Letter of Recommendation Help

[inittowinit]

Hello All,

I have an issue with who exactly should write my second LOR, was hoping an expert could chime in here. I worked in IB for 3 years, and left to run my family business (restaurant) for the past three years. My old boss wrote a glowing letter, but I'm stuck on what I should do about my second. I could ask another supervisor from the firm to write a letter, but I feel that neglects the accomplishments from my current position (2 expansions, $3 million in sales, managing 25+ employees, Top rated restaurant in major metropolitan area). I obviously wouldn't ask an employee for the letter, would it be acceptable to ask a longtime customer who has known me personally/professionally for several years to write the letter? Does his profession matter at all? He is a bigtime exec at a large publicly traded company. Or should I get two letters from my IB days. I just feel that i'm neglecting a big story of growth and entrepreneurial exploration by going the "safe" route.

[Jon@Admissionado]

I would go with a client or partner in your current business, ultimately explaining your "dilemma" in an optional essay. There will be little advantage to having TWO recommenders from the same place, as they will likely write similar things using similar stories.

A SECOND option, would be to have a client of yours write you a third, EXTRA letter of recommendation, and to take a manager from yet an earlier position (assuming one exists) as your second.

Hope this helps.

[inittowinit]

John,

Thank you for your input. Will cross my fingers and hope for the best.