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A Top Notch Cover Letter Can Get your Foot in the Door If you have ever looked for a job, then you know that it is tough out there. Competition is always fierce, especially for those “dream job” type of positions – great company, great benefits, and great pay. If you want your resume to rise to the top of the pile in the Human Resources department and you want to get that call for an interview, then you need something to make your resume stand out from the rest. The best way to draw attention to everything you have to offer is to have a cover letter that jumps right off the page and grabs the attention of the reader. The cover letter is your first chance to make an impression, so make sure your cover letter makes you the one potential hire that is definitely going to be getting a call. Before you can get into the content of your cover letter, you have to cover your basics. You should never, ever have a “form” cover letter that you use with every resume you send. Tailor your cover letter specifically to each individual employer, mentioning their company and the position for which you want to be considered. Address the letter to the correct person – if you’re not sure who will be doing the hiring, call the company and ask. Don’t assume you can address your letter to the HR department and have that be close enough. Taking the time to write a personal cover letter to each company lets your potential employer know you pay attention to detail right off the bat. Of course, you should also make sure that your cover letter is grammatically correct and free of typos. A sloppy cover letter is a one way ticket to the trash can for your resume. Once you have your basics in order, you can turn your attention to what you are actually going to write in the cover letter. Your cover letter is your sales pitch to the company; you need to let them know why they should bet on your when they hire for the position. One great way to sell yourself is to show off how much you already know about the company. Let them know why you want to work there by specifically mentioning projects the company has been involved in that you admire or talking about the position of the company within the field. As you show off how much you know about the company, draw attention to the ways you can actively help the company grow and succeed by drawing parallels between your experience and their work. After you have shown that you have done your homework and know about the company, go into some detail about the unique aspects of your work history. Draw attention to any special achievements or awards and any educational background you have that makes you a good candidate for the job. Remember, your resume will be attached to the cover letter, so you don’t have to go into great detail. Just pick out the highlights that will make the reader want to turn the page and delve into your resume. How you close your cover letter makes as much difference has how you open it. State again exactly what job you want to be considered for, and suggest that you come in for an interview. You can also suggest a few dates and time for an interview to show that you are eager to move on to the next step. You should also give a time and date that you will call to follow up on your resume. A pleasant closing and your signature seal the deal on your winning cover letter.

Turning your Eye to Government, Nonprofit or Small Business for you Next Job The type of business you work for can effect your job satisfaction. Your personality type may also work out better at certain types of businesses. Research different business types before going on your job search. Working for a small business or a non-profit definitely has its pros and cons. First of all, getting hired at a small business can be much easier than landing a position than at a corporation. Typically you will only have to go through one person to get the job. Usually the small business owner conducts the interview. This can be a good thing because the business owner may be willing to overlook a lack of experience or extenuating circumstances concerning your work history. Nonprofit jobs are often easier to get if you are passionate about the cause. The person that is doing the hiring is generally passionate about the cause that the nonprofit is working to assist. If they pick up on passion about the cause from you, typically you will get the job. However, that passion is necessary because they pay may not be very much. Working for a smaller company also opens up more opportunities for promotions. With fewer employees and contact with the owner, you may be able to move up in the company faster. You will be able to pick up on skills in less time than at large corporations, which often have many hoops for one to jump through before training for a new position. There may be a smaller window of time to pick up on new skills because of the limited amount of time that can be put towards training. Nonprofits may not have as many opportunities for promotions and job stability may be questionable. If the donations stop coming in or whoever funds the nonprofit decides not to fund it anymore, you could be out of a job. This is a very real concern with a nonprofit job. There are some drawbacks to working at smaller businesses. Sometimes, the staff at smaller businesses have been in place for years. New, younger employees may not be viewed favorably. This could affect working relationships with co-workers. Smaller companies also mean smaller paychecks. Independent businesses are not able to generate large paychecks. This could make staying at a small business undesirable. However, the personal interaction between you and your boss could be encouragement to stick it out with a small business. Or the opposite could be true. Government jobs can be beneficial to have for a number of reasons. First of all, government jobs offer good salaries and great benefits. You will have all government holidays off and you will be working in a position that is necessary to the maintenance of the government. That means that you probably won’t have to worry about being displaced. Although, remember that if the government runs into tough times, layoffs are possible. Government jobs are usually normal business hours but not always. There are some positions that will have hours that extend a little bit beyond regular business hours but for the most part, you will be able to enjoy your life by taking advantage of vacation time. Sick days will also be available at government jobs. Some of the drawbacks of government jobs are that you may have to deal with a large amount of on the job stress. You may be responsible for processing hundreds, maybe even thousands of cases and one mistake could be very tragic for an individual. Depending on what your position is, you may be instrumental in handling paper work from a huge amount of people.

Can Facebook or MySpace Help You Land a Job? The Internet is quickly becoming the vehicle of choice for people looking for a job and for employers looking for people to hire. There are many job sites on the Internet dedicated to matching up employees and employers, and most people turn to the Internet today when they are hunting for a job instead of turning to the classified ads in the local paper. Job hunting websites may all be well and good when you are looking for a job, but what about social networking sites. Everyone knows how popular sites like Facebook and MySpace are online, but can they help you get a job? If you are in the job market, can these sites be your foot in the door, or a one way ticket to the unemployment line? The answer is that there is no easy answer. To know if you can find a job using Facebook or MySpace, you have to know how employers feel about these sites, and employers have mixed feeling about them. Some companies are actively using social networking sites to track down employees that meet their company’s employee profile and have had great success finding workers via social networking sites. Other companies wouldn’t touch these sites as a hiring tool with a ten-foot poll – in fact, many companies don’t even want you to access these websites from their company computers. The real answer to this question has more to do with exactly what kind of job you are looking for. Are you looking for an executive position at a company? Then stay off of the social networking sites, at least for job hunting (and maybe all together). No company is going to look for its top brass on a social networking site, and you will be wasting your time. However, if you are looking for entry level or hourly wage work, the social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook may be the answer for you. Many hourly wage employers in particular, like fast food restaurant chains and mall stores, use MySpace and Facebook to look for potential employees in their area. If a potential employer sees your profile and thinks you may be a good fit for their company, they will send you an email or an instant message and get the ball rolling. You should also, however, carefully consider the downsides of using social networking sites as a job tool – and you should carefully consider how and if you use these sites at all if you are in the market for a new job. Most people wouldn’t want their parents to see their social networking site profile, let alone potential employers. If you have rude and off color material, political or religious material, and inappropriate photos of yourself on your profile, a potential employer will be turned off, and you might lose your chance at that job. Most people give up way too much of their privacy when they use these kinds of sites, and your social networking site profile may offer a window into a side of you an employer might not be overly impressed with. Further, you can open yourself up to danger by using these sites to job hunt. If someone approached you in the street and offered you a job, would you accept? Then why would you accept a face value an approach by someone on social networking site? If you do get approached for an interview, never meet anyone in a private place, and do your homework to make sure the facts check out before you go for the interview. One last reality check – there are over 60 million users on MySpace alone. How will an employer find you in the crowd? MySpace and Facebook may help you in your job hunt, but don’t count on them as your sole avenue into the job market.