On his own resume, Roy J. Blitzer, an executive coach and human resources professional in Silicon Valley, doesn't indicate hobbies or outside interests because that could boomerang. For example, one of his clients indicated on his resume that he played on an intramural sports team, which coincidentally had rejected the interviewer. The client didn't get the job.

On his resume, Mr. Blitzer spells out specific accomplishments in bullet points and uses colorful verbs such as "spearheaded" and "championed," rather than "managed" or "ran." He uses high-quality, cream or gray-colored paper and never uses a font smaller than 12-point.

Mr. Blitzer doesn't have a Web page or a blog, but says it is fine to include a Web address or blog on a resume as long as it is professional in both presentation and content.

Before emailing his resume to a potential employer, he forwards it to a friend to see if the document is readable and in the desired format.