CVPebble
This guide accompanies our short video "Keep one master CV, then tailor copies" on YouTube. It is a simple habit that saves time and keeps your CV honest. The examples are fictional, so adapt the structure to your own history.
1. Build one long master CV
Your master CV is a private working document, not the one you send. Put in every role, project, course and result, with dates and plain details. It can run to several pages. Its job is to hold the facts so you never have to rebuild your history from memory.
2. Add wins while they are fresh
After a good week, a finished project or praise from a customer, add one line to the master. Include what you did, the number if you have one, and the month. Details are easy to forget and hard to recall a year later.
3. Make a copy for each application
Read the job advert and save a copy of the master with a clear name, for example "CV - Receptionist - Company". Keep the roles and results that match the work, and move the rest out of the copy. Use the advert's own words only where they truly describe what you did.
Master: Answered phones, booked appointments, ran the front desk, trained two new starters, handled the stock order.
Copy for a receptionist job: Answered phones and booked appointments at a front desk, and trained two new starters.
4. Send the short matched version
Aim for a CV that is easy to read in a few seconds. Check that it still fits the page, that the dates are consistent and that nothing is in the copy that you cannot explain. Save it as a PDF unless the employer asks for another format, and keep the master untouched for next time.
Sources and scope
This guide, “Keep one master CV, then tailor copies”, is original general guidance informed by careers resources. Reviewed 19 October 2026. Employer instructions and local expectations take priority. No interview, hiring or ATS result is guaranteed.
