CBS Kate Wendleton Jane Clayson reports.

(CBS) To help you in your career planning, The Early Show invites career counselor Kate Wendleton back for Wednesday's Get A Job series.

She explained how to write effective cover letters, discussed the does and don'ts of job interviews and resume writing, as well as shared winning strategies to get a higher salary. Wendleton is the founder of The Five O'Clock Club and author of the three-part career and job-hunting series: Targeting The Job You Want, Job Search Secrets, Building a Great Resume.

Once you know what you are good at and most enjoy doing, you can identify the companies to target. It may seem a lot of work at first, but if you write down your goals for the day, you will find how a little bit of organization can make all the difference. Use The Early Show's Daily Journal to track your progress.

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Wendleton offers the following steps and strategies to achieve your goals.

• Make a List
• Create a Pitch
• Develop a Cover Letter
• Write a Resume
• Prepare for the Interview
• Follow Up
• Negotiate Your Salary

Make a List

The first thing you should do is make a list the companies where you would like to work. Then find the name of the hiring manager, not the Human Resources Manager.

Create a Two-Minute Pitch

A key component of the cover letter is the pitch, which is also a key in a face-to-face meeting. It should tell employers who you are, what you have done and what you will do for them.

Develop a Cover Letter

Wendleton suggests including four important paragraphs, and to customize your cover letter according to the company you are applying to. Her suggestions:

• Paragraph 1: Introduction — Here you need to catch the potential employer's eye. Show that you've been doing your homework about the organization (i.e. if you are applying for a sales job, you might say: "I notice your sales have been declining. I increased sales volume in my previous two positions and I believe I can help you with that as well.")

• Paragraph 2: Summary about Yourself — You can use your twenty-second pitch here and tailor it according to the job you're applying for.

• Paragraph 3: Bulleted Accomplishments — These may come from the Seven Stories Exercise if your top accomplishments are work-related.

• Paragraph 4: Close — Say something along the lines of "I think a meeting would be beneficial to both of us. I'll call you in a few days."

Download the following PDF file to see a sample Cover Letter.

Write a Resume

You may have been taught to write a resume one way, but chances are it's the wrong way.

While every resume is different, because every individual has very different accomplishments, at the Five O'Clock Club, members are encouraged to make include at the top of the resume a summary of who you are, and what you want to do. Write in bullet form experience and accomplishments. Most people simply begin with the latest job and go backwards. You do need to include this, but first provide a summary section. The rest is background IF someone chooses to dig deeper.

The average resume is looked at for only 10 seconds, says Wendleton. It is up to you to make sure that when someone looks at the top of your resume they can answer the two questions, Who Are You? and What Is Your Level?

Read Wedleton's Building a Great Resume and learn what mistakes to avoid.

Prepare for the Interview

• Dress the part — Look professional. In today's casual work place environment, people often forget they need to dress up for the interview. You need to present your best package to a prospective employer.

• Know your lines — Make sure you know your 20-second pitch. Use it when the interviewer asks you to tell you about yourself and what you want to do. Also, familiarize yourself with the bulleted accomplishments and skills on your resume. The same with anything you have put in bold or underlined on your resume. If you are calling the things to an employer's attention on your resume, you should be prepared to talk about it well and back anything up with examples.

• Respond to their concerns — If they are concerned that you are lacking in a particular area, don't gloss over this.

  Try to explain how you can help in that area. Ignoring their issues is a BIG mistake. No matter how well you think the interview is going, if the person hiring isn't convinced you have the experience or the skills necessary to get the job done, they will probably turn to another candidate. This is your time to address their concerns.

Don't Forget to Follow Up

The Five O'Clock Club theory is: "Don't write a thank you letter, rather write a follow-up letter." After the interview you have to influence the hiring teams and focus on issues important to them. In your letter, you must handle their objections or concerns. Do not ignore them. This can make the difference in whether you get the job or not.

Negotiate Your Salary

Try to postpone this until you get a job offer. If during an interview you are asked about your previous salary, there are several ways to respond:

"It really depends on the job we're talking about." See what they say.

OR if you were paid very well and you are afraid of scaring them away, say instead:

"I was paid very well in my last job and if I get the job I want, the job that is appropriate, we'll come up with a salary that is appropriate."

RELATED LINKS

The Internet also offers a variety of sources for you to help you in this process, check out the following links from our partner Jobs.com.

• Job Seeker Resource Center

• Online Career Fairs — It includes Interactive Chats between job seekers and employers.

• Brick and Mortar Career Expo Schedule

For more information about Wendleton and The Five O'Clock Club visit her Web site.

To go back to Get A Job series Click here.