person doesn’t exist. Taking courses and trying to learn it on the fly often doesn’t cut it.

Offering quantity over quality is preferable: Whether it’s on your resume or in the interview, written or verbal diarrhea – where you go and on and keep talking, hoping that something you say will catch the hiring manager’s attention – is a common way that people lose out on interviews and jobs. Listing every single course you’ve ever taken on your resume or just talking and taking up air in an interview but not actually answering the question that was asked are two common ways that people offer quantity over quality. These rarely help your cause but they often hurt it.

Instructions don’t matter: When applying for jobs, one of the easiest ways to eliminate yourself is by not following instructions. If the job ad asks for a cover letter, send one. If the application process involves answering 5 questions, answer them. If the job application deadline is in two days, try to get your application in the day before just to be safe but don’t miss the deadline. Not paying attention to simple instructions is often a sign to the hiring manager that you don’t pay attention to details.

Spam is good: Applying for 3 different jobs with the same company that have completely different skillsets and experience isn’t a great idea but this is something that happens frequently. I recall cases where I was looking for (as an example) a Network Administrator, Project Manager and Customer Service Representative with a particular client and get people applying for all three jobs even though the jobs should clearly attract different candidates. The thought that there would be someone who would legitimately qualify for all three jobs is absurd and yet people will email their resume over for all three when in fact they qualify for none of them. Typically all three of their emails end up in the deleted folder.

Little mistakes that we make during job searches and interviews often aren’t so little after all.

Showing up late for an interview and not acknowledging or apologizing for being late is one thing. Just because the person interviewing you doesn’t say anything doesn’t mean they aren’t going to hold it against you. If showing up late is how you make your first impression, it’s not a good one and the fact that you don’t acknowledge it can make it worse.

Timeliness is one way that people will judge you and get a glimpse of what you’re really like. If you show up late for an interview and not say anything, they’ll immediately wonder how you’ll be if you were actually working for them.

Another thing I’ve experienced is when someone says they’re going to call you at a certain time or will send me an updated resume or provide something that I need to help them with their job search by a certain time. The deadline comes and goes and I’m still waiting for it. A day goes by, and nothing. Then I follow up with the person and they tell me they’ll get to it that day and then another day passes by and I’m still waiting.

I know people who have done that with hiring managers too where they are asked to provide something by a certain date (ie. an updated resume, a writing sample, references, etc), they don’t meet the deadline, and it just doesn’t look good.

Often, a hiring situation comes down to 2 candidates and a hiring manager might end up taking the person who doesn’t make a mistake or who doesn’t scare them away. In other words, the person who gives the hiring manager a reason to not hire them loses the job as a result.

The rule of the day relates to job search mistakes. There are plenty of them but perhaps the biggest one in general terms is that small mistakes might not be so small afterall.

Spelling mistakes in your resume can be a big turn off.

So can grammatical errors.

I’ve seen people turned down for interviews because their resume and/or cover letter had spelling errors and mistakes that led the hiring manager to believe that the person was either lazy or uneducated. Or both.

Either way, the person didn’t get the interview because their resume gave the hiring manager a hint that perhaps this person wasn’t a details person. Talk about making a bad first impression. You don’t always get second chances in life either.

Another of the big job search mistakes relates to the job interview. Sometimes, it’s something that seems innocuous but ends up costing you. I remember seeing someone fail in an interview because the moment they walked into the room to be interviewed and were invited to sit down, they sat down in the chair and let out a large sigh.

The guy was a successful sales manager in his 40s but the hiring manager interviewing him suddenly thought that perhaps he was burned out by the way he plopped down into the chair and sighed, like he was ready to relax and take a nap.

The interview was over before it started.

From what I recall, that was really the only feedback I heard from the hiring manager regarding that interview. That’s all the hiring manager seemed to remember. Talk about leaving a bad impression. Again, no second chance here.

Sometimes, the small mistakes aren’t that small afterall.