Cover Letter Do’s & Dont’s

When you prepare your application documents you can probably manage drafting a CV in no time. But when it comes to the Cover Letter many candidates get stuck. They don’t know what to write and sometimes fall back on outdated templates using generic formulations, such as “Dear Sirs” or “I am very uniquely qualified”. Using these phrases in your Cover Letter can quickly lead the hiring manager to sort out your application without taking a further look.

To catch their interest and convince them about your strengths and talents you should first of all make the effort and find out who will read your Cover Letter. You should, in general, use the Cover Letter to give a more personal impression of yourself and to show hiring managers how motivated and intrigued you are by the job position offered. Do not copy-paste the things they read on your CV, instead tell them about your past experiences. Choose specific examples, which help the reader to recognize your qualifications and the reason why you are the ideal candidate for this job as a next step on your career path. Stay away from saying “I have great communication skills” or “I am team player” but tell a short story from which they can draw exactly that conclusion – e.g. “Hey, Sarah must be a great team player”.

To get additional tips for your Cover Letter, check out mashable.com. In their article they address three more Don’ts in Cover Letters and help you to leave a unique and meaningful impression in your application.

(© mashable.com, published on March 24th 2016)