The 7 Best Things to Leave Out (FREE) This free topic is designed to help you avoid blunders. There is so much to writing a great cover letter and this guide will show you exactly how to do it. Your cover letter can make or break your resume from ever being read, make sure you sign up for this guide today! The 7 Best Things to Leave Out (FREE) Do you remember Mark Twain’s famous apology for writing such a long letter to a friend? I’m sorry, he said, I didn’t have time to make it shorter. Keeping a cover letter short and to the point takes more time that writing a longer letter, full of extraneous, distracting information. But that extra time could be rewarded with the best job of your life! Take the time to make sure your "killer" cover letter does NOT include any of the following: Gimmicks Standing out from the competition is important. But clever gimmicks will only work against you. Save the singing telegrams and wacky home videos for your best friend’s birthday. You want to work for the employer that takes your qualifications seriously – not the one who hires you because of silly balloons. "Funny" Stories The same thing applies to the funny stories that make you so popular around the water cooler. Even if they’re great for warming-up a crowd, it’s better to leave them out of your cover letter. Emphasizing your qualifications is far more impressive in this context. Save the jokes for later. Rambling Sentences You have about 250 words to grab your reader’s attention and make them want to take a close look at the resume you’ve attached. This is no time to ramble on about your life or anything that it not absolutely essential to your goal for this letter. It may be interesting that you won the Olympic gold medal in Gymnastics, but if it’s not relevant to your job application, leave it out! (Though if you have won a gold medal, you might want to mention it in passing in the interview ) Personal Dreams While rambling is annoying to a reader, there are some irrelevant pieces of information that can actively make an employer determined not to hire you. Mentioning the fact that this job would only be a temporary solution for you is one of them. “I’m just doing this until a better job comes along” is not the most persuasive selling tool. While it’s only fair to let an employer know that you’re pregnant or moving to Jamaica in the spring, there’s no need to share your dreams of advancement at this point. Heart-felt Confessions This is no time to confess your shortcomings. Sometimes the very act of writing a self-promoting letter brings out latent insecurities. Instead of saying “I supervised 12 employees” and leaving it at that, you end up saying, “I supervised 12 employees but they really knew what they were doing, so it didn’t take much effort on my part ” Although humility is a virtue, resist the impulse to minimize your work when you’re writing a cover letter. Come from a position of strength and it will not only allow your talents to be seen – it will bring out the best in you. Egregious Lies Do not misrepresent yourself at any stage of the interview process. There is a widespread rumor that everyone lies on their resume. It’s not the case. Resumes and their cover letters should be slanted to highlight the skills and experience that are most relevant to the job you want. But lying and exaggerations are a mistake. Regardless of the fact that your employer could fire you over them, they will make you feel like a fake – and nothing is worth that! Private Information Unless it directly pertains to the job, it is illegal for prospective employers to ask for personal information such as your age, weight, height, marital status, dependents, race or religion. If you are asked for any of this information in an interview, it’s perfectly acceptable to politely decline. However you feel about revealing this information, it’s a good idea to leave it out of your cover letter. . The 7 Best Things to Leave Out (FREE) This free topic is designed to help you avoid blunders. There is so much to writing a great. applies to the funny stories that make you so popular around the water cooler. Even if they’re great for warming-up a crowd, it’s better to leave them out