How to Highlight Your Experience

From: Karen Silins

Clearly, fitting a lifetime of experience onto one page is easier for some people than for others. For a graduate straight out of college, it'll probably be a cinch. In fact, someone with little professional experience might not be able to fill an entire page. But a mid-career executive will have to think carefully about what to eliminate in order to be concise.

If you have a ton of information that you want to cram into your cover letter, there are some tricks of the trade you can employ. Don't assume that just because you're writing a letter, you have to write something that looks and sounds completely traditional.

In fact, one of the best ways to include lots of information in a small amount of space is to choose from lists. I've said earlier that a cover letter is different from a résumé because it's written in full sentences, but you can easily mix complete sentences and lists or bullet-points to great effect.

For example, you might want to start with a traditional opening paragraph. Then, in your second paragraph, draw up two columns – one listing the company's needs, the other listing the experience you have that meets those needs.

Because you're trying to capture your most important experiences in bullet-points, you need to be brief and to-the-point. To come up with items for the "Your Needs" column, consult the job description, and think about what the company is seeking. Often, employers will list a number of qualifications a candidate must possess in order to be considered. This can be a great resource for your cover letter.

For the "My Experience" column, hit the main highlights of your professional life. For each significant, relevant position you've held, include the number of years you held it, your job title/description, the company's name, and any noteworthy accomplishments.

It might seem too short, but the employer will get the message and will appreciate your brevity. He'll also understand that you've got far more experience than you can detail in your letter. If he's interested in your application – and why wouldn't he be? – he'll just highlight the most interesting areas and discuss them with you further when you come in for an interview. And, isn't getting the interview the whole point?

There's another effective way to write this second section of a cover letter. By providing a short list of bulleted points that explain exactly what you’ll bring to the company, you can squeeze more detail into a small space.

A bulleted list like this follows the same principle as a short paragraph: it tells the employer exactly what he's going to get for his money. It shows that you understand the needs of the company and that you're the best person to meet them.

Ultimately, either of these methods will show that you're results-oriented, already committed to the success of the company and ready to apply your skills to sustain that success.

No matter how you look at it, that's a winning combination.

Karen Silins has been a professional resume and cover letter writer for 16 years and is the acting president and executive board member of the Association of Online Resume & Career Professionals

For more information about writing a cover letter that will grab the employer’s attention, please visit: http://www.breakthrough-cover-letters.com/