• Learn to think of your cover letter and resume as your "professional marketing material" that must be customized for each use!
• Create and maintain a resume database.
• Summarize your background and experience in "stories" that describe accomplishments and achievements.
• Use your resume database to match your resume, cover letter, and marketing letter to each organization’s unique needs and requirements.

Develop your resume database

• Write statements of your achievements and accomplishments that you can use to prepare customized resumes and cover letters.
• Review tips and tactics for preparing a resume database.

Customize your resumes and cover letters

• Review resume formats and discuss how each format helps you accomplish a different purpose.
• Review types of cover letters and discuss how each format helps you achieve a different goal.

Practice customizing a cover letter and resume. Using one or two job announcement from your job search as case studies,  prepare a customized cover letter and resume for each job opening.  These job announcments will come from classified ads from your local newspaper, an electronic job board, or the classifieds in a professional publication.