Cover Letters

I found the first article interesting when it described how often the cover letter is skipped over and Hiring Managers instead go straight to the resume. At first I didn't believe it, but as I read further and found that the resume is self-driven, while the cover letter is more about the company and what targets are for it. But after reading some of the different articles I was confused on what exactly I should be doing with cover letters because some of the other links, including the example of a cover letter, seemed to be about the individual and a somewhat summed up version of their resume in paragraph form.

After reading the different articles on advice that was given about writing cover letters, I still wasn't really sure what to believe and what not to believe. While some links were telling me one way to write them and when to write them, other sites were telling me otherwise. Therefore in some ways I agree with some of the advice given. I would tend to think that you'd want to state what you want to do in the company or what you want from the company while still including assets and accomplishments that may stand out to the potential employer. Incidentally, I disagreed with some of the advice given. Most specifically, I thought the postscript technique was very strange. I feel that if I had written it on my cover letter and an employer was to read it, that they would think my work was unorganized and that I didn't want to take the time to incorporate it more appropriately into the interview.

The checklist is very useful because it essentially encorporates all of the other articles into one bulleted list of important things to remember to put into the cover letter. Then, if for some reason, I needed more info on what one of the bullets was referring to, I could refer back to one of the articles.

If I were to incorporate something that I hadn't previously thought of into a cover letter, I think the testimonial is an interesting and potentially helpful idea, if it is actually something companies would be interested in reading. If I understand it correctly, it's a more detailed way of having a reference. Instead of talking about myself, I could have someone share their opionion on why I would be a good candidate.