Page 257 - Complete Idiot's Guide to The Perfect Resume

20 0028633946 CH16 12/21/99 11:43 AM Page 239

Chapter 16 ➤ You’ve Got Style

2. Use concrete terminology in your letter. Refer to specifics
you’ve learned from your research or can present from your
own experience. Whenever appropriate, use exact numbers,
names, and places instead of generalities. For example, “I can
envision a 10 percent growth in sales in each of your 25
branches” is much better than “I can envision sales growth
in your various offices.” Job-Hunt Hint
3. Speak specifically to the employer’s goals, challenges, mis-
Research is key to writing a good
sion statement, or anything that’s relevant to your work for letter. The more you know about
the company. For example, “I’d like to be a part of opening an employer’s goals, problems,
your four new plants in Illinois.” and culture, the better you can
4. Weave the employer’s name into the text of your letter so it’s address his concerns in your
letter.
clear this letter is truly for her. For instance, “Ms. Reinhardt,
we met at the last U.S. Shipping Convention in Miami.”
5. If your letter has a humorous tone throughout, break that
tone from time to time with a comment such as “Seriously,
I know I can …” or “Joking aside, there are several issues ….”
6. Use an assertive (but not aggressive) tone in your closing
paragraph that lets the employer know you’re sincere about
wanting the job. For example, “I’ll contact you next week
to follow up on this proposal.”
Terms of Employment
7. Say thank you in a simple and honest way toward the end
Aggressive means combative,
of your letter. Let your potential employer know that you
which is not a quality to exhibit
appreciate her attention. For ideas for an appropriate thanks,
to an employer in your letter.
refer to Chapter 17, “The Cover Letter Connection,” and
Assertive means boldly positive,
Chapter 18, “Thanks Very Much,” depending on what type
which is a good quality to de-
of letter you’re writing. monstrate in your letter.
Your Most Persuasive Voice

To make your writing really come alive, use an active voice
instead of a passive voice. The easiest way to do that is to use
action verbs instead of passive verbs whenever possible.
A letter loaded with action verbs will imply that you’re a go-getter,
someone who produces results. On the other hand, a letter filled
with passive verbs tells the reader that you’re the one who watches Terms of Employment
things happen and occasionally they affect you. Which message
An action verb is one that says
do you think is a more persuasive one to send a prospective
that someone did something. For
employer? You got it—the first one!
example, “I earned a raise.” A
Following are some examples of active and passive sentences: passive verb tells what hap-
pened to someone or something.
Passive: I was assigned the task of shipping out the inven- For example, “I received a raise,”
tory quickly in order to compensate for a missed production or “A raise was given to me.”)
deadline.

Active: I shipped the inventory in record time and thereby
compensated for a missed production deadline.

239