"Doctor" Letters of Referral? (free, the best, phone, name)

[Travel'r]

Hi, I've got a couple of letters of referral from former employers which are very nice, but there are mistakes. One of them, my boss had a secretary type out (great boss, just not a typist by any stretch) and mail with my last paycheck, and she managed to spell my last name differently twice out of the four times.

I was most appreciative that he even sent one, as it is not company policy to even do so! So did not want to nit-pick and request another at the time.

Another boss had a secretary type his evaluation and there are mistakes in there as well, so I'd like to delete an overused word, at least, and substitute commas. The letters are great (bosses' words), but wonder if somebody who reads them may notice this and how big a deal it is? Truth is, I really aim to be working for somebody who would notice everything, actually:>)

Am thinking of scanning at least the one and trying to fix the letter in my name(s). And wonder if anyone else has had this (?) dilemna?
And, if you're hiring, do mistakes kind of subtract from the credibility of a letter?

Of course I wouldn't be doctoring other words or anything -- should I even figure out how to Photoshop or whatever with them. Prospective employer, ideally, would be a place which makes calls anyway. But the letters are nice to walk into a place with, hopefully inclining somebody to call for further info, so am torn between showing/not showing at all, or going through the frustration of *attempting* to fix.

Thanks for any thoughts :>)

[fuzzymystic]

You know, that is actually kind of funny if you think about it. You want to make corrections to the letters of referral from your old bosses? I am certainly no expert on this, nevertheless, I would have to say NO!!! Just seems like a really bad idea.

[ontheroad]

Frankly, it may be best to leave the letters alone--poor spelling and all--and not make changes. It might seem "as if" you've made a change even if that is not your intention and not what you've done. The judgment of poor letter writing and spelling is on the writer and generally would not be a reflection on you!

[BrianH]

You could always say "Before i left they never made spelling mistakes, now look at what has happened. I guarentee this will be a mistake free company!" hehe

[Travel'r]

Thanks for your thoughts.

Guess it's from always having my buddy telling me:
"As long as they spell your name right". That was my biggest concern, really. And if you're gonna get it wrong, at least be consistent. LOL

And my bosses were the best! So was afraid of the reflection on them because of the secretary. I did love these guys!
But you're right. And I'm not going to do anything to them (not that I'd even know how.) But just wanting to fix my name - to have it, at least, match --was a tempting thought. Just once wouldn't have been so bad. It was two and two, though.
(I did work there for some years, not like I was a stranger LOL.)
Good one, BrianH :>)

[ellie]

I was also told that it is bad form to even be allowed to see your letter of recommendation because the person writing the letter might feel obligated to say something other than what he or she might say if it were to remain a closed letter.

That surprised me when I first heard it, but it makes sense.

[Travel'r]

Hi Ellie,
Good point. Thankfully, these were private businesses.

Having to relocate because of hubby had me not knowing where I'd be working until I was able to get there, look, then apply in person. This is why the bosses granted (and even offered) letters.

And one boss was looking to advance his career elsewhere himself, just didn't know exactly where yet :>) Just nice to have a word from good bosses whom somebody may not presently be able to get a hold of by phone because they've since moved on to greener pastures. (Nobody in Human Resources ever worked side by side with me.)

Guess I should have added that the secretary with the name boo-boos wasn't ever known to be remotely pleasant with anybody, let alone me :>( So it's more that it was her mistakes that gets me, I guess.
Thanks :>)