Special sale! Cover letter book now on Nook

Need a cover letter?
Now you can read – and write – on the go.

Write it Rich! How to write a kick-butt resume letter is a PDF file. It also reads well on the Nook from Barnes&Noble. To celebrate that happy event, I’m running a special sale:

Now you can buy the PDF file of the book for

$12 instead of the usual $20

My innovative approach to writing a cover letter is vastly different than any book on the market today. I should know — I just spent a few hours last week perusing the latest and not-so-greatest tomes in Barnes&Noble. I’ll be discussing those books, and their failings, in future blog posts. But for now –

Buy the PDF file. It’s on sale right now: $12 instead of $20.

For the less-tech among us, here’s how it works: You download the full-sized PDF file onto your computer. Then you upload it to the Nook. So whatever doesn’t display perfectly on the Nook will present just fine on the computer. That means you get the visual quality I was shooting for with the added portability of your e-reader. Nice.

Write the letter. Get the interview.
Free call tells you how.

Want more how-to-write advice? Got a question about changing industries? Don’t forget my free tele-call on how to write your job letter. The call, plus the book, will teach you a unique approach to writing a cover letter that gets you noticed.

~sr~

Hey job seeker! Worried about your age?

Don’t be.

You can’t grab the brass ring with less than two weeks of experience…or even two months. Top-level employers know it takes more than two years of boots-on-the-ground hard work to master you skill. So if you’re showing up with a little gray in your hair, stand tall.

Own your experience and the time you took accruing it.

To me, there’s no point in fluffing dates on your resume. Sure you can leave off the year you graduated college, but if the first job HR sees lists you as a senior level/director/VP of such-and-such, the secret (your age) is out.

Combat ageism with experience. Make your resume and cover letter glow with extraordinary experiences of what you did, how much sales/income/success you generated during your career. Point out where your skills top those of a younger generation.

Will the younger person still get the job? Possibly. I don’t deny our experience is less regarded (and compensated) in today’s job market.

I’ve shared some additional thoughts on my other blog.

~sr~

Free tele-seminar: How to write a kick-butt cover letter

How to write a kick-butt resume cover letter
FREE live call!

If a resume is a listing of job facts, your cover letter is the story of your career.

Discover how to write a compelling resume cover letter in this free conference call.
You’ll learn:

• How to organize your thoughts and pick a key message.
• The 5 must-have’s every cover letter must have.
• Strategies for winning the Battle of Parity.
• How to resonate with a recruiter, HR Pro and hiring manager.

Be sure to download THIS HANDOUT before the call.

Join me:
4 pm PT/7 pm ET Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Call in Details:
424.203.8400
PIN Number: 312065#

Need more info about the call? Contact me.

Afterwards, check out the podcast archives for End the Job Search. That’s where you’ll find job search advice, plus a previous recording of this conference call. (But do take the time to call in — this is where we talk about you and your unique job search questions!)

You might like to know:

• Yes, you can buy the book after the call. There is no obligation to do so. It’s just $12 for a PDF file, and you can order here.
• Yes, you can hire me to turn your cover letter into a kick-butt sales tool that gets you noticed. Details here.
• Yes, you can sign up for my weekly newsletter, RichWriteBites and get more writing advice.

Thank you, I look forward to talking cover letters with you on May 22!

~sr~

Avoid talking about ‘business’ in your cover letter

Business is a funny word.

IdeaGo/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

It’s a noun of course, and it represents a long list of ideas. That means it gets over-used — quickly — which becomes a problem when you are trying to tell people about your job skills:

Suzie has a degree in business and her business specialty is managing production lines. Most of the businesses she worked for have downsized during the recession, so she’s been unemployed 18 months. She thought of going into business for herself, but couldn’t get a business loan.

There is no synonym, no clear alternative word for “business.” That makes the word one of the most overused terms in our work communication. When it comes to writing cover letters, HR pros and hiring managers don’t pick on business as an “I hate that word” because really, what word can you use instead?

But they do take their frustration out on other commonly used words – execute, strategize, market, transform, empower.  These words also lack effective synonyms that clearly describe the main concept.

If you’re a job seeker, this presents a troublesome challenge: Countless studies and online articles claim that HR pros and hiring managers list these words as the most commonly used, most-hated words they see. It’s no surprise: They literally see the same words over and over, every single day.

It’s not fair to job seekers, because there are no good stand-in words. However, if an HR pro hates seeing these these words, it is the job seeker’s problem.

What I coach here is this: Write your cover letter and resume with strong nouns and verbs. Get a thesaurus. Buy a book like Richard Bayan’s Words that Sell and More Words That Sell (no I am not an affiliate). Find creative ways to NOT use the word business and all its empty synonyms. Dig deep, and your letter will shine with individuality. Your job letter will stand out just because those tired words and phrases are missing.

Sure, it’s going to be challenging to write a cover letter minus words like business, execute and strategy. Do it anyway. You’ll find yourself digging deep into your own personal skill-set, the one that demonstrates why you are the best person for the job. Write without superlatives and empty phrases and your message will be more clear.

Skip the hated words that gets other candidates’ job letters dumped and you might find yourself on top of the pile.

Ask me if you need help writing your perfect cover letter. You can also sign up for my newsletter, RichWriteBites, and download your free get-started report.

~sr~

Brussels sprouts and cover letters…

…They both don’t stink.

FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Yes, I know, some of you don’t believe in cover letters. Job seekers, HR pros, and recruiters alike all kind of shrug when they talk about cover letters.

“It’s gotta be in the resume,” they say. And yes, that’s true.

Does the cover letter get read? Admittedly, debatable.
But does it get asked for? Yes, more often than not.

So where does that leave you?
With an opportunity – the chance to explain why you.

Don’t be defeatist about it. Don’t say to yourself, “No one will read this thing, so I’m going to just put anything down.”

What if that HR pro does read your careless slop? Ouch, off you go, into the trash.

If the company requests a job letter, don’t write some crummy cover sheet, or the kind of say-nothing letter I wrote once upon a time. Instead, write the very best job letter you can. Take it as seriously as writing your resume.

Why?

This is what you do know: The company has requested a cover letter.
This is what you don’t know: If someone will read it.

Here’s how I look at it: You have two chances to demonstrate how your skills, training, experience and passion make you the best person for the job. If you work as hard on your cover letter as you do on your resume, you are presenting a complete, I care, I want this job picture. If you put forth an amazing resume and a half-baked cover letter, what message are you sending then?

Don’t get tangled in the will-they won’t-they argument. You can’t control it. What you can control is YOU and your willingness to present yourself as the best candidate for the job.

Here’s one more reason to write a kick-butt resume cover letter: Let’s assume HR is going to read it. Will they do so first, or second? I’ve heard it told both ways. That means it’s arbitrary, one more reason to write a damn good letter:

If your cover letter is the FIRST introduction HR has to you, what do you want it to say?

~sr~

3 reasons why you need a cover letter

Good news! The job market is improving.

DCDominici/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Slowly, yes, but it still means the people who have abandoned the job search “until things get better” are about to re-enter the fray.

They’ll be dusting off their resume and trying to boost those rusty interview skills.

And their cover letter? “Fuggediboutit!” they might think to themselves: “Who needs one of those? Who reads them? Who has the time to write one?”

You do — if you are serious about getting a job.

3 reasons why a cover letter helps your job search.

1.  It’s on the job description – If the company asks for  a cover letter, and you don’t believe in writing one, or worse, don’t know how – are you going to skip the opportunity because of it? Really? I know a few folks who blow this requirement off – all the time! And, guess what, they’re still unemployed. If nothing else, ya gotta follow directions.

2.  Improves your interview – The effort of putting into words why you are best for the job is a powerful, time-consuming, and painful exercise. I get that. But I promise you this: If you write it, you will say it. Writing is practice for speech.Write it. Say it. Interview well. Maybe get hired. Pain over.

3.  Proves you can write — While it’s true that writing a cover letter is not part of any job description (neither is a resume but we get all giddy over those) – writing IS. I can’t think of a professional job where email, memos, and reports are not part of the daily work. Also, developing presentations (those words on the slide must show congruent ideas) is a duty for many. Your cover letter is a writing sample. Show you can write about you – in your native tongue, fluently – and you will prove you can write anything else.

It’s true – writing about ourselves is hard. Conquer that and the toughest inter-office memo is a breeze.

Need some help? You can get a free, quick-start guide to writing your job letter when you subscribe to my newsletter, RichWriteBites. You can also listen to End the Job Search podcasts. And, course you can dive right in and buy the book.

~sr~

Using a cover letter template? Stop!

A template slows down the job search.

FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Really? Yes. Those fill-in-the-blank forms don’t express your unique job skills. Templates fill a job requirement (include a cover letter with the resume), they don’t fill the job (explain why YOU). So if you use a template instead of writing a richly detailed cover letter, you’re cheating yourself…and it’s probably going to take longer for you to get hired.

So why is a template tempting?

• Because you’re not convinced a cover letter is more than just a cover sheet.
• And – because it’s easy. Your job search is hard enough, why make it any worse than it has to be?
• Also – because it saves time. If you have to write a cover letter for every job, no one can really tell you’re using the same one over and over, so why not take a shortcut?

A template is easy, and your job search isn’t. And that’s my point. Where in this world do the great things come easily? If you are hustling for a job, every element counts: Face-to-face and online networking, your LinkedIn profile, your industry connections.

Why should the cover letter be easy? It’s not rhetorical as much as it’s true: If you want a job that pays what you are worth, one that reflects your true contributions to the company, how can a form letter explain the magic of why you and not the other guy?

The template will never take the place of an elegantly crafted job letter. If you want an amazing job, you have to present yourself as an amazing candidate – an energetic, problem-solving, unique individual who can solve a problem in a way that no one else can.

You might be thinking to yourself — A template saves TIME! Does it really? If you use a template, you are not standing out from the crowd. It’s just like the career specialist said in this other post:
No one can tell you apart from the other candidates.
That means you’re not standing out. It means you’re not getting noticed, interviewed, or hired. That means your job search is going to take a long time if you use a template cover letter.

You’re not a template. You’re an individual.
You don’t need a cookie-cutter approach to getting a job when – guess what – you are not a same-as-the-rest chocolate chip cookie a la Nabisco, you’re a double-Dutch chocolate and macadamia nut specialty item.  That’s why you have to write a cover letter for every job you apply for, and you should not use a template to write your cover letter.

~sr~

Need a job? Skip the cover letter template.

Why? Because a fill-in-the-blank job letter doesn’t cut it.

tungphoto/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Whether you choose the freebie that comes with your software program or one you bought online for a screaming low price of $29.95, a template is nothing more than a fill-in-the-blank promise: Plug in your contact info, choose from a list of industries, answer a few generalized questions and hey! presto, you’ve got a cover letter.

Not only that, those online products actually promise a JOB in record time. (Never mind how that flies in the face of today’s economic reality. Since most job seekers and HR pros believe a resume is more important than a cover letter, how can that claim possibly ring true?)

But, let’s assume for a moment you used a
Dear Hiring Manager
I am responding to a job posting on monster.com and think I am the best person for the job template.

Now you’re in the big pile of hopefuls. Which is –

• Great, if you like being one of the masses.
• Super, if you want a cover letter that reads like a form letter.
• Awesome, if you don’t want HR to distinguish you from everyone else applying for the same job.

Clearly, there’s something wrong with these do-it-for-you templates. But don’t take my word for it. Here’s a story that explains why templates don’t work:
A few months ago I was teaching my cover letter class to a group of medical technicians. That’s right, every person in the room had just completed training for the same kind of job. I had just finished explaining why it’s important to write a custom cover letter when the instructor spoke up and said,
“We’ve been asked by our placement agencies to tell you NOT to use a template to write your letter. They all read the same and no one can tell one person from another.”

OK, now you’ve heard it from me, a job placement instructor and (indirectly) employers. They want you to stand out as much as you do. Remember, the HR person is trying to find the best person for the position. Your job is to help her do it. Don’t use a template. Write the cover letter.

Up next: The psychology behind using a template (and why it’s still a bad idea)

~sr~

It’s a cover letter, not a cover sheet!

Once upon a time my cover letter read like this:

I am applying for the writing job I saw on Craigslist. I have a journalism degree and more than 20 years of experience in print, PR and marketing. I’ve attached my resume. Please call me if you’d like to talk to me about the job. Thank you.

That’s pretty bland writing. In this fairy tale era of my early career, it worked, too. Nowadays, a cover letter like this is about as distinguishing as a fax cover sheet. It doesn’t share much more than your interest in a job. It certainly doesn’t say WHY you are the best candidate, HOW your skills are relevant and HOW the company will benefit by hiring YOU.

Cover sheets are out.
Cover letters are in.

Your cover letter doesn’t have to be long – less than one page, less than 500 words. But it does have to sell you: Your skills, experience, passion and knowledge. Your cover letter has to prove that you (and only you) can solve a business problem in a way that no one else can.

Your cover letter is not a lunch order, a confirmation that 1,000 widgets just shipped. Your cover letter is a sales tool, a marketing piece that tells your business story. And it should be the one the hiring manager is dying to hear.

See a sample of a kick-butt resume cover letter. Keep in mind — I’m a writer for hire, and I have to write a cover letter for every job I pursue. This one has generated a huge response.

I think that about covers it for today…but you can learn more job search strategies by listening to podcasts on End the Job Search.

~sr~

Job search tip: Appointment Reminder

Will they remember you?

DRizzuti/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I was giving my class on how to write a kick-butt resume cover letter when I learned how one job seeker makes certain the interviewer does not forget her.

Her name is Catherine and she ordered a batch of business cards from Vista Print. Instead of the free package, she upgraded to include Appointment Reminders on the back of her card.

Now when she interviews, she writes her name, date of meeting, and one memorable topic they discussed on the back of her card. She leaves it behind, along with her cover letter and resume. When she hand writes her thank you note (I do this every time! she says) – she again includes the filled-in business card.

“It’s how I want them to remember me,” Catherine says, confident that her up-beat attitude and remember-me trick will eventually land her the job she’s looking for.

What’s your best trick for getting remembered? Talk about it here.