Cover Letter Warning: Watch Out For the BIG BAD WORD!

Dear Job-Seeker:

Just as Goldilocks was suspicious of the big bad wolf, be wary of the big bad word! You know the kind. Pursuant. Heretofore. Credence and all their contagious cousins! Unless you keep your guard up, these little pests will infest your cover letters like termites in a wood pile! Don't let them.

Remember, employers are regular folks--just like you and me. They don't want to carry around a ten-pound dictionary in order to get through what should be a clear and concise cover letter. Decide today that you will communicate with your potential employer as though you were two friends sitting over a cup of coffee. Everyday language, a touch of humor, and specific details about what you can do for the company and why you're the one for the job will take you further than any five-dollar word you heard on a national spelling bee!

Not only is such writing a waste of your time, the result is totally ineffective. The hiring manager is likely to read one sentence, then toss the letter into the trash--your hopes and dreams with it.

Don't let that be your fate. Take charge of your cover letter now. Choose words anyone can recognize and understand and write in a friendly manner that will bring your unique personality to the page.

Try this:

I am so impressed with your company. After visiting your web site and 'meeting' you and other employees through your profiles, I thought to myself, this is the company for me. I am a hard worker and I take pride in paying attention to details. Please give me an opportunity to talk with you about what I can bring to (company name) for the position of (name the job). I already have a list of ideas I'm eager to share with you. I look forward to hearing from you, and then meeting you in person.

Toss this:

"Pursuant to said resume attached, I have compiled and codified a list of attributes, and carefully analyzed the characteristics necessary to extrapolate my purpose and penchant for the kind of work you articulated with extreme verbosity on your web site under the item, "Available Positions." That said, I ask your kindpermission to garner a private conference with you so I might bring to your attention...

At this point, if he gets that far, the employer will shred the letter as well as any thought of contacting you for an interview.

HOW TO COMBAT BIG BAD WORD-ITIS: Read your cover letter aloud. The moment you hear, feel, or say a word or phrase that twists your tongue and fogs your brain, take it out. Rewrite until the words and sentences roll off your tongue and you feel yourself smiling. Hey this sounds good! Display your passion for the position and clearly ASK for the job interview.

I'm rooting for you! Clear concise language is so rare in the business world today, that those who can master it will land the interview of their dreams--and the job that's behind it.

Jimmy Sweeney is the president of CareerJimmy and author of the new, "Amazing Cover Letter Creator." Jimmy has written several career-related books and his unique, "think-outside-the-job-search-box" approach, make his articles a job-seeker favorite. Jimmy is regularly published on some of the Internet's largest career web sites.

Who else wants their phone ringing off the hook with more quality job interviews? Visit Jimmy on the web right now at http://www.Amazing-Cover-Letters.com for your 'instant' cover letter today.


More Resources

Networking - A Key Factor in a Successful Job Search
In today's economy, job seekers need an edge beyond their experience, education and specific industry and job-related skills, in order to find and secure a position. Regardless if you are looking for an opportunity as CEO, Vice President, IT Manager or Customer Service Representative, you need effective tools to compete within a market that is job-poor and candidate rich.
Supplement Your Skills and Improve Your Work Position
It is often said that the majority of people are but a few checks away from homelessness. Without a consistent income, this may be a true statement.
Think Twice Before You Change Jobs
You've got the itch to change jobs. This might be a good time to make the move.
Career Success: Get Ahead of the Crowd
Regardless of where you open your briefcase or palm pilot each day - at a large corporation, a small business or the end of your dining room table - the key to staying employable the rest of your life is your own creative action. The person who is going to be successful is not going to succeed just because of good work.
How to Get the Job You Want in Any Economy... Act Like a Headhunter
Having spent the last few years of my career in the staffing and recruiting industry, I'm asked all the time by friends and relatives if I can help them find a more desirable job. I've helped my fiancé get a job, helped my college buddies get jobs after graduation, and even helped a few high school buddies find jobs having not seen them for years.
How To Ask For A Pay Rise!
Negotiating a pay rise is not something many people do on a regular basis. By applying these keys you will be well positioned to improve your negotiation skills and feel more empowered when asking for a pay rise.
Where Do I Go From Here?
Making Your Future Work Better For YouIt's the commonest concern people have about their careers. Where am I heading? Is this the right direction for me? How can I tell what will suit me best? Making good career decisions doesn't have to be agony if you clear away a few misconceptions.
Four Job Interview Mistakes That Can Torpedo Your Chances of Success
What are the worst mistakes job hunters make? It turns out there are four big ones. These four mistakes turn up repeatedly when executives responsible for hiring talk about the reasons why someone didn't get a job offer.
The Top 10 Mistakes Job Seekers Should Avoid In Contacting An Employer
There are numerous tools and resources available to guide job seekers through the steps of a career transition. These tools are very useful and suggest much that you should do.
Use Job Search Hacks to Get Hired Faster
Job searching alone is like hitchhiking a scary ride with an unknown stranger on a 180-mile long deserted, no-exit road with hopes you'll make your destination. When you lack time or expertise to plan career moves carefully, sometimes the loss of ground is not apparent until years later.
Personal Grooming: 8 Top Reasons Why You Can't Take It For Granted In Your Career
Most people when they landed "the dream job" after an interview or even got "the deal" of the lifetime in their businesses, sadly to say tend to slack on their grooming habits and it even goes to the point that they are wearing their pajamas going to the office. It seems that's very extreme but it happens.
Why Do Interviews Die: That Sinking Feeling and How to Prevent it!
Interviews die because a mistake occurred. Sometimes, you've made a mistake; sometimes they die because someone who screened a resume did.
Career Advice On Freelance Writing Jobs
Sometimes the freelance writing jobs available are those that no one wants. Or, they are those that new businesses are looking to fill.
Staying In Shape
Why Lawyers Should Eat Bananas by Simon Tupman is a book that caught my eye both because of its unusual title and because I coach lawyers who are growing their practices. The book cover says it gives "Inspirational Ideas for Lawyers Wanting More Out of Life"Much of what Mr.
Resume Objectives: How Do You Know if Resume Objectives Are Right for You?
Some experts say NEVER bother with resume objectives.While others say they should be an essential element onevery resume.
Job Interviews: Ill File a Grievance!
I recently went to a retirement party with my husband for one of his co-workers. I worked at this same place six years ago (that's where I met my husband, but that's another story), so I knew most of the people at the party.
Networking is the Key to Star Performance in Everything You Do.
Many people's idea of networking relates to the 'size of their Christmas Card List, rather than the quality of their relationship with each person on that list. Similarly those people network, but few reap the rewards of zeroing in on their potential.
Rekindling Passion for Work
Passion comes in many forms. I'm focused on the version of passion that is "boundless enthusiasm".
20 Powerful Tips For Advancing Your Career
You don't want to stay in your current position forever..
Moving From A Weekend Hobby To Career In The Arts
Building a career as an artist takes hard work. Because the field attracts so many talented people, jobs in this field remain competitive.

More Careers & Employment Information:

Related Articles

Want to Work for Yourself? Those Dream Jobs Dont Just Happen, Theyre Created
While traveling in northern California last October, I happened to tune into a local newscast. The newscaster was telling his co-anchor that the speaker at that morning's Rotary Club meeting had to cut his presentation short because he was being flown down to Disneyland to carve elaborate Halloween pumpkins for the park festivities.
Do You Have a Hotsy-Totsy Resume?
I begin this article with a bit of slang description. Whatdo I mean by a "hotsy totsy" resume? I mean one thatdoes the following for you, the job seeker and apossible employer.
Should I leave My Job?
Most of us have to work for a living. Since we spend so many hours each week at our jobs, it's very important that there is a good fit.
The Executive Resume - Moving Beyond Accomplishments
There is a major difference between conventional resumes and executive resumes. Accomplishments are usually the center point of a conventional resume (i.
The Not-So-Effective Cover Letter
Here's a newsflash: Cover letters work, plain and simple. This is why I'm intrigued by the fact that a) jobseekers rarely submit them and b) hiring managers seldom read them.
Resume That Effectively Promotes You!
Imagine for a moment that you have created a wonderful product. You are excited at the possibilities of attaining name, fame and wealth marketing this product.
Getting Past Fear
Have you gotten tons of career advice, solicited and unsolicited? You nod when you hear it and think, "Yeah, I know this stuff." So, what else is new?But what have you done with the advice? Fess up.
Top Ten Networking Strategies To Get A Job, A Promotion, Or Make A Sale
Whether you are networking to find a new job opportunity, gain a promotion, or close a sale, you have two main goals with the networking interaction:1. To be remembered so that when opportunities appear, people will think of you as the perfect person to handle things,2.
Get a Job! Tips for Organizing Your Resume
Whether you're a Vice President of Marketing or a recent college grad, your resume is the 'key' to opening the doors of employment. It is an employer's first impression of you and believe it or not, many hiring officials spend less than thirty seconds reviewing it.
Career Discovery - Pinpoint Your Ideal Career
Determine your ideal career--one that's in alignment withyour values, passions, and talents--and discover the workyou were born to doCareer discovery is the process by which a person identifiestheir ideal career path, thus saving themselves a lot oftime (and money) by not pursuing career choices that theywill ultimately find unfulfilling. To find your truecalling, you need to dig around and find the things that areimportant to you--now, and in the future.
Now, Do You Have Any Questions?
"Who is that hot babe in the picture?" isn't the type of reply an interviewer expects to hear when he or she invites you to ask questions near the end of an interview. In fact, the way you approach the Q&A session will have a direct impact on the interviewer's perception of you.
10 Warning Signs That You're Ready for a Career Transition
1. You dread getting out of bed and going to work.
The Springtime of Your Career
Rick Jarow, author of Creating the Work You Love, introduced many of us to the notion of career seasons. When we're struggling with a career, we're most likely to think of winter.
Ten Careers For High School Seniors Who Hate School
Let's face it?not everybody likes going to school and high school can be a terrible experience for many students. Whether you're the hands on type who preferred Shop class to English class, or an athlete who liked working as a team more than studying alone, or even someone who liked schoolwork more than schoolmates; the idea of four more years of school is unbearable.
The Network Within
When you hear the word "networking", what comes to your mind first?You probably think about going to a job fair or asking all of your friends, family members and acquaintances for jobs.But if you are currently employed, you might very well have easy access to one of the best networks you can have.
Powerful Phone Interviews
Phone interviews are de rigueur with many organizations.Companies conduct phone interviews for a number of reasons.
Fuzzy Headed Job Goals Lead to a Fuzzy Headed Life!
May I clarify in this article what I believe to be "fuzzy headed" life and job decisions. I believe both are entwined: life and job.
Resume Tips To Take You From SAHM to WAHM
When looking for a telecommuting position, it is very important to have your resume in tip-top shape. This is often the only thing that a potential employer has to base a hiring decision on since they most likely will not be interviewing you in person, your resume has to make that great first impression for you.
Seriously Impress at Your Interview With These 7 Hot Tips
So you've managed to secure a job interview for a position thatfits you PERFECTLY. Now comes the moment of truth: Are youREALLY ready for the interview? If you've rehearsed what you'regoing to say and know the perfect answer to every potentialquestion, you're half way there.
CDL Practice Test - Offers Practice Tests To Prepare For The CDL Exam
As you take CDL practice test, you do become morefamiliar with the CDL test, and being familiarwith the test will make the actual test much lessstressful.In fact, if used correctly, CDL practice testcan be an extremely targeted study tool thatwill precisely pinpoint the areas in which you are weakest and then help you to learn how to combat and overcome those weaknesses.