Hot Cover Letter Tip:
"Less is MORE!"
You've probably heard
the catchy phrase, "less is more." Less meat, more heart health. Less
stress, more peace of mind. Less work, more play.
But you may not have
heard that less is more in a job search cover letter. In fact, just the
opposite might make sense. Wouldn't the job hunter want to tell the hiring
manager as much as possible so there won't be any room for doubt that he or she
is the right person for the job? It would seem that the more information the
employer has the easier it would be to determine the best man or woman for the
job.
Avoid Overkill!
At first glance that
might seem like the way to go—but actually there is real wisdom in delivering
the wheat and leaving out the chaff. In other words, why clutter a cover letter
with information the employer does not need or want?
Generally there is an
avalanche of mail on a hiring manager's desk each morning. Imagine how daunting
it is to go through all the cover letters the first time and then perhaps a
second or even third round in order to choose the most promising candidates for
the jobs that need filling.
Some job hunters make
the mistake of writing three- and four-page letters and also include family
photos. Grandma or Aunt Martha might enjoy such hearty content but the busy
hiring manager does not.
Rather, give just the
right amount of detail in order to motivate him or her to invite you in for an
interview where you can talk in person. At that point the employer might
actually want to hear about your family and your pastimes. But you're not there
yet.
Here are the items to
include in your initial cover letter:
1.
Your name and contact
information.
Provide your contact phone or email.
2.
Your interest in the job
you're competing for.
Show your passion for
the work, your excitement about sales or management or whatever.
3.
Your qualifications and
experience.
Mention your talents and
skills and provide an example of a way you resolved a conflict or averted a
disaster or increased the bottom line.
4.
Your knowledge of the
company.
Mention the company
mission and your desire to help carry it out.
5.
Your availability for
starting the job.
Can you begin
immediately or within a certain number of weeks?
6.
Your request for an
in-person interview.
Be sure to ask to meet with the hiring manager so
you can speak in more detail about his or her expectations and your willingness
to match them.
Here are the items to
leave out of your cover letter:
1. Your hobbies.
2. Your family details.
3. Your history.
4. Your vacation plans.
5. . . . and any other
personal information that does not apply to the job.
If you land an interview
you may then have an opportunity to talk informally so you and the employer can
get to know one another, but keep in mind that it's not appropriate at the
cover letter stage of the relationship.
At this first
stage––less is more! You can count on that.
Jimmy Sweeney is
the president of CareerJimmy and author of the brand new, "Amazing Cover Letter Creator." Jimmy is also the author of several career
related books and writes a monthly article titled, "Job Search
Secrets."
Visit our
friends at Amazing Cover Letters for
your "instant" cover letter today. "In
just 3½ minutes you will have an amazing cover letter guaranteed to cut through
YOUR competition like a hot knife through butter!"
