“My name is C.J. Cregg.”
Put simply, this is a rookie mistake.
First, it’s redundant: Your name is the first thing every email program shows.
Second, it’s a wasted opportunity: It forfeits your one chance to make a great first impression. Is your name really the most captivating way to sell yourself or to elicit attention?
It’s the Online Equivalent of What We Do Offline
What’s that you say? “Isn’t stating your name the way people introduce themselves on the phone and in person?”
It is. Yet a letter is different from a call or a handshake. When writing, you have less time to convey your message; people will indulge you in person longer than they will on paper. Thus, every word you write must resonate — none more so than your first few.
It’s Common Even Online
It is. Yet a letter is different from a call or a handshake. When writing, you have less time to convey your message; people will indulge you in person longer than they will on paper. Thus, every word you write must resonate — none more so than your first few.
It’s Common Even Online
Ok, ok, you say. “Those are all fair points. But the fact remains that ‘My name is’ is pretty standard fare even in writing.”
Well, you just answered your own objection. The last thing you want is to come across as standard — i.e., forgettable. You want to stand out, to be memorable. As venture capitalist Guy Kawasaki says, “Unless you’re saying something different from the competition, you’re basically saying nothing.”
It’s Risky
“Really? Isn’t being unconventional a big risk?”
Yes. And to be sure, you can’t go wrong per se with a traditional letter.
The problem is that it’s much harder to distinguish yourself this way; the stiltedness saps your writing of any window into your personality.
Think about it this way: If you write with brio, then you have two credentials to show off: Your writing and your résumé. But if your writing is unremarkable, then you have only your résumé.
