My graduate advisor was adamant about me keeping my CV current. Every little consulting project, every award, presentation or co-authorship on a paper had to be on there. When I would share my joy at getting an award, acceptance at a conference presentation or for a poster his immediate first statement was “Is it on your CV yet?” Well, perhaps after a congratulations.

It’s such a simple thing to do but also a simple thing to keep putting it off and then forgetting. Over the past few years I’ve gotten better at adding things on almost immediately, and it has paid off so many times. Right now I’m very casually looking at what my next career step will be. When I find something that I just can’t pass up I am always thankful that it is only minor changes and update to my CV that need to be made. Applying for jobs can be stressful enough. Keeping your CV up to date makes it one less thing to worry about. Save your energy for your cover letter.

And don’t be afraid to change the style on your resume now and again. Yes it can be a lot of work, but tastes change and what you thought was an amazing font may not look so good a few months later.

Same concept applies to blogs, but that will take me much longer to become a habit.