Bit of a laugh for you all this week. We’ve all received a whole range and host of different Cover Letters and CVs in our times in recruitment, right? From the overly wordy, to the sultry-posing photographed, to the appallingly grammared and of course, our universal favourite, the cover letters addressed to someone else entirely for a totally different job in an industry of which you have no knowledge.
But this week’s Whiteboard is inspired by a tweet from the Wellington recruiter @blondeupdates who last week said:
” @JonathanRiceNZ unrelated but interesting info for you. Got cover letter today quoting Dave Dobbyn. Yes, it was ‘Loyal’ *sigh*”
People who put famous quotes on their CVs and cover letters, or actually even non-famous, obscure and pointless quotes, are people who cannot adequately articulate what they are about and what they can offer themselves. Quotes do not distinguish you as someone of superior intellect, someone well read, someone of subtle wit and humour. They portray you as someone with nothing interesting to say and without an original thought in your head.
Probably not the message you were trying to get across in your “edgy and clever” cover letter or CV right?
Luckily we at Rice Consulting don’t encounter huge numbers of cover letters like this, as most are from recruiters or HR pros who (you’d hope) would know better.
Oh, and while we’re on the subject, the same thinking applies to Twitter in my opinion. I may well upset some of my own Twitter followers here but if you’re using it as a means to share insipidly uninspiring quotes about life, money or leadership from barely recognizable names then it’s even more pointless than using Twitter as a job board. I don’t want to hear it. *Unfollow*.
Anyway, that’s yer lot for today. I’d like to hear your thoughts, and of course contributions of quotes recently viewed on cover letters and CVs received. I’ve got a busy day ahead then off to watch King Cannons at the King’s Arms tonight in Auckland. Keep an eye out for lyrical quotes on my Twitter feed like:
“Take the rock – Find the diamonds and the gold.
Blow it up – Find a reason for a war
Cash it up – Take a little more money”
All mighty fine sentiments for us in the recruitment industry, I’m sure you’ll agree.
It’s very easy to slag something
I think it depends on the quote and the context. Letter could have said “……this leads me to my most honorable trait, yep that Dave Dobbyn Quote; I am “Loyal”……..”.
Which means he is talking to you like a person. Not a robot-metadata-search-machine. Fatal mistake on the candidate I must admit – as I read his personality as cheesy. But some quotes I have read HAVE made me think more about someone.
In fact I have started to surround myself with invigorating manifesto’s that have inspired me.
I once read through an entire (45page!) proposal purely because it started;
“In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity”
– Albert Einstein
To make a negative into a positive. What DO you think should be in an applicants CV/Coverletter?
Previously you have said coverletters are useless, and the CV is being replaced by LinkedIn.
But what personally attracts you to one candidate over another without ever having met them or talked to them?
Hey Stewart, thanks for your comment. I think you might have misread my previous stances on cover letters and CVs. The post entitled “The CV is dead…” actually went on to say I didn’t believe it was, or should be. But in answer to your question, I think an applicant’s cover letter should be short, succinct and obviously tailored to that one specific job (as opposed to a generic one sent out with every application ragrdless of the job). Ways of making this clear are mentioning requirements in the job ad and pointing to specific skills or experience that reflect your ability to do that job.
Your final question raises a whole new debate. For me, the very first thing I look at is the work experience section. Education comes second and everything else on the CV trails in their wake.
“Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone elses opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation. ” Oscar Wilde
With you 100% on this one Jon. Cannot stand either quotes on resumes or people who tweet Dead White Male quotes. Really, you’ve got nothing else worth saying?
How do recruiters feel about quotes from managers on resumes or cover letters? Example – ‘Jane’s management style motivates and challenges those she works with to do nothing but their best work.’ Do they add to the value of the resume or do you ‘switch off’ when you encounter them?
I can only respond to this with my personal favourite cover letter quote from a graduate looking for their first job. “I am pure like an A4 white paper.” Rather beautiful if not grammatically perfect.
Hey Stewart, thanks for your comment. I think you might have misread my previous stances on cover letters and CVs. The post entitled “The CV is dead…” actually went on to say I didn’t believe it was, or should be. But in answer to your question, I think an applicant’s cover letter should be short, succinct and obviously tailored to that one specific job (as opposed to a generic one sent out with every application ragrdless of the job). Ways of making this clear are mentioning requirements in the job ad and pointing to specific skills or experience that reflect your ability to do that job.
Your final question raises a whole new debate. For me, the very first thing I look at is the work experience section. Education comes second and everything else on the CV trails in their wake.
Is experience chicken or egg? 😉
I am very cautious judging on experience now days, I worked with an electrician with 35 years ‘experience’ in the industry in NZ……..took him about 4 hours to ‘almost’ electrocute me.
To keep this on key and have a bit of fun
“Excellence is not a skill. It is an attitude.”
Ralph Marston
I would not recommend this one in the a CV hahaha but it is a good one.
Murphy’s Law – had never received a cover letter with a quotation before, read this blog post a few days ago and next cover letter included this gem “My favourite quotation from Walt Disney: “Do what you do so well that they will want to see it again and bring their friends.”
Would you believe, another quote – this time Latin with translation – “Saepe Exertus,
Semper Fidelis, Frater Infinita: Often Tested, Always Faithful, Brothers Forever “. Cover letter was also entirely in lower case but that’s a whole different story!
Thanks for your comments Nicole, now you know what I’m on about!
My, what a smug bunch you are.