So, what’s the point of a cover letter? Well in most cases, your cover letter goes hand-in-hand with your resume, and is meant to elaborate on the key points (relevant to the job description)  made there. In general, you would want to pick from those experiences which most closely match or parallel the requirements of the job, and expand on your responsibilities and accomplishments in the cover letter.

As I’m sure most of you have experienced by now, tailoring a cover letter to:
– make sure it flows!
– cover aspects of my experience & how it relates to the new job…
– make it enticing & captures the hiring manager’s attention
Is quite a tough task!

In fact, just looking through my hordes of CLs through the years – a few glaring mistakes & inconsistencies have popped up!

Here are some mistakes you will probably make when creating a CL! Take note & make sure you always check for these in the future. If you’re working off of a general template, you may wish to work through that as well.

• Spell check spell check spell check! No one  cares about the content if the spelling or grammar is off.
  Trust me – when I started reviewing my templates before writing this post, I found this hilarious typo in my letter: “I was responsible for marinating records for the department.” Catch my mistake? While I’m sure the manager got a much needed laugh, it didn’t help me get any of the 46 jobs I applied to!
• Don’t cram everysingledetail in.
  When writing letters, I find that I get a bit long-winded in my job summaries…if this relates to you as well, it is best to re-read the job description and then what you’ve written. Now it’s a bit easier to take out some of those irrelevant (or already covered) sentences.
• Don’t change font sizes, styles, or formatting patterns in an attempt to make content fit!
  You may try to mask the reason behind ‘creative styling patterns’ – but the fact that your CLs jam-packed with information still comes through.

General tips:
– Read through the CL and remove anything which doesn’t relate to the job.
For instance, if the job you’re applying for involves project management and you’re trying to relate skills obtained while working as a cashier or teller, cut it out. Instead, focus on the relevant experience you have gained from collaborating in school groups, previous team projects, or expand on the job with the most parallels.
– Hand someone else the job description & your current CL and ask them to cross out anything irrelevant.

Now, get cracking on revamping those cover letters! Happy editing!