|
Author: David Richter Article source: http://www.eslteachersboard.com/. Used with author's permission.
Your cover letter is critical to your success. It sets the tone. It is read before your resume and includes vital information about you that every potential employer needs. If you don't have a cover letter, or if you have one that is poorly written, you're setting yourself up for failure. Knowing the crucial elements of a cover letter is imperative to getting in doors and moving your candidacy forward.
Your cover letter must function as a roadmap leading the reader from start to finish. It must be created with one thought in mind - to get you noticed. It must invite, it must compel, it must drive the reader to a very specific conclusion: 'This candidate is qualified; in fact, not only qualified, but the best fit for the position.'
Your resume will then be read. If your resume is as powerful as your cover letter, an interview will be scheduled. So how should a winning cover letter be constructed?
There are a number of ways to actually begin the letter. You could pose a question, you could make an extraordinary statement to grab the reader's attention, or you can quote someone famous. Whatever you do, make sure it is appropriate to the advertised position and to the skills you possess. Along with this opening, you want to note the specific job to which you are responding.
Your letter then needs to state your worth, your applicable accomplishments and their relationship to the responsibilities of the position. This can be a couple of paragraphs, but keep in mind that less is more as long as significant content has been included. It's critical that your cover letter be at most one page.
The final paragraph is your call to action. It is where you state your follow-up plan. This is where you create continuity to ensure your success.
Make sure you do not include any salary information in your cover letter. It will either disqualify you or lock you in to compensation that does not match your worth. If the job ad requests your salary information, you can always state that it is negotiable. While not being specific, doing this will keep you in the running.
Regardless of your field of endeavor or level of experience, you can write an attention-grabbing cover letter which, in conjunction with a powerful resume, will grant you access to the right opportunities and lead you to a successful job search conclusion.
Copyright © 2005 TopDog Group All rights reserved. David Richter is a recognized authority in career coaching and job search support. He has spent many years in recruitment, staffing, outplacement, counseling psychology and career management spanning most industries and professions. David founded TopDog Group in response to the needs of job candidates to have a higher quality of career coaching and support available on the Internet. David understands the mechanisms for success. He has formulated specific strategies anyone can use to secure interviews and receive offers. His extensive knowledge and experience sets David apart in this field, allowing him to offer a wealth of information and a vast array of tools, resources and strategies not found anywhere else. He has shown countless job seekers how to differentiate themselves and leverage their potential to the highest possible level, making a real difference in their careers. David holds both a Bachelors and Masters degree in Electrical Engineering and a Masters of Arts degree in Counseling Psychology. David's website address is: http://www.procareercoach.com
Freelance Business Writers - How To Get The Best From Your Writer
It can be frustrating to find freelance business writers that are of good quality, dependable, and within your budget. How do you find the best freelance busine...
How To Kill A Job Prospect In Seconds
Want to be turned down for a job? Want to be respected by no one in your position? Want to spend time wearing an orange jumpsuit in a really small room with bar...
Relationship Advice: How to Change a Bad Pattern
There are steps you can take to help change or break these patterns. You've already identified the pattern. The next step is to identify separately and together...
Shorten Sales Cycles in Complex Sales Environments
Help buyers discover the answers they need to understand and align all of their decision variables. In complex sales, salespeople often find themselves negotiat...
Mineral Makeup and Bismuth Oxychloride
All about the popular mineral makeup ingredient Bismuth Oxychloride. Learn about where it comes from, why it is used and if it is an option for you.
Facial Skin Care
Because of the exposure it receives, the skin on your face is the most delicate skin on your body. Your facial skin needs special care to stay young, healthy, a...
We All Send Signals
Our bodies send all kinds of signals? What message are you sending? What messages are you receiving?
The Train Is Coming
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." Ecclesiastes 3:1
Marriage Advice: Upgrade Your Marriage By Changing Your Focus
Continually focusing on marriage problems makes the relationship seem even worse than it actually is. And what you focus on will grow and expand. Follow the adv...
Can This Relationship Be Helped?
I have been counseling couples for 35 years. Quite often individuals come in for help wondering if it is really possible to save or improve their relationship. ...
Characteristics of Successful People
Highly successful people demonstrate certain universal characteristics. How do you measure up?
Novelty Contact Lenses are Fun if Used Safely
Featuring information regarding types of novelty contact lenses and using them with care and safety
Business Card Design Tips
A business card is often the single most important item you have to attract a new client or business partner. Getting a small piece of cardboard to represent yo...
Design Can Get You to the Door, but Content is the Key
It's time to focus on content and stop nit-picking over the details of visual design.
How to Write Classified Ads that Get Results Now.
Classified ads can be used to sell products directly from the ad.
This works best for items costing no more than
approximately $5. The best use for classified a...
What Your Mortgage Lender Is Not Telling You About Accelerated Mortgages
Discover why accelerated mortgages may be a better deal for than lender than it is for you.
Money Management for Those Just Married
So what happens if you marry a spender, but you have been a saver your whole life? A lot of just married couples run into this type of situation once they open...
How Alcoholism Controls Your Life?
It happens without warning. It creeps into your life and all of a sudden, you're hooked. At first you're the life of the party, and later you're the drunk of t...
Three Ways To Get A Prospect To Say Yes To Your Offer
These three elements are not the only strategies you need to grow your business exponentially, but implementing them will certainly increase your sales. Apply ...
Environmental Boat Washing and Detailing
Some marine biologists feel that the concentration of dead marine growth on boats and in boat harbors can create hypoxic zones or a lack of oxygen. This causes...
Creativity Management and Innovation Management Competencies
Creativity and Innovation are often used interchangeably, yet they are (and should be) separate and distinct. There are six levels of competency required.
Indoor Tanning Beds - All You Wanted to Know!
So you are nearing the end of your search for the formula to look the modern day Adonis or Helen. Good news. Your search stops right here with Indoor tanning be...
Top Ten Things to Build a Bridge and Get Over
A Top Ten list for the rest of us. Tired of the endless badgering to "fix" yourself. Newsflash. There's nothing wrong with you.
Does Your Fight Scene Pack a Punch?
When you're writing a 'fight' scene for your novel, it's essential to remember you're a writer, not a choreographer. To be a knockout with your readers, make su...
|
Print this page