Cover Letters

I read a cover letter today that did something I see very rarely. It focused on elements that are critical to a recruiter and usually overlooked by job seekers. A cover letter with a sales pitch for the candidate isn’t unique. What was unique was how the cover letter focused on attributes that a recruiter seeks.

Continue reading Interview Skills in a Cover Letter

I read a cover letter today that didn’t have a single complete sentence. Each sentence was written without a subject and many didn’t have a verb. The letter was nothing more than a collection of phrases and buzzwords. I’ve included most of the cover letter below, with identifying information removed.

Continue reading A Cover Letter Without Complete Sentences

Cover letters introduce your resume and influence how closely your resume will be read. An effective cover letter will get the reader excited to learn more. To do this, the cover letter needs to provide value beyond the resume.

Continue reading What Value Does Your Cover Letter Add?

I updated some of my social media accounts this weekend. My motivation was twofold. First, some of accounts badly needed an update to the design and content.  I had not updated some of the information in the last couple years and it showed.  The second reason was motivated by one of the blog readers.  She pointed [...]

Continue reading Sentence Structure

I read a cover letter of IT professional that was one of the most general I have every seen. It was over 300 words long but didn’t say anything of substance. In the IT field, technical skills and experience with those skills are the critical factors. Despite this, the candidate failed to specify anything about their technical skill. [...]

Continue reading Failing to Customize

I received a resume with a cover letter that sent mixed signals. It started out well but quickly changed course. Below are the first three sentences: I am a results oriented leader with a proven track record of success. I have several years of experience in a variety of fields including insurance and product / [...]

Continue reading Cover Letter Mixed Signals

Thursday night, I watch “The Real Superhumans and the Quest for the Future Fantastic” on the Science Channel. The show profiled individuals with abilities that are incredible and verge on superpowers. It was very interesting. When the show started, several of the people profiled in the show were presented in 30 second teasers. The purpose [...]

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The cover letter I read today illustrates a number of basic grammar mistakes.  The overall impression is either the job seeker can’t write or has no attention to detail – possibly both.  This is the cover letter: Iam purusing a Project Manager of Construction job. With multiple years of experience and millions of dollars in residental [...]

Continue reading A Cover Letter Without Spell Check

One of my recruiters showed me a cover letter that they received that I have to share. The cover letter is from a successful manufacturing executive and illustrates how your professionalism and style can greatly impact the impression you make. The Cover Letter had a large font – a 14 point. This made the letter look more like [...]

Continue reading No Clipart

I received a resume with a cover letter that started out with a statistic on the labor market.  Quoting statistics to make a point isn't a good lead in for a cover letter.  Here's how the cover letter started: Dear Recruiter, Labor statistics indicate that people change careers an average of three times during their [...]

Continue reading Don’t Quote Statistics on a Cover Letter