By Max Messmer in the Post Gazette Business News
When crafting your cover letter, you always want to paint yourself in a positive light by touting your strongest attributes. But before you place one finger on the keyboard, think about the message you want to send to a prospective employer. It should be focused, persuasive and, above all, enthusiastic.

Ask yourself the following questions to get you started: In which areas do I excel? What are my most noteworthy career accomplishments? How did I improve a job that I held in the past? The following candidate hurt his cause by emphasizing the negative:

COVER LETTER: “When I go to college, I will learn about and study a field I want to be a part of. This might help me quit my bad habit of slacking.”

A “relaxation studies” major.

Read on!