Writing and communicating has become the foundation of our professional world. In order to succeed, especially in business, we need solid writing and communication skills. It’s not uncommon to see classifieds requiring strong writing and communication skills.
It is clear to see why strong writing skills are essential to writers, teachers and journalists, but what about executives, restaurant workers, public servants and engineers? Believe it or not, situations do arise in every field where at some point an employee needs to be able to convey a message through writing.
A waste management employee may not need to write if he is on the truck, but when he applies for a promotion he will need to clearly explain why he is deserving of the position. Likewise, an employer may not take the request for a raise or interview seriously when the email inquiry is full of misspelled words and grammatical errors.
Many would argue the first impression given to employers is the way a person dresses or presents themselves in a job interview. In fact the first impression is the resume and cover letter. Those two pieces of paper will either make or break the chances of getting an interview.
Since these two pieces of paper are so critical, it is wise to take the time to make them perfect. To bypass the delete button or the shredder and get the interview consider the following.
An employer will completely disregard a cover letter that is riddled with misspelled words and grammatical errors. Who would take you seriously if you’re unwilling to take a few minutes to run a spelling or grammar check? Most word processors are equipped with these basic features.
It’s amazing how many times we can look at something and completely skip over the wrong tense or form of a word. It is important to read, read and reread our own work. Simple mistakes like using the word “their” instead of “there” in a resume could make the difference between getting a phone call or getting passed over.
What are active verbs? Active verbs are the words we use to empower our resume. They include words like designed, detected, lectured or remodeled.
Instead of saying “I put together a company fund–raiser every year,” an active verb sentence would be “I organized and orchestrated our annual company fund–raiser.” Your ultimate goal is to entice a potential employer to read your resume, so keep the sentences interesting by using these types of positive power verbs. Use a variety and do not use the same one more than once. You can find lists of active verbs on the Internet.
The object is to sell yourself. Your resume and cover letter is there to sell you to the employer and get you an interview.
Write a different resume for every job opportunity. Many people only have one general resume. Show your future employer that you want that particular job; write a resume that clearly reflects how your experience matches their requirements and expectations. Always include a cover letter with your resume even if the job request doesn’t ask for one. The purpose of a cover letter is to portray your abilities and support your resume. This is where you show off your talents, successes and how you can help advance the company.
Use some of the same words that were in the job ad. For example, one job ad relates that they need someone who is “detail oriented.” Then a good sentence would be, “I am a detail oriented individual and demonstrated this quality when I inspected diamonds for Pam’s Jeweler.” Show them that you have the skills they are requesting.
Keep your resume to one page if possible. Employers do not have the time to read more than one page. Two pages may be necessary if you have a lot of education including multiple degrees or colleges. No one cares if you worked at McDonalds, Burger King and Wendy’s 10 years ago unless you are applying to be a manager of a fast food restaurant.
There is a plethora of resources available to assist in writing effective, proactive resumes including software , books, classes and style guides. A good way to practice is to let your peers read and critique your writing. You may not like some of their remarks, but they may be able to catch unclear messages that you have overlooked.
Once you’ve demonstrate great writing skills and land the job, keep writing and developing those skills because there will be many more opportunities to utilize your skills through emails, formal letters or business depositions. Strong writing skills will not only get you in the door it will also help you up the ladder.
Writing doesn’t come easy even to the most skilled writers. Just as we study and practice to achieve any other skill, we also need to study and practice to acquire efficient writing and communication skills.
Works Cited
Trollope, Anthony Writing Quotes. Retrieved June 26, 2006, from LitQuotes Web site: http://www.litquotes.com/quote_topic_resp.php?QuoteType=Writing&Amazon=Writing
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