Maintain Positiive Search Energy

If you’re not seeing progress during a lengthy job search, perhaps you’re doing everything right: following up routinely, tailoring your resume, and taking your job search tasks seriously. An average job search can last several months. You need to be organized and manage your 'energy'.

The energy that you bring to your job search will convey in your communications and interactions with recruiters. Burnout is a valid concern, but you can shake off those feelings and find your groove again with adjustments in your approach.

See 5 points to consider here.

Avoid Overused Phrases, Consider a Summary Statement

Resumes don’t leave room for personality. Telling a coherent story in bullet form is tricky. The summary statement is a popular way to kick your resume off, see it here.

With a summary statement, you can cherry pick your most impressive accomplishments, spell out what your expertise is, and give an overall sense of what your career path has been. You’re always best off quantifying your results and backing up your skills with numbers here.

Review three overused resume phrases to avoid here.

Cover Letter via Email

When sending an email cover letter, it's important to follow the company's directions on how to submit your cover letter and resume. Make sure that your email cover letters are written as well as any other professional correspondence.

Review some tips on how to craft a resume, composing the email, attaching or pasting and sending the documents.

See key points and examples here.

Writing a Management Position Cover Letter

The goal of any cover letter is to provide insight into your qualifications that a hiring manager might not get from a resume alone. You try to show not only that you have the skills to do a job, but to inspire others to theirs ​as well.

A management level letter will include information on your accomplishments, the leadership roles you have held, and how you can help the organization succeed.

See key letter points, a sample and a template here.

The job that’s too far to commute

Interviewing a far away company is tricky. Some companies may provide transportation and accommodations, but it may be absent in the job listing.

In a cover letter express your intent to ultimately be in the company city. Be up front and begin a dialog, don't let your distance deny you their offer.

See additional thoughts here.

Cover Letter Language VS Resume Language

Many employers want job seekers to attach a cover letter to their application. Writing an effective one is therefore essential. 

That means using your cover letter to tell the employer something that your resume does not. Repeating information in both documents signals that you don’t fully understand the value of either.

See 5 key elements of cover letters here.

Use Impressive Written Communication

Aside from resumes, your job search will likely require you to write effectively to communicate your capabilities.  Interviews are great when you can get one, but they are usually the result of prior written communication. 

Your effectiveness in writing cover letters, completing applications, and sending follow-up thank-you letters depends on paying attention to the details. For pointers on these three necessary documents see the material here.

Cover Letter Focus and Critique

A great cover letter can have as much impact as a great resume and increase your odds of landing an interview. To insure your cover letter is effective, a critique can arm you with valuable information to make this essential document the best it can be.    

The benefit of a cover letter critique is to not only catch blatant errors such as spelling, grammar and formatting, but to receive feedback on how well you address the employer's needs and separate yourself from the competition.

Follow these three steps when seeking a cover letter critique: 

  Find a reviewer

  Relate your background and a copy of the job posting

  Take any advice given that works

For the details see the article here

Job Search #3: Effective Cover Letters

The objective of writing cover letters is to obtain a reading of your resume and help you win the interview

When you are a writing a cover letter, there is specific information that needs to be included. Your cover letter will include a contact section, a salutation, information on why you are qualified for the job, a closing, and your signature.

To see what to include in your cover letter, how to write it, its format, and cover letter examples, see the full article here.

Cover Letter for over 50

Searching for a new job when you are over 50 can produce anxiety, but you can create a cover letter that makes you stand out as a highly desirable job candidate. The first thing that employers notice about your application is your cover letter, so it is important for it to be effective.

Your cover letter is a tool to get you noticed by employers; it should be customized for the job you are seeking. Draft a compelling message for each position, and let employers know why you want to work for them and how your skills and experience are useful for the position.

For more information on the letter content, see the complete article here.

Write a Persuasive Cover Letter

You put a lot of thought and work into developing a professional resume, but may lose steam when it comes to the cover letter. When you submit a resume for a job posting or to a referral, you may be asked to submit a cover letter. There is at least a 50% chance that your cover letter will actually be read.

A well-written persuasive cover letter is a powerful addition to your suite of career marketing documents. So transform your existing cover letter from boring to attention-grabbing in five steps.

See the five steps with examples in the full article here.

Cover Letter, before and after

In addition to a cover letter being specific in linking your abilities and experience directly to the job requirements, the letter has to also grab the reader.  It may be that the cover letter gets the reviewer to read the resume or in a pursal of your resume they want a confirmation their impression from the cover letter.

In any case an example of a real cover letter in ‘before and after’ versions can give you some pointers on the possible improvements you might incorporate in your introduction. For a brief comparison of the two versions see the examples here.

4 Cover Letter Tips to Supplement Your Resume

While the bulk of candidates I speak with are looking for guidance with their resumes, some folks are looking for other ideas on how to effectively market themselves.  If you have been successful at crafting the perfect resume (or invested in having the perfect resume crafted for you), you may want to consider fine tuning another document that many employers ask for in your application - the cover letter.  Here are 4 simple tips to consider as you craft your cover letter:

1. Unlike a resume, your cover letter should be personalized...
2. Make sure to tailor your letter to the specific job posting using examples...
3. Create excitement about your interest in the position and clearly state why...
4. Finally, close out your letter with a desire to speak further in person or over the phone...

For more information, click here.

Cover Letter Tips and Tricks

Your cover letter should be only one page long. Any longer and you’re giving too much information, taking up too much of a recruiter’s time, and demonstrating that you can’t summarize using a clear, concise writing style.

The following topics characterize the elements of a cover letter.

• Keeping it simple
• Spacing is in
• Making style count
• Spelling mistakes - Ooops!
• Using the right language
• Handwriting doesn’t pay
• Focusing on the employer
• Keeping your salary a secret 

If you are interested in the details of these topics, see the complete article here..

Get The Hiring Manager's Attention

Your resume’s cover letter needs to make a strong first impression that will entice employers to want to know you better. Researching the organization and demonstrating why you would make an excellent candidate for this particular job will set you apart.

• State why you like the company
• Use the job description as guidelines
• Bring your specific experiences to life
• The last paragraph should say you're eager to learn more about the position
• Add an individual touch by saying what your next steps will be

If this sounds interesting see the complete article  click here 

How to Market Your Skills ...

By Curt Rosengren US News and World Report Posted: July 19, 2011

You’ve seen skills checklists that ask you to tick off every skill that sounds like you. When it comes to telling your story to a prospective employer, it’s still one-dimensional. There’s nothing to back it up.If you want to talk about your skills in a compelling way, you have to go deeper than that. Remember potential employers aren’t interested in your skills; they’re interested in how those skills can meet their needs. The following will help make your story more compelling by letting you demonstrate that.

Reverse engineer to find your skills  In a nutshell, you’re going to identify your skills through reverse engineering. You will look at three things:

1. Your big picture responsibilities
2. The tasks you had to perform to fulfill those responsibilities
3. The skills you needed to successfully perform those tasks

For the rest of the article, click here.