Archive for the ‘Cover Letters’ Category

HR people report they spend about 15 seconds on each resume. 15 seconds!

How can you ever hope to make your resume so appealing, so note-worthy that it makes it over to the next pile? The answer is NOT to print it on a toilet paper roll or some other dumb idea.

Your cover letters are an introductory sales pitch with the purpose of persuading employers that reviewing your resume is a good use of their time. The last thing you want to do is give them a reason to eliminate you from the candidate pool.

The following topics should not be mentioned in your cover letter:

I was thinking today that it has been a VERY long time since I last received a cover letter from a job seeker. To think of it, it has been probably twice as long as that since I last sent a cover letter in addition to a resume to a client of whose search I was leading.

You’re Cover Letter is ‘Old School’: “
Dear J.T. & Dale: I’ve been having trouble getting interviews, even though I am highly qualified for the positions I’m applying for. I’m attaching my resume and cover letter, hoping you can tell me what I’m doing wrong. — Tate
J.T.: Your resume is impressive, but your current cover letter [...]