Comments on: Strike the floor jogging

Question: Strike the floor jogging

Franklin76 — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 19:22:33 -0800

I loathe the phrase "[I will] hit the ground running." What can I say in a cover letter that conveys that point without any of the cliche?

By: box

box — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 19:26:38 -0800

Ready from day one.

By: Netzapper

Netzapper — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 19:27:14 -0800

"I'll be ready to perform as soon as I arrive."

By: mudpuppie

mudpuppie — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 19:31:31 -0800

"I am confident that I will be able to exceed your expectations from my very first day on the job."

By: txvtchick

txvtchick — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 19:39:56 -0800

"I have the experience and knowledge to make an immediate positive impact in this position" and then describe how your experience fits the company and/or job requirements.

By: parmanparman

parmanparman — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 19:40:16 -0800

I relish X

By: turgid dahlia

turgid dahlia — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 19:47:03 -0800

"I possess the skills and experience necessary to commence active and valuable contribution to the team from the moment of my engagement."

By: PercussivePaul

PercussivePaul — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 20:17:36 -0800

"I will excel immediately. " Omit needless words!

By: nalyd

nalyd — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 20:30:38 -0800

I'll second txvtchick. After reading the first few resumes, the cliches all start to blend together. The resumes where someone tells me why their skills might be useful are more likely to stand out.

By: cyphill

cyphill — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 20:38:01 -0800

"I will be proactive in the area of immediate action-orientated actions"

By: sfkiddo

sfkiddo — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 20:53:26 -0800

I agree with txctchick on the sentiment but skip the entire phrase of "I have the experience and knowledge to make an immediate positive impact in this position" and instead say something like "I can immediately help you to/with (bullet points of X, Y, Z)" and back it up with evidence on how you are qualified to do that. The key is to make your cover letter/resume skimmable and geared towards what you can concretely do. Most letters/resumes I've seen are written in a bizarre "bizspeak" dialect that makes it difficult and frustrating to decipher what the person is trying to say.

By: wsg

wsg — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 22:46:49 -0800

box nailed it in the first comment:

"I will be ready from day one."

By: salvia

salvia — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 22:51:34 -0800

I don't think we can tell you what to replace a cliche with without knowing what you are really trying to say. You will work hard, even on your first day? You already have the knowledge needed to do the job? Tell us what you're trying to say and we can help word it.

By: saysthis

saysthis — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 03:45:56 -0800

Colloquially:
Kick down the door, guns blazing
Arrive with my cock out ready to rock out (if I saw that on your cover letter, I'd hire you)
Arrive with forward batteries deployed and at the ready
Show up wearing matching git-r-dun hat & gloves

But this really another vote for skipping the cliches and saying what, specifically, you can do for people, in your cover letter. Hook it up with some info about what position you're applying for and what you do, and we can finetune from there.

By: theora55

theora55 — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 08:51:48 -0800

Arrive with my cock out ready to rock out t (if I saw that on your cover letter, I'd decline to even interview you)

I would say something like, Because I understand the specific needs of the reverse widget production industry, and have direct experience in widget production line processes, I will be able to perform as soon as I arrive.

By: Zambrano

Zambrano — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 12:02:23 -0800

"I'll be ready to perform as soon as I arrive." - sounds like you just overheard Patti Lupone talking on her cellphone.

"I will be proactive in the area of immediate action-orientated actions"

"I possess the skills and experience necessary to commence active and valuable contribution to the team from the moment of my engagement."

- I'm sure these are sarcastic responses.

"I will excel immediately. " - I see a deer-in-the-headlights look on the person who writes this.

sfkiddo has the correct answer. It should be highlighted asap- before people take the other answers seriously.

By: tangerine

tangerine — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 13:46:55 -0800

For once, amazingly, I agree with Zambrano. sfkiddo's got it.

By: Muirwylde

Muirwylde — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 19:26:57 -0800

I believe my skill set and experience will mesh seamlessly, efficiently and productively with your organization.