Does it really exist? How can I avoid it?

Rachel Zupek, CareerBuilder.com writer

Many job seekers today will tell you that the most frustrating part of the job search is after they hit "send" and their résumés are sent out into application oblivion -- never to be seen again.

By Kate Lorenz, CareerBuilder.com editor

Most of us accept the fact that, many times, a sales pitch tends to stretch the truth: That stain remover really can't make a grape juice stain disappear from white carpeting "like magic," and Sea Monkeys aren't really cute little mermaid-like creatures that frolic around in an underwater kingdom. But stretching the truth on your résumé, even though it is the equivalent of a sales pitch promoting you, is never acceptable. While you may feel the need to pump up your résumé to grab an interviewer's attention and land that prized position, eventually these "little white lies" will catch up with you. So how can you enhance your résumé without going overboard? Try some of these tricks:

By Ann Everhart and J. Michael Worthington, Jr., ResumeDoctor.com

Your resume will be your first impression you have to make to an employer. Recruiters tell us that you have less than 10 seconds to make that impression; so you had better make it a good one. ResumeDoctor.com asked their recruiter network to share some of the more peculiar details included in people's resumes.

By Cynthia Wright, The Wichita Eagle

A gap in employment causes stress and fear in job seekers. You're feeling vulnerable, and anything out of place on your resume only intensifies your stress and fear.

But, life happens. So do layoffs, babies, sick relatives and many other things that can result in resume gaps.

TORONTO (Reuters) - Typing mistakes in a job application can kill a would-be employee's chance of landing a job as employers bet that a sloppy resume means the applicant will do a sloppy job.

A telephone survey of 100 senior Canadian executives showed that more than a fifth of executives said a single typo on a resume or cover letter could cost a potential employee a job, while 28 percent said two mistakes would kill their chances.

The survey, published on Tuesday, was carried out by online job search firm Accountemps.