The dreaded cover letter, it instills more fear in job seekers than any other part of the job search experience. But it doesn’t have to be so scary or terrible. I have broken down a few helpful tips to help make the cover letter experience more bearable.
But first I would like to take a moment to stress the importance of a cover letter. Time and time again I have talked to hiring managers who are dumbfounded when they get a resume with no cover letter. Not sending a cover letter does two things: Firstly, it sends the wrong message to the employer. You are basically saying that your time is more valuable than theirs, or that you simply don’t care enough. Secondly, you are missing a valuable opportunity to sell yourself. A cover letter helps an employer get to know you beyond the resume. Cover letters are really a wonderful tool that can help differentiate you from the completion.
So now that I have clearly convinced you to write cover letters, on to the tips!
1.) Formalities
Be sure to write your cover letter in a proper and formal fashion. Always have a formal salutation. Address your letter to the hiring manager (e.g. “Dear Ms. Lastname” or “To Whom It May Concern”). None of this “Hi” nonsense. Make sure to close your letter formally as well (e.g. “Sincerely”). In addition, do not use abbreviations or internet/text lingo—I cannot stress this enough. Seriously. (And that includes emoticons!)
2.) Proofread x12
It is essential to have a flawless resume, but it is even more essential to have a flawless cover letter. If you have spelling and/or grammatical errors in your cover letter, the reviewer might just toss your application without even reviewing your resume. So proofread your work. A good rule is to set it aside once you’re done with it, and then proofread it a few hours or a day later. It is hard to see your own mistakes when you just produced something, so taking a step back will help you clearly see where you might have misspelled something. Again, just slow down and take your time.
3.) Know who you’re addressing
Make sure you address the right company. I have seen cover letters that have had the correct company in some sentences, but then a different company in other sentences. Big no-no! Make sure you know whom you’re addressing, and how they spell their name (e.g. GeekGirlCon, not Geek Girl Con). In addition properly addressing the company you’re applying to, make sure you stress why you want to work that particular company. Hiring managers want to know how you will help their company succeed.
4.) Do Not repeat your resume
You should use your cover letter to tell the employer more about yourself, not to reiterate information that is in your resume. This is an opportunity to show your personality, and interest in their company and the industry. Try to tell an interesting story about why you’re interested in the industry, or why a particular strange job was actually a great way at developing x and y skills.
I hope these tips help you create the perfect cover letter and land your dream job! Happy Hunting!
Our Manager of GeekGirlConnections, Terra Olsen, has some fantastic tips in store for the geek on a mission to network and take advantage of a new career! Take a gander at her advice.
Writing a resume, be it your first or your twentieth, can be a daunting task. I have compiled my favorite tips for resume building in the hopes of make it more manageable.
1.) Style Properly
* Use an easy to read font.
* Use a proper format. Chronological formats are popular (experience first, then your education and skills), but it also works well to use a customized format (where you address the job to which you are applying at the top).
2.) Know your Audience
* When building a resume, it is extremely important to know your audience. For example, if you’re applying to a graphic design firm, then it’s appropriate to build a creative resume that stands out. On the other hand, if you’re applying to an engineering firm, then it’s appropriate to have a straightforward and clean resume.
* Try to put only relevant experience on the resume. There is no need to list every single job you’ve ever had. If you’re new to the working world, list the jobs you’ve had, but be sure to make them as relevant as possible for the position to which you’re applying.
We learned a lot from running our first convention last year. We learned there was incredible demand for a con that celebrated the female geek, geared towards geeky girls and women, and with no “geek cred” required. So much so, that we sold out GeekGirlCon ‘11 on both days. We learned that the famous quote from Field of Dreams is true: “If you build it, they will come.”
That goes for attendees, but the same can be said for our guests as well. We learned that experts in science, technology, comics, and other fields were extremely supportive of our mission. And we are so lucky to have a range of amazing returning and new guests coming to GeekGirlCon ‘12 — guests who enjoyed the excitement and vibe last year or who heard all the buzz and couldn’t wait to attend.
Guests like comic book writers Gail Simone, Jen Van Meter, and Greg Rucka. Or local geeks M.J. McDermott, Purple Reign, Jamala Henderson, and Corrinne Yu. Women with incredible experience, like illustrator and Womanthology creator Renae de Liz, or television writer Jane Espenson, or actress and Her Universe founder Ashley Eckstein.
Finally, we learned that you all wanted more time with these guests and other panelists, more time to learn how they achieved what they did and get tips for jumpstarting your own career.
That is why we are so excited to offer GeekGirlConnections, a room open the entire convention that will provide a place for attendees to network, make connections, and receive career advice.
It has always been the goal of GeekGirlCon to spotlight, support, and celebrate women in fields like comics and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). This year, we are taking that one step further and giving our attendees direct access to professionals who have the answers to your burning career questions.
This includes professionals like women from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory’s Education and Public Outreach team (perhaps they can talk about Curiosity’s little (okay, HUGE) trip to Mars…), professional designers, technologists, editors from Dark Horse Comics, and more.
Here’s a preview of what you can expect to find in the GeekGirlConnections room:
• Career planning support • The opportunity to networking with professionals • Organizations looking for YOU!
No business card? No problem– use the GeekGirlConnections Card below to share your contact info with all the new GeekGirls you meet at the Con. (Click on the image below and download.)
The biggest thing we learned from last year’s convention was that GeekGirlCon should be a place for you to make connections — with old friends and new friends, interesting careers, cool geeky products, or with your favorite writers, producers, creators, and artists.
So be sure to stop by GeekGirlConnections in Room 101. We can’t wait to help you connect to your future!
One of GeekGirlCon’s strongest advocates is none other than Gail Simone, the fantastic comic book writer at DC Comics who has worked on Birds of Prey, Wonder Woman, Batgirl, The Fury of Firestorm, and many other great comics.
We are so fortunate to have her back for GeekGirlCon ‘12, where she’s already scheduled to participate in two panels:
Saturday, August 11, 11:30 a.m. – Gail Simone and the Batgirl of San Diego
Sunday, August 12, 11:30 a.m. – A Fate Worse than Death: The Last “Outsider” in Popular Culture – Disability
However, we knew you couldn’t handle just one panel with Gail, so today, we are happy to announce that Gail will have her own spotlight panel on Sunday, August 12. Check out the details below.
Sunday at 1:30 – 2:20 p.m. (Room 205) SPOTLIGHT ON GAIL SIMONE
This spotlight will start with a freewheeling discussion with critically acclaimed author of comics and animation, Gail Simone, and include a question and answer session at the end. She will be discussing her comics work, from Deadpool to Simpsons to Birds of Prey to Batgirl, as well as her views on females in comics and other social issues. This promises to be a lively hour with this popular and entertaining writer! Moderated by Erica J Heflin
Gail will also be doing a media signing starting at 12:45 p.m. on Saturday (check out our full signing schedule). And just to top off this super sundae of awesomeness with a huge bowl of cherries, Gail will be hanging out in the GeekGirlConnections room from 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. on Sunday. During this hour, Gail will be reviewing portfolios and talking to aspiring writers one-on-one.
Gail has been one of our most vocal advocates from day one. She likely convinced many of you to head to our convention (because when Gail Simone tells us to do something, we listen!). Just today, Gail posted this great blog on her website, previewing the convention and its GeekGirlConnections room.
She also had this to say about GeekGirlCon and the GeekGirlConnections room: “One of the most rewarding things, one of the best reasons for me to go to conventions, is to get to meet aspiring creators, and hopefully help give them a little bit of encouragement and real-world advice on how to attain their goals. It’s inspiring to see someone new and watch them learn to share their art and imagination with the audience.”
We can’t wait to have Gail in town for the weekend and are excited to have two more opportunities for you to interact with her during the convention.