Just a quick note to say that John Andrew in London is wrong; you would never put a full stop after "Well". Full stops denote the end of a sentence and "Well" is not a sentence. In Alisha's case "Well I have never had a job before" is fine but a comma would also be acceptable. I'd then advise putting in the word "so" rather than any full stops, commas or semicolon. "Well, I have never had a job before so I am totally stuck. What should I write?". And, just to let R. Nessa from Hampshire know; Bella from London was correct in saying that a comma could be put between "before" and "I'm". (I've never had a job before, I'm totally stuck"). The apostrophe that you suggested ("I've never had a job before' I'm totally stuck") would be wrong. I don't think, however, that any of this is going to help Alisha with her CV writing, unless "Well, I have never had a job before so I am totally stuck. What should I write?" is to be her CV, in which case I don't think grammer is the main problem.

Dr J. Doe, London,

I suggest to Bill in Ohio to go on Microsoft online training. It's a fantastic free website where anyone can update their Microsoft Office skills. It covers all applications and levels from beginner to advanced.

Aida, London,

Neither a comma nor an apostrophe should be added to Alisha's comment.

I believe that what everyone is trying to say is that it needs a full stop (at least two, actually) but you could use semicolons (if you were being a little pretentious) or one full stop and a colon (for expansion).

I would try:
"Well. I've never had a job before. I'm totally stuck. What do I write?"

John Andrew, London, UK

Just to let Bella from London know, its not a "comma between 'before and I'm" but an apostrophe. Commas are these things here , .

R. Nessa, Hampshire,

Alisha, why not apply to Burger King? I'm not kidding. A couple of my friends' first jobs were there. One stuck it out for several months, which proved her tenacity and capacity for hard work, which really impressed prospective employers for 'proper' jobs - it's always far better to work than sit on your backside. The other friend was promoted to manager.

Jessica, Reading, UK

One thing that irritates me about CV advice is this push to quantify achievements. I have had several jobs lasting 2-8 years each, and none of them put me in a position to increase revenue or decrease costs by a verifiable percentage, none involved me managing other people and in most of them I used somewhat dated office equipment. I've heard of Powerpoint and Access, etc, but have never had a reason to use them on a job. My last job did involve using Excel, but my predecessor had already set it up. All I did was plug in data, do a sum total and print a report each month. Most of my experience appears to be irrelevant to today's positions, so tailoring my CV to fit the open position results in a blank page. And possessing a university degree in English Lit. is worse than worthless, considering the debt I incurred (about 30,000 pounds and rising) to obtain it. It either makes me overqualified or is cheapened by employers demanding you have it to qualify for a minimum wage job.

Bill Limbacher, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Alisha, Some advice:
Use capital letters to start your sentence.
Always a capital letter when using the personal pronoun 'I'.
'I have' rather than 'i've' - 'I am' rather than 'i'm'.
Spell correctly, Never, NOT neva (too chavvy and lazy!).
Put a comma between 'before and I'm.
A full stop after 'stuck' and a capital W for 'what'.
One question mark will do, the extra 3 are surplus to requirements and just make you appear 4 times as clueless!

I hope this helps : )

Bella, London, uk

Ironic that the company of the one-page memo should ask for two-page CVs!

Pierre Bernardi, Paris, France

I have to agree with M.Stanfield: never slack off with yr cv. & always update it, it's a habit which ought to pay off over the years. Because of the international nature of my work, I constantly need to update the spread of my experience almost as it happens, and every new position can contribute to another skew in perspective.

And for God's sake, get it proof-read as often as you can - not only for spelling but also for idiom - if you keep re-reading it then it only confirms what you think you have written. A cv. always needs objective review & others' perspective, to ensure that the ultimate reader will read what you meant & not what you thought you meant!!

Z. Landers, Ruislip, UK

When I read comments from so called experts on CV's I have a laugh. Why do these experts, recruiters, career advisors show us some printed versionsof their so called excellent CV's. Bet their's are no better than others.

John, london,

Problem with paid employment is this implies you have to fit in, be a team player. Suppose your impression of the team is a bunch of third-rate losers? “Why am I surrounded by fools and lunatics?” Us loners have to stick together.
EFL teaching allows you to work alone with other people. Admin simply run interference.
English teacher ads in Japan often implicitly state, "Must be aggressive".
"I want this job, and I want it now." That aggressive enough for you?
Something gained in translation, perhaps?

Andrew Milner, Yokohama, Japan

I trick i have found to be of use is to update my CV every year ( I have done this since graduation). The achievements and points which you put about your current job should be constantly changing as you take on different responsibilities etc.

I am now applying for another job in insurance and, lo and behold, my CV is completely up to date and ready for tailoring.

Michael Stanfield, Bath, UK

I should rewrite my CV.

David, Chengdu, China

Alisha, why not try getting a job?

Derek Arbuthnot, Tunbridge Wells, England

never had a job? then give details on voluntary work experience or functions you have assisted in. never taken part in voluntary work? then include details on project work, group work or coursework that demonstrates a good set of skills.
Make sure that the skills are relevant for the job!

Aduh, Manchester, UK

well i've neva had a job before i'm totally stuck what do i write????

Alisha, Ilford, England

This is great advice.
CVs are a tricky business because there is no one formal way of doing it, there are a variety of styles and its just a matter of working out how best to sell yourself to an employer!

Ogo, London,