There are more
horror stories out there than one is permitted to cover. You may enjoy this
one, as it illustrates the real-time reality many job seekers will confront.
Keep it in mind when you are planning to conduct an effective job search.
The wife and I
are sitting at the kitchen table having breakfast, while watching Morning Joe broadcast. Her
corporate-issued Blackberry buzzes. Job seekers have been emailing her on recently
posted openings.
I observe her
scanning the emails. She selects the ones that appear relevant, and opens those
first. The subject line indicates the email’s topic. In one-two-three order,
she scan-reads the emails, and then flags those she plans to review once she
gets to the office.
Two quick
asides: I do not personally own a Blackberry, and my wife’s unit is issued to
her through Advance Publications. She
oversees 11 of their most profitable publications, and she is directly linked to
the Information Age.
I glanced over
her shoulder and asked, “How many words can you read on that small screen?”
She responds
with, “I don’t know, but I don’t have time to count them. Here, you do it. I
have to get ready.”
With that, she
handed me the Blackberry. I proceeded to count the words viable on the screen.
As suspected, the average word-count was 45, which are exactly three sound
bites. Within nanoseconds, several conclusions were drawn.
First, my wife is not the only executive using
current technology to process information and making quick employment
decisions.
Second, she is not the only executive
functioning on a tight time schedule.
Third, as a busy executive, she does not have
time to read the long-winded cover letters. Those that exceeded available
screen text were skipped. Worse, those that were not flagged for follow-up
meant their attached documents (in this case, résumé) had a reduced chance of
being read.
One of the
emails she decided not to open read as follows:
Hi
Linda,
I
recently seen an opportunity with your organization that would allow me to
utilize my experience and education. I have attached to this email my cover
letter, clips and also my resume. Thank you for you consideration I look
forward to speaking with you soon.
Be
well,
(Name omitted)
For a reporter’s
position, the typos were a turnoff. The fact that the cover letter was all about him did nothing to motivate
her interest. To add insult to injury, he was including an additional cover letter.
She felt she had read enough to reach a decision.
Let us assume
for the moment, you are an active job seeker. What might you reasonably
conclude from the foregoing information? If you are telling yourself that I need to say a lot in a few words, you are among those who are ready to proceed.
In drafting an
email cover letter, stay on message. My formula is to a) grab the reader’s attention, b) state
what you can do, or pose a unique question,
and c) request an interview. Create a
cover letter with 45 words or less and the odds are with you. Your interviewing
odds plummet like a falling brick as you exceed that amount.
Here is an
illustration on how the “Be well” job candidate would have had his email
attachments opened:
Dear Ms. Kinsey:
Your wonderful opportunity for a
reporter sounds exciting and challenging. If you desire to schedule an interview,
you will not be disappointed. Feel free to contact me at your convenience at
555.1212.
Thank you,
Food for thought: The transition from “it is all about me, my and I” to a you and your tenor email creates a difference
awareness. Naturally, eliminating typos will not hurt either.