Realizations in Law School

It's been three years of agonizing nights trying to acquaint myself with the Philippine laws. It has been three arduous years that I have struggled to pass all my subjects without having to give up my job, without having to mess up my relationships with my loved ones, without having to drop dead for the sleepless, dreamless nights I have to endure and for living in a zombie-like state.

And so I was in deep thoughts when our professor required us to write an essay about our realizations in law school. I'd say, I realized a lot. I realized that the world is full of shit and the law have to attempt to correct them. I realized that human beings are capable of violent, repulsive, objectionable acts against one another and the law had to put up with all these. I realized, though lay persons can't seem to see it, that lawyers are the ordinary men who, at their own expense, made themselves extraordinary by moving mountains and by facing the challenge of standing up against the world of shit many buried themselves into just to protect their liberty, just to provide them peace of mind.

But of course, that's not what I have written in my essay. I would be too vulgar. And I would come out uncultivated for saying my thoughts so plainly and frankly. So I had to contain myself and I had to write something mellow and I hope I drove home my point. But sorry, I had to be vague and general because I can't write everything in one sheet of paper - what with my large handwriting (i just winced).

 So, here is my essay. Apologies for the crazy handwriting. 
 

It's not much, I admit. And this paper does not even deserve to be noticed. I just want to preserve it so that when I become a lawyer, I can go back to this paper and realize how simple-minded I was. :)
 

At the Moment

So, lately, the internet slang "ATM" or "at the moment" is being used by my facebook friends whenever they post happenings in their lives.(Even at this point, I still could not bring myself to use these internet slangs whenever I log in my social media accounts. Well, even when shortened word in SMS or text mesages has become a trend, I still could not bring myself to type shortened words (such as "where are you" to "wer r u?" or "wer na u?"). I just think that it does not fit in my personality to just go with the flow.)

Anyway, since I don't want to post in my facebook account my "ATM" activities, I thought I'd try in on my blog adapting my own style. :) Can't hurt anyone.

Current State of Mind

Steady. I am preparing myself mentally for another semester in law school.

 

Need to

Enroll for the 2nd semester in law school. I also need to finish all the novels I bought before the classes start for I definitely won't have time to read when the school opens. urgh!

 Reading

Jonathan Kellerman Book - Self Defense

Excited About

The Christmas Holidays. I dread the moment when I have to hunt for gifts for my family within my financial means (and it's tight!) and to figure out whether they'd like my gift or not. But the thought is still exciting! It's the holidays afterall. Waaaa!

Worried About

My Father's health. He is a chain smoker and he is the most stubborn person I have ever met in life. His health is really deteriorating because of this vice. I wish cigarettes disappear on earth!

Looking Forward

To reading my books. I have a collection of novels from the following authors and I am dying to finish reading them all: Jonathan Kellerman, James Patterson, Patricia Cornwell, Perri O'Shaugnessy, Steve Martini, JA Jance, Lisa Jackson, Scott Turrow, Lisa Gardner, Nancy Rosenberg

Craving for

My father's tinolang native manok with ubad and kadyos (Chicken Tinola with core stalk of banana trunk and pigeon pea)

Nilagang Buto ng Kasoy which I haven't eaten for years!

Frustrated about 

Mayor Digong Duterte's decision not to run for President for the 2016 Elections. I ultimately decided not to register as a voter. I don't think the current Presidentiables possess the good combination of being the Philippine President. What's worst? People who are willing to still vote for them. tsk. tsk.

Dreaming about
Becoming a lawyer and have a sparring session with Mirriam Santiago in the court room. Wow! I think I will continue to dream on this.. not the dream of being a lawyer but the dream of having the honor to have Atty. Mirriam Santiago an opponent in a case. Oh well, dreams are for free. Do not dare rain on my parade!

Thinking of trying
To write a novel. Another "keep on dreaming girl" dream. Haha. I can read as many novels as I can but I could never write the way my favorite authors do. But if I can, I'd probably specialize in Thriller/Suspense/Courtroom drama genres. 

Curious about
Inflicting self-harm. Sometimes, suicide is such a convenient exit for me when things are getting so rough. But I am too coward to ever try it. I could not understand how a person can come to a decision to kill himself and not cringe upon the thought of getting so physically hurt. Sorry, I am getting gibberish.

Afraid of
Failing any of my subjects. Passing my subjects is a prerequisite to becoming a lawyer. And I could not afford that. Not now. Not ever.


Feeling lucky
Being able to juggle work and studies. I am lucky to have a very understanding and supportive boss. I am lucky that my body doesn't give up. I am lucky that I have sufficient support system.

Hoping to
Pay all my debts. I am poor. Seriously. I hope one day, I'd be able to earn sufficiently enough so I won't be forced to swallow my shame and to borrow money from good good friends. :(

Praying for
A better life ahead and I am praying that Year 2016 will offer me better sleeping habits and better financial status and improved emotional stability and peace of mind. Generally, I am praying for a better life.

Finally..

#ATM
Enjoying life's small pleasures. :)

Bakit ba ako nag Law?

First meeting ng klase namin. It's a routine to introduce yourself and tell the rest of the class why did you enroll in Law school. Well, when it was my turn, I simply said “because I want to be a lawyer. I want to make my family proud”. Ito pa, “ I want to be an instrument of justice.” Wapak!

Noong nagsimula ako sa Law, punong puno ako ng energy, punong puno ng motivation. Sabi ko, “yakang yaka” ko 'to! Sanay naman ako magpuyat, mahilig naman ako magbasa ng mga nobela, madali lang mag adjust sa law school. Madali lang ito, Kaya nga ng iba, ako pa?

So, unang taon. Ang yabang ko. Oh man, I felt like I know everything about the law. Ang mga kaibigan ko o mga kakilala namin, tawag sa akin attorney. “Oy, attorney!”. Sarap sa pakiramdam. I did not bother to correct them na hindi pa naman ako attorney, estudyante pa lang. Pero kahit gusto ko, ang pride ko nagsasabi na wag ko na ikorek, masarap naman pakinggan eh, hayaan ko na. So, hinayaan ko. Ang mga kamag-anak at mga kaibigan ng mga magulang ko, ang taas ng tingin sa akin. Tinatanong na agad nila ako tungkol sa mga sitwasyon nila kung anong kaso ba pwede sa ganito, paano ko ba ipapakulong si ganito. Ako naman, porke kamo't nakapag-1^st year na, assuming naman na magaling na. So nag aadvise. In short, ang yabang. Feeling abogado na. Sa facebook account, panay linya ng mga “astig” na statements tungkol sa law ang iniistatus ko! Ang yabang ko talaga. Later, I realized that it is not right to claim or let others believe that you are a lawyer when in truth and in fact, you are not (just because it felt good). We should not misrepresent ourselves.

I survived the first year with just a small scratch. Kayang kaya!

Second year. Dumami na ang major / bar subjects. Dumadami na ang mga dapat basahin. Natuto ako maging pasensyosa na pumila sa photocopier para magkopya ng mga cases or reading materials. Dumami na din ang mga lawyer-professors na mas matitinik. Parang dumoble ang hirap ng mga subjects. Napansin ko, kakarampot na lang ang oras ng pagtulog ko. Sobra pa ako sa call center agent. Buti pa nga ang mga call center agents, nakakatulog sa umaga pagkatapos ng shift. Ako, papasok pa ng trabaho tapos eskwela tapos study. Luxury na kung makatulog ng limang oras sa buong 24hours. Pakiramdam ko, nakakalbo na din ako. Seryoso. Napansin ko din na sa dating dalawang tasang 3-in-1 o Kapeng barako, nakakaapat na ako. Dumami na din ang ipon kong empty ballpens. Napansin ko din na por da pers time sa tanang buhay ko, nakakagamit na ako ng tatlong iba ibang kulay ng marker sa iisang libro at sangkaterbang red ballpens, daig ko pa ang titser ko sa grade four sa dami ng pulang pluma.

At naghihilik na din ako. And during my waking hours, I even feel like I am snoring loud.

Nagkukumahog ako makasagot sa recitations kapag klase na. Namimilipit ang dila ko sa kaba kasi pakiramdam ko, I did not study enough kahit na alas dos na ng madaling araw ako natulog kakabasa. Pakiramdam ko wala akong naintindihan sa mga binasa ko. Lagi dumudugo ang ilong ko sa language ng libro at mga cases na binabasa ko. Dagdagan pa ng latin phrases na nakakawala ng ulirat such as “Sic utere tuo ut alienum non laedas. Basic pa lang yan. Hindi lang iilang beses kundi madalas pakiramdam ko, bobo ako. Kapag nagrerecite ang mga kaklase ko na magagaling, parang ako yong estudyante na mas gugustuhin umupo sa likod ng classroom para hindi mapansin ng teacher kasi walang matinong maisasagot at kung meron man, hanggang sa utak na lang kasi parang ang hirap magconstruct ng pangugusap lalo na kung straight english at kailangan gumamit ng legal jargons o legal lexicons.

Dito ko napatunayan ang katotohan na law school will teach you humility.Nawala ang yabang ko. In just less than a year, abruptly, nawala ang pagnanasa kong magyabang na law student ako. Kung pwede nga wag na ipaalam kung walang nagtatanong. I am becoming quicker in correcting my friends and relatives na “hindi pa po ako attorney. Sumusubok pa po makapasa sa subjects ko.” Ang hirap ng lawschool. Parang pinagsama lahat ng mathematical equations sa isang blackboard at kailangan mo subukin to find x. Buti pa nga ang math, may exact na sagot. Sa law, pwede ka kumanan, kumaliwa, umatras, abante, bumulusok o magpakalunod tapos sa huli, score mo “2 points out of 10”. Kung suswertihin, may love note pa ang law professor na “make your handwriting cleaner” o di kaya “improve your handwriting” oh di kaya may tandang pananong (?) indicating either the professor did not buy your bluff o di kaya wala s'ya naintindihan sa mga sinagot mo. Hanep.

Pagkatapos ng lahat ng hirap sa buong semester, malalaman ko, singko grade ko. Syempre, nagtaka ako. Singko?! Hindi pa ako bumabagsak sa tanang buhay ko simula ng nag aral ako at in denial ako na posible pala mangyari ito. Di ko maintindihan. Saan ako nagkamali? (ok, OA na). Baka sobrang pangit ng handwriting ko o di kaya kulang ang sagot ko sa enumeration. Baka may grammatical error ako o di kaya di ako nagfollow sa test instructions. Baka dapat ng blue ballpen ako kesa nag black. Baka dapat hindi ako nag absent no'ng panahong mainit ang ulo ni Ma'am para di ako namarkahan ng malaking “5” in red ballpen kasi baka yon ang nakita niya no'ng naggrado na sya. O baka talagang hindi lang ako umabot sa standard ng teacher ko. And then it sank in, madedelay ako ng graduate kasi kelangan ko balikan ang naibagsak ko. At magiging times 8 ang sipag ko kasi may hahabulin akong certain percentage mark, otherwise, ikikick out ako ng school. How's that for crushing a dream? Pero dahil lubog na lubog na ako at dahil sayang ang lahat ng pinagdaanan ko so far, kailangan tumuloy. Face the challenge ika nga. Don't quit. Iniencourage ko ang sarili ko na kaya ko. Kaya ko pa. May dahilan ang Dios bakit ako bumagsak. Tapos umiyak na lang ako. Nakakinis. Naiisip ko tuloy sumuko na lang. Worth it ba lahat ng ito at the end of the day?

So heto, 3^rd year na ako sa law school. Irregular nga lang. At patuloy akong nag iistruggle na wag tuluyang malunod sa kumunoy at tuluyang mawalan ng pagnanasa or pag-asa na magiging isang batikang abogada sa hinaharap. Miss na miss ko na ang mahabang tulog. Narealize ko din, wala na pala akong social life. Di na ako ganun ka active to make friends. Kahit mga kaklase ko, halos di ko kilala lahat kasi wala na ako panahon makipagkwentuhan o makipagkaibagan. Tumatanda na din ako. Ang mga iba kong kaibigan, nakakadalawang anak na, ang iba kung saang bansa na namamasyal. Ang iba, ilan-ilang gadgets ang pinopost sa facebook wall at ang iba, punong-puno na ng selfie and facebook albums. Minsan naiisip ko, bakit pa nga ba gusto ko maging abogado? May disente naman na akong trabaho. Ano pa ba ang gusto ko? Why do I have to trail the path of a road less travelled?

Kaya balik sa tanong ko sa subject ng panulat na ito, BAKIT BA AKO NAG-LAW?

Kasi gusto ko talaga maging abogado. Para din yang sagot sa tanong na “bakit ka pumunta?” at sasagutin mo nang “kasi may nagpapunta” (shout out kay jzkeels ng fliptop. Sa makarelate, yow!). Ganun ka-simple. Higit sa yabang na pwede ko makuha dahil naisurvive ko ang hirap ng pag-aaral, I look forward sa pride na mararamdaman ng pamilya ko, lalo na ng mga magulang at kapatid ko na nagsusumikap masuportahan ako. Isa pa, I don't have the heart to show them that they have a family member who is a quitter.

Gusto ko talaga tawaging “Attorney” with matching IBP (Integrated Bar of the Philippines) ID na. Gusto ko i-immerse ang sarili ko sa kumplikadong buhay ng mga “akusado”, “nasasakdal” at ng mga “biktima”. Gusto ko maging bahagi ng pag hubog ng progressive human laws sa ating lipunan laban sa oppression and injustice. Tama, sobrang noble. Pero hindi ako santo. Gusto ko lang magkaroon ng dahilan para maging mayabang kasi I feel that I have been humble for too long. Gusto ko magpayabang na isa ako sa mga mahahalagang myembro ng society na imbes maging bahagi lang ng audience sa kaguluhang nangyayari, ay piniling makigulo to bring about order. Harinawa! Isa pa, astig maging parte ng prestigious professional group ng mga abogado hindi dahil kapalaran ko kundi dahil ginusto ko at pinagsikapan ko para maging karapat-dapat.

Other people's lives never bore me – their lies, their mysteries, their misfortunes, their fate. Tsismosa lang ang peg. Other people's lives makes my being vibrate, makes my heart pound louder and my blood pump harder. If I am a lawyer, I can do practical things applying my intelligence, knowledge, and ability to affect the lives of other people in more ways than I can on my own. I could make a damn difference. And when you come to think of it, what else was there to live for before we end up in our own coffin to be feasted on by nothing but maggots and all kinds of creepy creatures? Might as well make it worth our while.

Nag-aaral pa din ako hanggang ngayon kahit makailang beses dinurog ng law ang tiwala ko sa kakayahan ko kasi I don't know what else to do but chase my ultimate dream. Ito ang pangarap ko. At hindi ba nga kaya tayo patuloy na nabubuhay kasi may mga pangarap tayong gustong maabot? Kasi kung wala, para ano pa at araw-araw kang gumigising para magsumikap? Magkape? Kung ang dahilan lang ng buhay ay kumain at huminga, para ano pa?

So andito pa din ako. Dilat na dilat pa din. Gustong gusto ko na sanang matulog. Pero puno pa ang tinta ng marker ko.

A letter to my future daughter

My dear,

Hello there sunshine! I have always been dreaming of having you in my life. I want to feel you moving in my tummy, making tiny kicks and making acrobatics inside me. hehehe. I bet that would be both an amazing and scary experience - having to carry another living thing, a human being in my belly. I bet it would also be both stressful and heart warming. Stressful because I need to be doubly careful to keep you safe always and to feed you good food only. But I bet I wouldn't have it any other way. It would be the greatest miracle for me.

I am excited to see you and touch you. I will kiss your little hands, I will caress your probably bald head, I will gently kiss your soft cheeks and your tiny toes, and I will keep you close to my heart to keep you warm and to make you feel my tender embrace.

And my greatest joy would be to hear you for the first time to call me “Mama”.

When you grow up to become a little girl, I will buy you trendy dresses and cute outfits. I will buy you dolls and girly toys. I will eat ice cream and cakes with you. We will have a tea party and I will play as your guest. I will keep your hair long and shiny. I will teach you your first ABCs and 123s. I will teach you games which I played with my friends when I was your age. I will let you get bruises and get wounded so that you will become stronger and will be more careful next time. I will allow you to run and play in the rain. We will go camping and will build campfires. I will let you explore and touch dirt so you will discover the wonders of our world.

I will bring you to school and will keep an eye on you on your first day. It would probably hurt me a lot when you learn to be independent of me. I will surely feel sad when you start to make new friends and would prefer to be with them longer than with me. But I will let you. Because you are getting older, you need to be able to stand alone and be able to build relationship with your peers so you will not grow to become a loner and be lonely.

I will help you with your assignments and projects. I will be your cheerleader. I will be your number 1 fan. I will be your loyal confidant. I will be your shoulder to cry on. I will be your best-friend. I will be the coolest mom ever!

I will also be your personal Prefect of Discipline. I will teach you how to behave properly and not to throw tantrums whenever you want, wherever you want. I will teach you how to value the things you own, how to take care of your self. I will teach how to respect others and how to stand up on your own. I will teach you how to think rationally and how to be fair to others. I will teach you to be honest, to be gentle and yet strong and brave. I will not only teach you all these things. I will show you how.

When you are older, please do not get angry at me if I will not allow you all the time to sleep over your friends or to attend some parties. I would want you to focus on your studies because it really pays to be educated and earn a degree. I would not want you to waste your youth excessively enjoying parties and all while neglecting all the important things in life. I hope you will understand that I will definitely worry about you a lot and I am sure I will be very exaggerated. I even worry about you now because of the world I live in.

Do not get angry at me if I will comment bad things about your boyfriends. I will only want someone best for you, someone who will take care of you and be responsible for you. But do not worry because I will not control you. I will not give you heartaches when it comes to your romances and I will not be hard on you if you choose to be with someone I do not like. For as long as you are happy and for as long as you know your priorities, I will not interfere. And of course, for as long as that guy takes care of you, then I will let you. But a warning though, all hell will break loose if he hurts you. I know karate. And your Dad will probably learn how to become a torturer.

I will not question you if you want to be an astronaut or a teacher or even an embalmer. If that will give you fulfillment, I will not oppose it. Even if it will exhaust all my energy and all my money for you to reach your dreams, I will do it. I will not impose on you to do something you do not want.

I will not let other people's opinion about me, about you, or about us to control our decisions in life. I will show you that those people do not really matter. What matters to me is to see you happy in life, no matter what.

I will not promise that I can give you a very good life. I will not promise you that I will not hurt you or disappoint you. I will not even promise you that I will never humiliate you. I am still human and I am still capable of committing errors and misjudgments. I will not promise you the world. I will not promise you heaven.

What I can promise you is that you will never be alone, that your failures or your mistakes will never cause me to turn my back on you. I will always be there for you and I will always support you. I will always be sensitive to your feelings and to your needs. And no matter what, I will always be proud of you.

You can always count on me. You must always feel secure knowing for a fact that someone will love you unconditionally.

I will wait for you to come my dear daughter.

Love,

Mom

"When I'm a Millionaire" - A Crazy Mind Wandering

This article goes to those who are financially poor as me and those who live paycheck by paycheck. :)

Have you ever thought of yourself being a millionaire? Have you imagined yourself winning a multimillion lottery? What would you do with all that money? Seems like a question in a beauty pageant, but have you really thought of it?

You know, whenever I experience sleepless nights thinking about how to survive when the paycheck is spent to the last centavo, I try to exercise my mind to bring myself to sleep and wander in the vast universe of imagination and I often think what would I do if I happen to acquire a huge amount of money. Why not say, "when I'm a Billionaire" just like what Bruno Mars said? Well, you may say that "imagining" or "dreaming" things is limitless and boundless but I feel guilty whenever I think of becoming a billionaire. I feel that it would be too greedy to imagine that much. hahaha.

When I imagine things, I usually try to make it as organized as possible so it would become seemingly realistic. I try to limit the extent of my imagination just to make it more grounded in reality and make it more attainable I guess, which is crazy because really, becoming a millionaire is like finding a lost precious diamond submerged in the depths of the ocean.

So, I start with deciding how rich I am. I'd like to have perhaps as a start, the amount of Php500,000,000 (It's Philippine peso for the foreign readers). Then I'd think where would I spend that amount:

a. I will distribute the 10% of 500M to different charities especially those who are taking care of the Aged and the Orphans and to different churches. It's one way of giving back to the world what it offered me.

b. I would pay ALL the debts of my family. I will redeem all the land my family leased to several people.

c. I will spend some to complete the renovation of our family home in the province and transform it into a huge house where family reunions can be held. I will make sure that all the rooms are air-conditioned and equipped with flat screen televisions and very comfy beds!

d. I will buy my own house with three bedrooms only and one tiny room as a library-office. It would have minimal furniture to avoid clutters. I would make sure that the kitchen and toilets are state of the art. I would like to have a small walk-in closet as well. :)  I don't want to buy a mansion since a medium-sized house is all I need for me and my future family. Besides, who would clean a mansion who most probably won't have a lot of people all the time? I don't want to hire too many housemaids. That's boastful.

e. I will buy five to six cars for my parents and my siblings. Maybe a Fortuner for me and Ford Ranger Wildtrak for off-road travels. I will let my parents and siblings choose theirs. I can afford it.

f. I will buy acres of land that my father can till since it's his passion to grow crops and also, he would probably feel ill if he do nothing at all. He would probably plant Rubber trees and Palay (Rice Crops). Of course, he will have enough to pay for farm workers and to buy machines for this purpose. He will just sit under a huge umbrella on the side, sip his tea or coffee while watching his hired men work for him. He would be a "Don" in the first place.

g. I will give my mother an air-conditioned supermarket where she can sell sari-sari or groceries and dry goods. My mama would die of boredom if she does nothing at all just like my father. This is what she has been doing even before she married my father and this is what she does best. She's a businesswoman at heart.

h. I will allocate P20Million to each of my siblings to start building a business for their families. They won't need to spend in buying cars and building their house because I will gift each of them with it. I will also take charge is ensuring that our parents are taken care of the best way possible.

i. I will open a chain of grocery stores myself in different towns in my province and perhaps franchise a business. I am really interested to franchise Jolibee or Mang Inasal. I will also open a Recreational Center where different indoor games can be held, with net cafes inside, a medium-sized cinema and other fun activities. I will have stalls for lease. These businesses would keep income coming in.

j. I will finish law school and if I become a lawyer, I will build a law firm with my two closest friends, Dirt and Utod. We will offer our services pro bono to those who can't afford to hire good lawyers. :)

k. I will give my aunts and uncles from both of my parents' side enough amount to alleviate their condition. Perhaps, I will hire some of them to work for us so they can have permanent source of income.

l. I will sponsor the education of my cousins who are determined to graduate.

m. I will build a private Primary and Secondary school offering FREE education to poor children and even to those who were not able to go to school because of poverty and will sponsor college educations of those who will graduate with excellent grades from my school. 


n. I will travel to many places all over the world with my family, eat all the food that we can eat and enjoy the blessings of God the best way possible.

o. And when I die, 50% of my wealth will be given to different charities of my choosing, and 50% to be distributed to my children or if I have none, to my immediate family. Then I would request that I be cremated and use my ashes as soil to plant roses or dahlias to be planted in my mother's garden.

You know, you can be a millionaire and still have a heart. Even though it's just in your imagination. When I imagine things, I always bring my values with me. 

Unfortunately, those who are already millionaires, especially those rags-to-riches type, they forget who they are when they take hold of their millions. They forget their families, they forget their values, and others forget their humanity. And it is really sad. 

I've seen millionaires who are unhappy and alone because they let themselves become slaves of money. You can see that they are not able to sleep soundly at night and you can see that they have close to zero real friends. Even their families stay away from them sometimes. And I realize, it should not be about how much you have but how much you are willing to give up for others that define who you are and measures how vast your wealth is.

When I become a Millionaire, I promise I will make many people happy.

Ciao! :)

3-second chance: How to make a "Powerful Resume" for Starters

In the advent of new technology, online recruitment has become the number one trend in finding qualified candidates. This is also what I do to march apace with technology. Indeed, applicants are crowding in. I am receiving e-resumes at the rate of 10-20 per day and it doubles when our company has a vacancy. It is imperative that I have to filter fast so I can fill my vacancy within my lead time.

I have been in Human Resources handling mainly recruitment activities for more than seven (7) years now and I can strongly say that it is really difficult to filter applicants. Due to the demand of the company to hire immediately and to waste no time to deploy new hires, I have learned over the years how to effectively filter applicants, spending as little time as possible in going through the resumes, by just looking at the curriculum vitae submitted to me.

My usual applicants are fresh college graduates and 1-3 years experienced applicants. And it really disappoints me to read crappy resumes because of the way applicants present themselves. 

This is why I practice a 3-second rule in going through these resumes. If they fail to impress on my first glance, then that resume will either be buried in my archive or will just simply be deleted. I have no time to waste.

So, I came up with this list of No-Nos and VERY BASIC guidelines for applicants to follow in order to be noticed by recruiters like myself. Just a warning though, this is not scholarly nor based on statistical or in-depth studies. This is simply what works for me and might be the reasons why until now you are not landing that dream job.

1.   NO PHOTO OR TRASHY PHOTO IS A TABOO
        
Do not submit your resume without accompanying your latest picture (preferably a close-up one). Put a face in the name so to speak. But remember that in accompanying your photo, recruiters create initial impression of you so be damn sure that your photo is professional-looking. Do not place a "selfie" or a photo with your friends and a photo of you in a party or even an old photo. Give your recruiter an idea that you are a no-nonsense applicant by just looking at your image. It matters, believe me.

2. AVOID USING INFORMAL / FANCY FONT STYLE!!

Maybe to you, it looks good but using comic sans or monotype corsiva fonts in your resume just doesn't work for me. It is too informal. You are not writing a poetry or a novel nor writing a love letter. You are applying for a job that can actually buy you food, other necessities and all that. Use Times New Roman, Arial, Tahoma, or Helvetica because they all look formal. For the font size, do not use 10 or less nor 13 or more..pretty please?

3. CONTACT INFORMATION

Make sure that your contact information are correct. There were instances when applicants failed to reach an initial interview because they could not be contacted through their phones. You do not expect recruiter to visit you at home for an interview invitation, do you? 

Also, make sure you use a formal email address in submitting your resume. Never use email addresses like hot_18@gmail.com or hardworking_pleasehireme@yahoo.com. Come on. Instead, use an email using your name so it will also be easier for recruiters to recall your name. Example: johndavis@gmail.com or jdavis@gmail.com. This is simpler and more formal.


4. DO NOT CONFUSE ME WITH YOUR JOB EXPERIENCES

Present your experiences in chronological order preferably from your latest job down to the oldest with a brief job description each or better yet, your job performance highlights in that particular employment. This is easier for recruiter to identify your employment experience timeline and your specific potential or capacities. 

If you have long gaps in between jobs or if you seem to be job-hopping, add a short explanation. If your experiences are material, the recruiter will likely to call you for an interview and then you can further elaborate. Although it is really a hack to hide the gaps in your employment, it will only confuse recruiters and may reduce your chance of an interview.

If you have no professional experience yet (fresh graduates), present your internship experiences and even your affiliations during college. It is not much but it will suggest to the recruiter that you were active in school and that can actually help you back up your skills and capabilities come interview time.

5. LISTING YOUR "QUALITIES" WON'T HELP. LISTING YOUR SKILLS DOES.

That's right. You can't impress me even if you state in your resume that you are hardworking, easy to deal with, friendly, trainable,organized, etc even if it's in fact true. Although these are equally important, these are intangible things that the recruiter could not really assess nor confirm during the interview so don't bother putting them in your CV. You will just crowd you resume with this useless piece of information. Prove these qualities when you are hired.

BUT listing your skills or proficiencies can really help. Some examples are: Computer-literate; knows how to drive, knows video-editing, knowledgeable in Adobe Photoshop or can operate audio-visual equipment, etc. These are more concrete and can be verified. Make sure also to list skills that can be of use for the job you are applying for. If you are applying for an Accounting job, your skill in carpentry can't be of use can it? I'm just sayin'.

Other basic information that you can include are: Personal Profile, Trainings and Seminars, and Character References.
 

Just remember that at the end of the day, it's your future and career we are talking about. So be very mindful of how you showcase yourselves.

Here is an additional helpful tips for you courtesy of DUQ University Career Services.