3 Step EASY Cover Letter - Recruiter Reveals BEST Way to Stand Out

- Hey everyone, this is Self Made Millennial, I'm Madeline Mann. In today's video, you will learn the three part framework to a killer cover letter. This is so effective to the point and honestly, shouldn't take you too long to write.

I've got you covered. I also discuss how long a cover letter should be, as well as my special rule that you can use to evaluate each sentence to know if it's a dud or a stud. We have a lot of topics to cover, for this cover letter video, so let's get to it.

Okay, so I'm going to address this right up top. Do people actually read cover letters? The honest answer to that is it's a flip of a coin.

I've found about about half of recruiters and hiring managers like them and feel that they provide important insight. And the other half think that they are a complete waste of time. The tricky thing is, you do not know which is going to read your application.

I personally love 'em. I am disappointed when I don't see one and it is certainly make or break for those people who I am on the fence about. For example, I was looking at someone's resume.

Hers wasn't quite as experienced as others. Almost, but not enough. I was about to pass, but then I saw her cover letter, and she talks about how she is specifically targeting companies in the industry I'm in.

And she talks about why that is, and her side projects, and passions that led her to know that she wants to work at a company like ours. And I thought, "I would be just crazy not to speak "with this person and give them a chance. " And guess what, she ended up getting hired.

So passion and purpose are huge reasons why candidates who maybe don't have the perfect resume, get through. And that's really what you can bring to your cover letter. So how do you write a cover letter?

Here is my three step formula that (clicks tongue) knocks it out of the park. Part one, who you are. Write one sentence describing what kind of professional you are, such as, "I am a business development professional "in the technology industry, with expertise in building "enterprise software partnerships "with Fortune 1000 companies.

" Part two, highlight how you are a fit based on the job description. Pick out the major themes of the job description, of the biggest problems that this job would have to solve, and talk about how you are uniquely qualified to solve those problems. This is also a time to tell a story, or explain why you are a fit despite having an unconventional background.

Remember, this part should not re-state what is already in your resume. Here's an example, "Don't be distracted by my administrative "assistant roles in the past, I have been the "honorary office manager at each company I've been at. "For example, I volunteered to lead the office move "at my current company.

"The leadership was so impressed because they said it was "the most well-orchestrated and streamlined move "they had ever experienced. "This led me to transitioning more and more of my days "to handling the facilities and running the office "like a well-oiled machine. " Or, I had one candidate apply for a role where the job description emphasized that you should be able to stop at nothing to get something done, and to have a no ball drop mentality.

So, she told this story of how they needed a specific pair of shoes for a photo shoot for Kanye West, and they needed them within 20 minutes. So she got in her car, sped to the mall, parked in the bus lane, flashed her emergency blinkers, hopped out. Kind of told this whole tale pretty quickly though, only in a few sentences, and it illustrated that when you give her a goal, she will get it done.

And I thought that was such a great way to show her character, rather than her saying something fuzzy like, "I am motivated and goal-oriented. " Ehh. Part three, why this company?

Include at least one sentence why you are interested in working at the company. For example, "I believe in your mission "to bring healthcare to low income families "and would be thrilled to be at a purpose driven "organization like yours. " And that's it, you know?

No crazy amount of research went into that sentence. Just find something you like about the company and say it. I mean, it's way more than a lot of other people do with their generic cover letters.

So when you tally all of this up, how long is a cover letter supposed to be? Well, this could be as little as three sentences. I got my last job based on a well-executed three sentence cover letter.

But, you could do this whole thing in about seven sentences or fewer. And I have a rule, read each sentence of your cover letter. If the sentence is generic enough that it could be written and true about just about everyone, a large amount of people on the planet, then delete it.

I'll give you two examples of what I mean. Here's one, "I am highly organized and have been successful "working in both individual and group settings. " Mmm.

Or another one is, "I appreciate the time you are taking "to review my qualifications and I am interested "in learning more about your company. " Ah-ah, lose it, delete it. Our lives are all now shorter because we had to read those pointless sentences, great.

The next video for you to watch is how to get your resume through those resume-scanning bots in an applicant tracking system. It teaches you how to use key words to ensure these automated systems do not pass up on your resume. And, yeah folks, it works.

I will link it in the description. Make sure you subscribe to this channel, and hit a like on this video. Thanks so much everyone, wifi high five!