By Kevin Donlin, Guaranteed Resumes

Since your cover letter is written by you and for the job that you want, it
may seem natural spend a lot of time talking about you and your
skills/qualifications.

Unfortunately, this often produces myopic (or "I-opic") cover letters...and
poor results.

Remember that all employers listen to the same radio station: WII-FM. That
stands for "What’s In It For Me?"

To stand out from a stack of cover letters, yours must focus less on you and
more on the results you can deliver.

If you do nothing else, try replacing the words "I", "me" and "my" with
"you" wherever possible. This will put the emphasis back where it belongs --
on the employer and his/her problems.

Here’s a before-and-after example of an actual cover letter. Note the number
of times "I" and "my" appear:

"I am enclosing my resume for your review because I am very interested in
obtaining a full-time position as an Investment Banking Analyst at Ace
Financial.

"I am well qualified for this position. In addition to the strong
quantitative and analytical skills I have developed as an undergraduate
economics major and in my work experience, I have a proven ability to stay
focused for long hours under pressure."

There are five instances of "I" and two of "my."

Now, here’s that same cover letter, revised to focus more on the reader:

"I am applying for the position of Investment Banking Analyst where my
combination of economics training and high-tech experience will add value to
your operations. Please consider the following:

"You will gain from my strong financial background, which includes a recent
bachelor’s degree in economics, coupled with experience researching and
trading securities as a successful investor (resulting in returns of 200%)."

Just one "I" and two "mys" -- a 57% reduction. With "you" and "your" thrown
in twice for good measure.

Replacing "I" with "you" is an old advertising trick that’s worked for
decades. (Read any good advertisement and you’ll always find "you" and
"your" sprinkled liberally throughout.) And what’s your cover letter?
Essentially, it’s an advertisement for your résumé...which is an
advertisement for you.

So follow the rules of the world’s most successful advertising copywriters.
Focus on "you," the reader, to dramatically improve the effectiveness of
your cover letters.

Best of luck to you!

-- Kevin Donlin is the author of "Resume and Cover Letter Secrets Revealed," a do-it-yourself manual that will help you find a job in 30 days ... or your money back. For more information, please visit
http://www.CollegeRecruiter.com/guaranteed-resumes.php