The cover letter is the foundation of the job application, but most of the times, they’re discarded unread by the hiring managers, while their focus is on the core part: the resume. So, ditch the cover letter altogether and divert that energy in customizing your resume or making a portfolio of your actual work.
Here are some of the reasons why you should ditch the cover letter while applying for a job:
It will remain unread
In today’s total media saturation, no hiring manager or recruiter has time to go through every candidate documents. From a number of job application emails, the chances of even opening your mail are low, and the probability of reading your CV is even lower, so where does the extraneous cover letter stand?
It’s superfluous
Email already includes the Dear Marjorie / Yours Sincerely format, which you want to include in your beautifully written cover letter, doesn’t it? So will you keep on repeating the things in the cover letter too? It’s redundant. The email can include anything and everything that you want to include in the cover letter, which you are going to attach to the email. The purpose of writing cover letter died when we attached it with emails – like 15 years back.
It’s poor publicity
Who writes letters anymore? It’s just the utility companies, her majesty’s government, lawyers, and probably your Grandma on your birthday. Sending a cover letter in the job application will portray you as old-fashioned, quaint, and maybe unemployable.
It’s not that cover letters are inherently bad, but it’s just a waste of time. It is like polishing the leather on the steering wheel when all you need to do is put petrol in the tank. It’s better to ditch the cover letter and do something else with your time like making connections, market analysis, or calling people.
There may come up some occasions when a cover letter is required and that is when the organization clearly mentions that you need to submit one. If you find a line “Send your Curriculum Vitae along with a Cover Letter to apply for this job,” by all means, go ahead, start crafting your cover letter explaining your interest in the provided opportunity. Most importantly, bear in mind that a cover letter is useless if it fails to engage the reader. You should always be brief, eloquent and to the point while drafting a cover letter.
Any supporters of cover letter writing out there? Let’s hear from you!