How to Write a Motivation Letter Step by Step

A motivation letter answers one question your resume can't: why this role, at this company, and why you specifically. Repeating your work history in paragraph form wastes that opportunity — the letter needs to do different work than the resume it accompanies.

Opening paragraph — name the role and the reason

Open with the exact position and where you found it, then one sentence on why it caught your attention. Skip "I am writing to apply for..." — get to the reason. "Your team's shift toward remote-first onboarding is exactly the kind of process problem I've spent the last three years solving" does more work than a formal announcement.

Second paragraph — one relevant achievement, not a list

Pick the single most relevant thing you've done and connect it directly to what the job posting asks for. Use one concrete result: "At my previous role, I redesigned the onboarding checklist and cut new-hire ramp time from six weeks to four." One strong example beats three vague ones.

Third paragraph — why this company specifically

Reference something real about the company — a product, a value, a recent announcement — that shows you did more than swap the company name into a template. This single paragraph is what separates a form letter from one that gets read twice.

Closing paragraph — a clear, confident close

State your availability and interest plainly, thank them for their time, and stop. Don't restate your whole pitch again — the letter should end with momentum, not a summary.

Common length and tone mistakes

Keep it to 250–350 words — roughly three-quarters of a page. Match the company's tone: a startup's careers page written casually invites a less formal letter than a corporate one. Avoid restating your resume line by line; the letter's job is context, not duplication.

See a full example on our motivation and cover letter page, and pair it with a professional CV built to match.

Draft your motivation letter and CV together