Crafting Winning Cover Lettersblogs.ubc.ca/mymbacareer2019/files/2017/10/Cover-Letter...Crafting Winning Cover Letters October 25, 2017 Today we’ll have you teach most of this workshop
Today we’ll have you teach most of this workshop with what you’ve already learned.
Brainstorm
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Iris From MRE until now, you’ve learned many techniques from Ivan’s workshop which center around storytelling and persuasion. Cover letter writing is essentially a written form of telling your story and persuading. What are the techniques you think could be applied when you are writing a cover letter?
Group exercise
Photo by Alexis Brown on Unsplash
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Iris Next, break into groups of 4-5. Imagine: You are a hiring manager and you really need…you have 62 applications and this is one of them. Review in pairs for a few minutes. Keeping your needs as a hiring manager in mind, and what you think makes a good cover letter, does this cover letter persuade you to interview this person? What makes it good and/or bad? You will have a few minutes to discuss as a group.
Mary How many of you feel like this? Bad cover letters are painful to read
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Mary Debrief/Share
Begin with the posting
What the employer wants
Focus of letter content
What you bring
Research
Analysis
Customization
Self-assessment
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Mary How much do you match?
Key components of a great letter
Opening
Middle
Closing
• Grab the attention of the reader
• Discuss key differentiators/unique value propositions• Demonstrate contributions/value add• Demonstrate research
• Reinforce interest and fit
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Mary
Other common mistakes–Errors
–Too long or too short
–Inconsistent formatting or branding
–Repeating resume
–Hard to read
–Not customized
Other resources:
–Additional resources: myMBA Career > Toolkits (Note Best Practice document)
–Workshop handout
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Iris
Questions
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Mary
Appendix
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Mary
1. WHY I am someone that believes…2. HOW I do that by…3. WHAT Want to find out more?
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This is your core belief or the core belief of the business. Why you exist/why the business exists “I am someone that believes, we believe that…” This is your/company/product unique selling features or the problem that you solve. hat - This is what you are selling/the call to action I BELIEVE I CAN MAKE ANYONE CAN BE AN AMAZING SPEAKER I DO THAT BY MAKING PEOPLE DMEO EVERYTHING WE COVER DO YOU FEEL LIKE SEEING THAT?
Personal Brand
STORY= EXAMPLE OF BRAND IN ACTION
LOGLINE ADDS PERSONALITY
SUPERPOWER = BRAND AT WORK
GOLDEN CIRCLE IN COVER LETTER
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The elevator pitch is the final product of your personal & professional brand
1. Pick one aspect of your brand (Superpower, Why, etc)2. When did you use that aspect?3. What were the results?4. What did you learn?
1. Start in the middle2. Vivid detail VS lots of details3. Go Full Circle4. Perfect World Criteria5. Imagine
