Winning Letters That Overcome Barriers to Employment: 12 Quick and Easy Steps to Land Job Interviews

Description

ISBN: 978-1-57023-254-1

By Daniel Porot and Frances Bolles Haynes

#4335   Do writing errors sabotage your job search? Most job seekers pay little attention to the letters they need to write at different stages of their job search. Yet, employers often report that letters are more important to screening candidates for job interviews and offers than resumes or applications.

Indeed, letters frequently provide employers with more trusted information than these other written documents – an important window into candidates’ personality, style, organizational skills, and competence.

Letters provide you with an opportunity to advertise yourself to prospective employers who may know little or nothing about your qualifications. Expertly crafted and marketed, your letters can make a significant difference in being accepted or rejected for the critical job interview.

Winning Letters That Overcome Barriers to Employment takes you step by step through the whole letter-writing process, from placing the address at the top to the citation of enclosures at the bottom, from the selection of paper and ink to choosing the right envelope.

Focusing on both the advertised and unadvertised job markets, this unique book shows how to craft well targeted letters in response to classified ads as well as for networking for information, advice, and referrals. You’ll learn:

• What to do and not to do at each point in the letter.
• How to research the industry, company, job content, and person you are contacting.
• How to handle sensitive issues about yourself that can raise red flags in the eyes of employers.
• About different styles of cover letters and when to use each.
• Methods for crafting powerful achievement statements for various occupational fields.

Through its extensive appendices, the book also shows you how to organize and write effective achievement paragraphs that highlight your accomplishments; provides forms and a list of action verbs; presents 21 examples of analyzed letters; and offers a 16-question quiz, with answers, about writing and sending an unsolicited letter.

Don’t write another job search letter without first consulting this book on the do’s and don’ts of properly written communications. Like a trusted career coach, this book will guide you to your ultimate goal – a great job you’ll love!

186 pages. 7 x 10. Softcover. May 2006. $17.95. SPECIAL: 10 copies for $159.95; 50 copies for $629.00; 100 copies for $1,099.00.

PRAISE FROM REVIEWERS

“…Takes the reader step-by-step through the entire letter-writing process….Places special emphasis on how to address ‘sensitive issues’ that might raise red flags….A very good addition to any resource room at a very affordable price.”
—NAWDP Advantage

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Section 1: Successful Job Hunting

1. The Real Barriers to Employment
2. Letters and the Job Hunting Process
3. The Open Market
4. Using the Want Ads
5. The Hidden Job Market
6. Increasing the Odds
7. Sensitive Issues
8. The Purpose of a Cover Letter

Section 2: Building Your Letter Step By Step

9. Step 1: The Sender’s Information
10. Step 2: The Date
11. Step 3: The Recipient
12. Step 4: The Reference Line
13. Step 5: The Salutation
14. Step 6: The Opening Paragraph
15. Step 7: The Body of the Letter
16. Step 8: A “Call to Action” Paragraph
17. Step 9: The Complimentary Closing
18. Step 10: The Signature
19. Step 11: Enclosures
20. Step 12: The Postscript

Section 3: The Nuts and Bolts

21. Design and Layout
22. Paper and Envelope
23. Delivery
24. Writing Style

Appendix A: Writing Your Achievement Paragraphs
Appendix B: Letter Examples
Appendix C: Unsolicited Letter Quiz Answers and Rationale

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