In the reading “Kairos and the Cover Letter” I learned how important it is to craft a cover letter that is very specific toward the employer and the specific job position. I also leaned from this reading the different styles in which a cover letter can be written. I personally feel that I would be most comfortable using the “Me Approach” in my cover letter. I will describe my skills and my eagerness for the job all using the “Me Approach”. In the second reading “Junk Cover Letters Kill Good Resumes” I learned how a cover letter is actually (in some cases) the very first impression to employers. Since the cover letter is in front of the resume it is the first thing employers will likely read, making it extremely important. In this article I also learned though, that many employers do not take the time to read all of a cover letter if it is a general, standard cover letter that has not been specifically tailored to the recruiter and the job position. I learned in this reading how many times when people are looking for jobs they are in a hurry to see how many resumes and applications they can send out, that they often do not take the time to create a specific resume for each position, and I know that this can kill a person’s chance of getting their resume read. In the instructor blog I learned that a cover letter can not be just a repeat of the resume, no one wants to read the same things over and over, so the cover letter must be different content. I also learned that in some entry level positions that the cover letter of all applicants is not read initially, instead that the employer may only read the cover letters from the final candidates to help see differences between the applicants. I also learned the importance of researching the company and letting that show in the cover letter.
Cover Letters
Submitted by ck86 on Mon, 02/09/2009 - 22:15
Strategies
I am pretty sure that the Kairos reading was mainly about strategies that you should not use including the “Me Approach”. Yours is like the fifth post I have seen saying that the Kairos reading is presenting valid strategies for writing your cover letter. Maybe I am the one that interpreted it wrong. The “Me Approach” seems like the last thing you would want to do. All of these reading over the past few weeks have been saying that you have to make yourself seem important to the company. The “Me Approach” seems like the exact opposite to me.
Dito
That’s actually exactly what I was going to post bpo. Before reading your comment I actually had to go back and re-read the article to be sure that I didn’t read it wrong. Those were all methods that the article said was not acceptable. I also have seen quite a few posts regarding this; maybe we are both reading it wrong. I would assume if anything you would want to take a You-Approach, letting them know how you work can benefit them, not how the job will benefit you. Employers really don’t want to hear about how they can make your life better.
Bad Examples
Do revisit the "Kairos and the Cover Letter" reading to discover that several of the examples were explicitly offered as bad examples.
Also, make sure you tag your Reading Responses. They don't count if they aren't tagged.