Career Portfolios – What it is and How it Can Help Land Jobs | EmploymentDigest.net

A career portfolio provides prospective employers with a tangible sample of accomplishments acquired across an individual’s employment life. Presenting a well prepared portfolio during an interview enhances a job candidate’s professionalism, and provides evidence of stated achievements.

Education

Educational items included in a career portfolio must support the job seeker’s candidacy for a given position. Include such items as awards, diplomas, transcripts, and internships, to name a few. Be prepared prior to the interview, and have all documents compiled neatly.

Professional Activities

Joining networking groups or professional associations outside of work can compliment employment skills. The individual should focus on including information about the organizations he or she is currently participating in, and any leadership positions held.

Work-Related Activities

Including work-related information in the career portfolio is the most important element. Make sure the resume is well-designed and the references provided are up to date. Job seekers should include copies of any professional licenses and certifications in this section of the portfolio.

Volunteer or Community Activities

Job seekers who regularly volunteer or engage in the community, set themselves apart from a large portion of their job market competition. When offering service to any organization, always ask for a reference. Data to be included in the career portfolio include such items as certificates of participation, photos of community events involved in, and special merits received.

Benefits

There are three main benefits to creating and using a career portfolio. First of all, it allows the individual to assess his or her career goals, and make adjustments as necessary. Secondly, the portfolio is the most effective means to display skills, abilities and aptitudes, in a visual manner. Third, the career portfolio serves as a record of the individual’s personal and professional accomplishments.

Creating an On-Line Career Portfolio

All of the information to be included in a traditional career portfolio can be uploaded to your personal domain, and made in to an on-line portfolio. To get this process started, choose whether or not the task will be handled by a professional, or whether to take the “do-it-yourself” approach. The next step is to purchase a domain name, and find a reputable hosting service. Finally, it’s time to upload all of your documents, pictures, and information, to be fully accessible by prospective employers and any other colleagues you choose to give access to.

 Christina Archer is the owner of I-CareerSearch, helping candidates land their next job faster and more efficiently. An entrepreneur and author of the new book, Landing Your Dream Job In Any Economy, currently available at http://www.publishamerica.net/product88364.html Christina has provided a roadmap to enable job seekers to differentiate themselves from their competition within the job market.

Offering free resume evaluations, I-Careersearch offers a host of free and paid services to job seekers. Premium members receive full job search management services, to save them both time and money. For details, go to http://www.I-CareerSearch.com or contact Chrisina directly, at christina@i-careersearch.com.

via employmentdigest.net

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What Skills Do Employers Really Seek? - The Career Doctor Blog

Michael writes:

I have a question about the types of skills employers are searching for from job-seekers. I’m about to start my last year of college and if I can pick up a course or two during this year to make it easier for me to find a job in May when I graduate, I want to do it. So, can you help me?

The Career Doctor responds:

Great question! I actually encouraged my juniors and seniors when I weas teaching to conduct a SWOT analysis in preparation for better career planning and job-searching. A SWOT analysis examines your strengths and weaknesses as well as the opportunities and threats in your chosen career field. And it’s something that ALL job-seekers can and should do occasionally.

Matching your SWOT with the skills employers are seeking then gives you some directions for finding educational opportunities or experience to fill the voids of any skills where you are weak.

You need the so-called hard skills of your chosen career, and I am assuming you have been gaining those as you have attended college. However, for your enlightenment - and to strengthen your resume — you need to fully know what those skills are that employers seek of a college graduate with your career interest.

Then there are the soft skills that all employers seek of prospective employees. These skills include teamwork, communications (writing, oral, listening), organizational, analytical, creative thinking/problem-solving, leadership, adaptability, and multicultural sensitivity.

A great way to conduct some easy research on the dominant soft and hard skills that employers in your career field are seeking is to gather a variety of job postings and simply do a content analysis of the requirements that these employers seek. Then find experiences you have had that used those skills and highlight them in your resume and cover letter (and later in the job interviews).

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Cover Letters: Does Anybody Read Those Anymore? » Blog | Great Resumes Fast

In a world where many job applications seem to disappear into a “black hole”, job seekers often wonder if there is any point in sending a cover letter with their application.  The answer is absolutely yes!  An effective cover letter communicates to an employer why you’re specifically interested in the open position.  With so many job seekers indiscriminately applying for hundreds of jobs, your application will automatically stand out if you can demonstrate that you truly have a personal interest in a particular position.

Effectively explaining to an employer why you want the job requires you to cite those qualities and skills that personally make you a good candidate.  Generally, the likelihood that you would be a good fit for the position is directly related to your relevant experience and education; for example, a CPA could perform accounting duties for any number of companies.  But, telling a hospital that you’ve considered obtaining a master’s degree in health administration makes your interest in the job personal.

In an attempt to personalize their cover letters, job seekers often research a company by examining its Web site.  While it’s good to know things such as what a manufacturing company makes or the volume of business a store does every year, including facts like these in a cover letter is ineffective.  Hiring managers already know all about their own company; what they don’t know is why you’d be an asset to them.

Your willingness to write a cover letter confirms for the employer that you have a serious interest in a specific position.  However, to be effective a cover letter should demonstrate your knowledge of the company by relating your personal achievements and qualities to that specific business.  The people reading your application don’t know anything about you.  Your cover letter needs to sell you as a candidate, while your resume supports your assertions with details.

via greatresumesfast.com

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Movin' On Up: Unspoken Rules About the 8-to-5 Workday

Transitioning into the workforce from school or switching from one career to a new one can be a scary move. It’s a big step, but one that you can easily make with a few pointers. Each job has certain rules and procedures that are common knowledge, but you might not have heard them outright or saw them on your orientation agenda. So, take note of these tips to you navigate the workday without breaking the rules. Following these rules will show your employer that you want to do a good job and be an employee they can’t live without.

Don’t be late. Check and double check your work schedule and be sure you’re at work on time. Showing up late – even five or ten minutes – could earn you a negative reputation. There are some environments that are more laid back with their attendance policy, but others are sticklers about not being a minute late. Be sure you know your company’s culture and don’t assume because co-workers are late it’s OK to follow their lead. You want to set a good example so you can get ahead, not follow a bad example because that could get you in trouble.   

Run errands on your own time. When you’re at work, you are there to work. Running errands on your lunch break is fine, but don’t use company time to go to the post office, grocery store, take a shopping trip to the mall, etc. The company pays you to work for them, so they expect you to work and produce results.

Avoid regular personal calls. The workplace is not the best place to spend significant time making or accepting personal phone calls. As many employees share workspace with other co-workers, make it a point to keep your personal affairs to yourself. Calling your best friend to have a casual conversation about an upcoming date is not appropriate. When you’re on company time, let friends and family know to leave you a message if they call you during the day and you will return their message when you leave for lunch or after work. If you do have to take a phone call at work, go to an area where you won’t be bothering anyone and limit the amount of time you spend on the phone. Check out more information about cell phone etiquette in the office. 

Know the policy on social media. With so many people having a social media profile on a site like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Myspace, it’s easy to stay connected and see what your friends are doing during the day. Before you decide to log-in and check one of those sites while at work, be sure you know you’re company’s policy regarding social media. You never know if someone is monitoring your internet activity. If they see you logging-in to Facebook during the day, you could get reported to your manager if it’s against the rules.

Keep loud music down. If you listen to music while you work, use headphones in public or shared spaces. Listening to music can help you feel more energized and can help you eliminate distractions. Just remember to keep the volume at a reasonable level so you don’t distract or aggravate any co-workers and you can still hear someone if they call your name. If you work in a factory or shipping facility, check your safety policy on this and make sure your earphones don’t create a safety hazard. You need to be able to hear what’s going on around you.

These are just a few of the many things to be aware of when it comes to workplace behavior and how to function during the workday. Be respectful of your company’s time, money and resources by following policies on issues like attendance, work breaks, and social media. On company time, you have to follow company policy. When you have a job, it’s important to keep in mind that you should adjust your habits to fit your employer during working hours, not vice versa.

via blog.expresspersonnel.com

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40 Personal Branding Quotes | Personal Branding Blog - Dan Schawbel

Here is a list of forty personal branding quotes that I’ve come up with over the past three years. Feel free to use them on your website, as long as you link back to this post and cite my name. I hope they inspire you, make you reflect on your own life, or make you put your ideas into action today.

If you have a quote you would like to add, please leave it in the comments section of this post.

1. “Brand yourself for the career you want, not the job you have.”
2. “By focusing entirely on your personal brand, you become unemployable.”
3. “Create your own career, instead of letting your company do it for you.”
4. “If you want to be known for everything, you’ll be known for nothing.”
5. “When you have passion, expertise and a support system, you can do anything!”
6. “Make your life one giant networking event.”
7. “You have to be as committed to your personal brand as you are to your husband or wife.”
8. “Just like content is king on the internet, your experience is king when it comes to getting a job.”
9. “In order to succeed in the new world of work you MUST become the commander of your career.”
10. “Be the real you because everyone else is taken and replicas don’t sell for as much.”
11. “As technology rapidly changes, your personal brand remains constant.”
12. “The best way to become successful is to make others successful first.”
13. “What makes you weird, makes you unique and therefore makes you stand out.”
14. “If you don’t know what you bring to the table, you don’t get a seat there.”
15. “Life is one big pitch, so you better start practicing.”
16. “Your blog is your space…completely yours to do with whatever you want.”
17. “To succeed, you must be the best at what you do for a specific audience.”
18. “The first opportunities are the hardest to obtain because everyone wants to view your past performance.”
19. “You are the chief marketing officer for the brand called you, but what others say about your brand is more impactful than what you say about yourself.”
20. “To secure your brand, spend more of your time networking outside of your company than within.”
21. “It’s what you do that makes you who you are and how you project that to others that makes you memorable.”
22. “When it comes to the web, you are judged solely on what is observable.”
23. “Proficiency in social media is a differentiator now, but will soon be a qualifier.”
24. “The goal of personal branding is to be recruited based on your brand, not applying for jobs.”
25. “You won’t succeed in marketing a poor personal brand.”
26. “When you brand yourself properly, the competition becomes irrelevant.”
27. “Visibility creates opportunities.”
28. “If a resume was the deciding factor in recruitment, there would never be a need for interviews.”
29. “The divide between interviewing for a position and actually working at a company will close thanks to employer branding.”
30. “Social media will expose people who have bad intentions and reward people who are trying to make a positive impact on the world.”
31. “It’s not the size of your network, but how you use it.”
32. “In order to be successful tomorrow, you must sacrifice today.”
33. “Lead with your brand and let the compensation follow.”
34. “Any new opportunity or experience can change your life.”
35. “As professional and personal lives converge, those who are authentic and transparent will triumph.”
36. “When you are passionate about your job, it becomes a hobby.”
37. “The most successful networkers give value before receiving.”
38. “The reciprocal nature of networking establishes a relationship instead of a one-night-stand.”
39. “Passion is personal branding fuel.”
40. “Your name and face carry your brand in both reality and virtual reality, such that wherever they are cited, your personal brand is at stake.”

via personalbrandingblog.com

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25 Simple Ways To Earn Trust

I’ve been exploring conversational marketing lately, both for some of the talks I give and to advise clients on appropriate and effective ways to not just engage our audiences in conversation, but also persuade them. If we, as social media marketers, are not using the engagement opportunity to motivate those audiences to do something, then there’s little business purpose in having the conversations in the first place.

At Social Media Plus last week, I talked about conversational marketing and came away from the presentation thinking a lot about trust. My theory around conversational marketing is that success occurs when our genuine participation (that without marketing as motivation) earns enough trust from our audience to share information that is driven by our business. But trust is earned in a variety of ways.

Public relations professionals can take months to earn the trust of a media member. You don’t immediately trust a child care professional with your children. Search engines don’t trust a brand new blog with the top search result if it hasn’t garnered some links and traffic.

But trust is also something we randomly give away in certain circumstances. You trust strangers on the street to give you directions. You trust random people to watch your bag while you throw something away at the airport. You may even trust a product recommendation made in a conversation near you that you only overheard.

Why? Or more importantly, what is it that makes people trust us?

Without a great deal of discussion (that’s what the comments are for), here’s a list of 25 different ways you can earn trust, both on- and off-line:

25 Simple Ways To Earn Trust

1. Be polite
2. Dress neatly
3. Smile
4. Shake hands firmly
5. Hug if appropriate
6. Illustrate your knowledge
7. Make eye contact
8. Speak clearly
9. Share ideas, content and praise
10. Be positive
11. Ask how they are doing
12. Know when to shut up
13. Use a clear and distinctive avatar
14. Talk about everything but you most of the time
15. Be confident your product or service is valuable
16. Make it easy for people to buy, but also to return
17. Say “please” “thank you” and “excuse me”
18. Admit when you’re wrong
19. Don’t gloat when you’re right
20. Hold the door or elevator for someone else
21. Pay attention to those talking to you
22. Don’t gossip
23. Be open minded
24. Respect their right to not answer or agree
25. Do all of that consistently

What more can you think of? The comments are yours.

IMAGE: By EDHAR on Shutterstock.com

via socialmediaexplorer.com

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Interview Technique - 5 Things to avoid in an interview - Career advice blog - Position Ignition - taking you to the next step in your career

Given we do a lot of work helping individuals prepare for their interviews - we get asked about interview technique and how to go about acing an interview.  Here are a few tips to help you along your way.  This is what you should avoid doing in an interview so not to damage our chances of success...

1. Being too dominant

In every conversation there tends to be a ‘leader’. The leader can change as you move through a conversation or interview. Make sure that you aren’t the one leading the whole time. You don’t want to come across too dominant or domineering as this will make the interviewer wonder how you will be with others you work with. People want collaboration and a ‘team’ approach, so make sure that the conversation works both ways and isn’t all led by you.

2. Clock Watching

Have you ever been with someone who constantly clock watches? Isn’t it annoying? Don’t do it – especially in an interview. It’s distracting, annoying and rude to the interviewer. If you’re serious about the job you need to show it by giving it your full attention.

3. Being unprepared

If you turn up at an interview not knowing anything about the company or role you are going for you will look stupid! Make sure that you have done your homework and know about what the company does, where it’s heading and what they are trying to do. You should know about the role you are going for and also about the people who are interviewing you.

4. Expressing irrelevant opinions

Going on about something that is completely irrelevant to your interview is counter-productive and a waste of time in an interview.  You may not even realize that you are doing it because you get so excited about a certain topic – but make sure that you become more alert to this problem. Some of us are easily distracted and can get wrapped up in a conversation if we have strong views on it and find it interesting. However, if it’s not relevant to the role or job you’re going after – suck it up – be quiet!

5. Not listening or responding to the questions

If you don’t really listen to the questions, you won’t respond to them well or properly. Making sure that you put on your ‘listening’ cap as well as your ‘speaking and get my opinions & talents across’ cap.  If you don’t listen in your interview you are pretty much sunk!

Author: Nisa Chitakasem and Simon North - Position Ignition (www.positionignition.com) - taking you to the next step in your career

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Inspiring Job Search | CareerAlley

“A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.” – Francis Bacon

Like most things in life, there is no “magic” to successful job search. It is a mix of luck (being in the right place at the right time), networking (it’s who you know), hard work (review the job search boards every day), credentials (what have you done lately) and marketing (great resume). But also like most things in life, inspiration breeds successful job search. Inspiration can take many forms. It may be a friend who has landed a great job, a mentor that gives amazing guidance or just a great idea that gets you going. Of course “I hate my job” offer its own inspiration. So what inspires you?

• Jobgoround.com – Their tag line “The First Website Devoted to the Whole Job Search Process” tells their approach. There are tabs at the top of the page for Job Search, Resume Writing. Cover Letter, Resume Services, Interview, Career Articles and more. Each of the sections have embedded links with related content. Click on Job Search to see the job search board where you can enter criteria for keywords and locations. There were over 113,000 job opportunities when I checked the site.

• XLCareer.com – Another job resource site that balances job search with job search resources. There are tabs at the top of the page for Find Jobs, News and Tips. There is an overview of the site with a link to how they can help you find a job. Below this is a “Jobs by Category” section which provides an overview of each job type when you click the link. This section is followed by a Recent Jobs Guide section and the Recent Jobs Available. The “Find Jobs” link lists jobs by function with an indicator next to the title of how many jobs are available in that section.

• Applyandgo.com – Start with entering your country (India, UK and US for now) and then you are linked to a country specific site. Boxes at the top for Create an Account, Upload your Visual Resume and Get Job Alerts. This is followed by tabs for Jobs, Job Seekers, Resources, Careers and more. A Search Jobs box follows with a fair number of criteria (and there is an Advanced Search box as well). Categories are listed next. The Right hand side of the screen has a few links (like Hot Jobs and International Jobs).

• Kosmix Jobs – A really good job search resource site, the interface is clean and easy to find what you want quickly. The main page has a featured topic (click on the picture to see detail on the topic).  The right hand side of the page has Job Topics. Click on any topic to see additional detail. The site then builds a page with your content including links, top websites and additional related links on the right hand side of the page. There are related news items and videos at the bottom of the topic page. Definitely worth a review.

• Job Market NY Times – The New York Times has a very good job search and careers site. The top of the page has tabs (below the jobs tab) for Find a Job, Post Your Resume, Job Seeker sign on and Career Advice. There is a simple job search bar where you can put a key word and a category. Below this section (all on the left hand side of the page) are recent related job search articles. Center page is a “post your resume” followed by related links salary comparison and more. Right hand side of the screen is the staffing center.

via careeralley.com

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Are You in Google’s Blind Spot? | Career Rocketeer - Career Search and Personal Branding Blog

When I pull into our garage at home, I have to make a hard right turn from the driveway. Backing out is an equal challenge. The opening around the garage door is a testament to the several failed attempts over the years to successfully navigate this turn. Unfortunately as a result, I’m on a first name basis with the local body shop. Blind spots are expensive.

Virtual blind spots can be just as expensive, if not more so. People don’t think about Google or other search engines as having blind spots, but they do. Searching for everyday people is a big problem for search engines, yet “Googling” and being “Googled” are now standard practice for professional, personal and other reasons. We use search engines to learn more about people and validate their backgrounds. And we trust what search engines tell us. In 2008, Google was the most trusted brand in America according to Advertising Age. Worldwide, Google’s brand ranked 7th in 2009 according to Interbrand. Disney ranked 10th.

Search engines are typically much better at delivering results for businesses or well-known people. Businesses benefit from their web presence and having unique names (corporations typically cannot have identical names). Having a web presence is required to be relevancy ranked by a search engine, even if that means only having a simple web site. Google even provides instructions for how to improve your web site’s search ranking through a technique called Search Engine Optimization.

But most individuals don’t have personal web sites and there is no rule about using the same name for people. As a case in point, there are more than 150 Google Profiles for “James Alexander”. If being visible in search engines is important to you or your career, you need to know how you are presented and why. When it comes to searching for individuals, search engines have three fundamental challenges: 1. Name expansion; 2. Mistaken identity, and; 3. Name entry errors.

Name expansion is a big problem. I like to use Carl Mark as an example. Carl is one of the founders of Jones Soda. Not only is this name common (74 Google Profiles so far), search engines use a technology called expansion dictionaries to find variations of each word and then return a name combination that it thinks you meant. In his case, Google thought I wanted to see results for “Karl Marx”. This produced useless results, of course. I understand the logic behind the approach search engines take but it really exposes the fact the search engines have a significant blind spot when it comes to searching for everyday people.

Mistaken identity can happen when two or more people have the same name. It can be serious because the results may look like they are about you but are actually about someone else. I read a story recently in which a woman named Lauren Bernat felt her job search was hurt by the search results for someone else with the same name but whose results cast her in a negative light.

Name entry errors are a problem for people with names that are difficult to spell. When we were developing Vizibility, I would occasionally hear someone tell me they have a truly one-of-a-kind name and probably wouldn’t need a service like this. I find that level of name uniqueness and spelling difficulty usually go hand-in-hand. If someone misspells a name and doesn’t catch it, they’re going to believe what they see.

Search engines are powerful tools that improve our lives every day. We rely on them. We trust them. But search engines struggle for a clear view of the world around them. And unfortunately, if your career depends on them, you want to make sure you’re visible so you don’t get run over.

---

Guest Expert:

James Alexander is the founder and CEO of Vizibility. A serial technology entrepreneur, James has been involved with Internet search since starting eWatch in 1995.

Most recently James served as General Manager of Jupiterimages. Getty Images acquired the company in early 2009. Before that, James was Director of Product Management at Adobe Systems years where he created, built and managed Adobe Stock Photos, which served more than 7,000 creative professional customers in its first 36 months of operations. He joined Adobe in 2001 to manage and build the company’s early-stage electronic book (ebook) business.

Prior to Adobe, James led venture-backed Mibrary Inc., a New York-based software start-up founded in 1999 to make electronic books and other digital content easier for consumers to use. Prior to Mibrary, James co-founded the Internet brand monitoring service eWatch, which was purchased by PR Newswire in 1999.

James was awarded a patent for search innovations on Adobe Stock Photos and has other patents pending. He earned his Masters of Business Administration with distinction from Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Rockefeller College at the University at Albany in New York.

Google James at http://vizibility.com/james

via careerrocketeer.com

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9 Steps to Prepare for Behavioral Interviews | My Global Career

In a job interview, you may field questions about your situational behavior and decision making. That’s based on the premise that past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior. Behavioral questions (often not even framed as a question) typically start out: “Tell me about a time…” or “Describe a situation…”

Example questions are: “Tell me about a time where you confronted an unexpected problem,” “Describe an experience when you failed to achieve a goal,” or “Give me a specific example of a time when you managed several projects at once.”

Equip yourself to answer the questions thoroughly. Obviously, you can prepare better for this type of interview if you know which skills the employer has predetermined to be necessary for the job you seek. Researching the company, studying the job description, and talking to people who work there will enable you to zero in on the kinds of behaviors the company wants. In the interview, your response must be specific and detailed. Candidates who tell the interviewer about particular situations that relate to each question will be far more successful than those who respond in general terms.

Ideally, briefly describe the situation, the specific action you took to have an effect on the situation, and the positive result or outcome. It’s also helpful to think of your responses as stories. Frame each example as a three-step story, usually called a S-A-R, P-A-R, or C-A-R statement: 1. situation (or problem, challenge), 2. action, 3. result/outcome. Become an engaging storyteller in your interviews, but be careful not to ramble.

It’s difficult to prepare for a behavior-based interview because of the huge number and variety of behavioral questions you might be asked. The best way to prepare is to arm yourself with a small arsenal of example stories that you can adapt to many behavioral questions. Despite myriad possible behavioral questions, you can get some idea of what to expect by looking at Web sites that feature behavioral questions. Knowing what kinds of questions might be asked will help you prepare an effective selection of examples.

Interviewers will expect most of your examples to spring from your professional experience, but it’s acceptable to draw a few responses from such activities as volunteer work and community service. Wherever possible, quantify your results. Interviewers especially want to hear these outcome metrics.

Remember that many behavioral questions endeavor to probe the way you responded to negative situations; you’ll need to have examples of negative experiences ready, but try to choose negative experiences that you made the best of or–better yet, those that had positive outcomes or that you learned from.

Here are 9 effective steps to prepare for behavior-based interviews:

1. Identify up to 20 examples from your past experience in which you demonstrated top behaviors and skills that your research has indicated that the targeted employer seeks. Think in terms of examples that will exploit your top selling points.
2. Half your examples should be totally positive, such as achieving accomplishments or meeting goals.
3. The other half should be situations that started out negatively but either ended positively or you made the best of (or learned from) the outcome.
4. Vary your examples; don’t take them all from just one area of your career.
5. Use fairly recent examples–within the last year is best. Some employers, in fact, specify that candidates give examples of behaviors demonstrated within the last year.
6. Describe examples in story form using a PAR/SAR/CAR structure.
7. Write your example stories down and give them titles. Though you don’t want to use these written versions as scripts or memorize your responses, you’ll find that writing them helps organize and crystallize them in your mind. Giving them titles will help you recall them from your memory bank more easily.
8. To cram for a behavioral interview right before you’re interviewed, review your resume. Seeing your achievements in print will jog your memory.
9. In the interview, listen carefully to each question, and pull an example out of your bag of tricks that provides an appropriate description of how you demonstrated the desired behavior. With practice, you can learn to tailor a relatively small set of examples to respond to a diverse range of behavioral questions. Expect interviewers to pose several follow-up questions and probe for details that explore all aspects of a given situation or experience.

Once you’ve snagged the job, keep a record of achievements and accomplishments so you’ll be ready with more great examples the next time you go on a behavior-based interview.

Katharine (Kathy) Hansen, Ph.D., is the author of Top Notch Executive Interviews (from which this post is adapted), as well as Top Notch Executive Resumes, and six other books. Kathy is creative director and associate publisher of Quintessential Careers. She is an educator, author, and also blogs about storytelling at A Storied Career.

via myglobalcareer.com

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Make Your Own Business Cards

Lately, I’m a bit burned out on business cards. I think they’re important tools. I don’t think we can manage our identity transfer ONLY online, but I’m just a bit tired of handing them out. The reason? Every time I give someone a business card, I have about a 70% chance of receiving someone else’s dumb email newsletter that I didn’t opt into receiving. Or, I’ll get a pitch. If you’ve ever done this to me, please reconsider before doing it to someone else in the future. Please?

A business card is the start of a relationship, not permission to sell to me.

Lately, I notice that lots of people use various online services to make digital versions of a business card. That feels like you’re giving away an opportunity. That’s like buying the store cards they sell at Staples or OfficeMax or wherever. Instead, why not make your own business cards.

Want to see mine? Chris Brogan’s business card.

Well, that was easy.

In person, I hand out paper cards. When I’m not being cheeky, my cards have the following traits:

• My name is the biggest element on the card. Why? Because in a meeting, when my card will be sitting on a table in front of someone who’s trying to remember who I am, they will see my name and feel less embarrassed.
• My PREFERRED method of contact is what I put on the card. In my case, I’ve stopped handing out my phone number. I loathe the phone. I opt not to give it. Is that limiting some times? Sure. I don’t care.
• My idea on how I can help you. Most cards talk about how awesome the giver is. I want you realizing how awesome I think YOU are.
• Space to write. It’s amazing how important it is to have room to write on the back of a card.

What’s not there? Every social media platform I ever joined. Every URL in the world. It’s not a phone book. It’s a card. It’s a marker.

A business card is the start of a relationship.

Your mileage may vary. That’s just where I am right now. You?

via chrisbrogan.com

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Using Buzz Words to Make Your Resume Scan Better

Posted by Bill in Employment News, Resumes

Technology has started to play an important role in the hiring of employees. In order to create an effective resume, you must now get through a scanner before it is ever seen by human eyes. In order to make sure that your resume gets into the hands of real person, your resume must include pre-determined buzz words or keywords that the scanners search for. If your resume does not include any of these buzz words, then there is a good chance that your resume will be discarded before anyone even looks at it.

Fortunately, if you know how to use this technology to your advantage, you can quickly see your resume at the top of the list instead of gathering dust. These computers will scan thousands of resumes and focus entirely on a prioritized set of keywords. Resumes that have the most important or a large amount of keywords are much more likely to get passed on to the people who will actually be offering you an interview.

What Buzz Words Should I Use?

While it is impossible to know exactly which buzz words a company is focusing on, there are some easy ways to identify prospective keywords.

The first place to start looking for keywords is in the job posting itself. Employers purposely weed out job seekers who send their resumes to every available opening. They do this by adding keywords to job postings. Keywords will often be found in the section, “what we look for in an employee” as well as the company overview.

Another great place to find keywords is within the businesses industry. While this isn’t always easy, if there are specific industry standards or industry lexicon, then try to include them when applicable.
When listing your skills and experience, make sure that you are as specific as possible. Use basic descriptive buzz words that describe your skills and experience because they are more likely to be recognized by scanners. For example, if you are a computer programmer, it is important to list every software proficiency and programming language that you have experience with. By listing every proficiency, you are much more likely to hit related buzz words.

A final place to use buzzwords is when describing past employers and positions. When you highlight your previous positions and departments, try to use common terms, even if your previous company created a different title for your position.

While you must make sure that you meet all of the required buzz words, it is equally important to ensure that your resume is still easy to read for the people that will eventually see it. It is a persons decision to invite you for an interview, not a scanners. Only use buzz words where they are appropriate and do not cram your resume full of them, if they do not make sense.

Using buzz words has become a critical technique that many job seekers still have not been able master. By being able to effective utilize words in a naturally sounding way, you will not only get past the scanners, but also get good reviews from human readers.

 Jason Kay recommends using effective resume buzz words, but don’t overdo it.

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Career Advice by Career Experts J.T. O’Donnell & Dale Dauten : CAREEREALISM

‘JT & Dale Talk Jobs’ is the largest nationally syndicated career advice column in the country and can be found at JTandDale.com.

Dear J.T. & Dale: I am a 47-year-old homemaker and mother. I have begun applying for entry-level positions. I honestly do not have the best work history, having worked as an administrative assistant, a real estate title examiner, court clerk and have sold advertising. What can I do to gain the notice of a potential employer? — Olivia

J.T.: I’m going to be completely honest here, and I hope the following isn’t too direct: You are not attractive to potential employers. Why? Because your past is shouting you lack focus. I realize that doesn’t seem fair, but in a competitive environment, hiring managers use all sorts of criteria to eliminate candidates. So, right now, the best thing you can do is stop looking for a job and start looking for a career.

Dale: Which sounds simple enough, given that there are hundreds of books and websites with career self-assessment tools. However, please don’t expect a career-interests test to solve your problem. The only times I hear successful people mention such tools are in lighthearted recollections of paths not taken — for instance, the NBA basketball coach Phil Jackson has written that one of the careers suggested for him by an assessment tool was park ranger.

J.T.: I, on the other hand, have met plenty of people helped by assessment tools. But they are merely the first step. You then have to do the research necessary to focus on a field, then take concrete steps to develop contacts.

Dale: A big “yes” to research. But Olivia, please don’t think that means reading career books and surfing the Web. The most important research you can do is to single out the people in your life whom you admire. Meet with them informally and get them reminiscing about their career decisions and turning points. What I predict you will discover — and discovering it yourself makes all the difference — is that your past holds the clues to what talents you should be evolving, and, knowing those, then luck/coincidence/synchronicity are invited into your life. Heightened awareness of your own skills, combined with the energizing work of meeting interesting people, will yield more job success than a thousand online job applications.

J.T.: Once you choose a career focus, you will be able to use your past experience, skills and knowledge to get yourself on a fast track to success. I hope you will invest in finding something that impresses you, and soon you’ll be impressing your family with your new success.

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Jeanine “J.T.” Tanner O’Donnell is a professional development specialist and the founder of the consulting firm, jtodonnell.com, and of the blog, CAREEREALISM.com. Dale Dauten resolves employment and other business disputes as a mediator with AgreementHouse.com.

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7 Items Employers Want to See on Telecommuters’ Resumes

When you’re applying for a new job, your resume is often used as a fast way to assess whether you look like a good candidate for a position — at least on paper. That’s just as true if you’re looking for a position that allows you to telecommute as it is if you’re looking to work in an office.

But the skills and characteristics that a hiring manager is looking for on a telecommuter’s resume aren’t always the same as when you’re looking for other jobs. Among other things, employers are looking for the following:

1. Prior experience. While it’s not always possible for an employer to find an applicant that has already telecommuted, having prior experience can move your resume to the top of the stack. There’s a learning curve that goes along with becoming a telecommuter, and every employer would prefer to hire someone who’s already figured out the nuts and bolts of telecommuting.
2. Self-direction. Telling a hiring manager that you’re able to work at your own direction is useful, but if you can show that you’ve taken on projects at your own direction and worked without guidance through your resume, you’ll catch a reader’s attention. When describing previous responsibilities, mention the guidance (or lack of guidance) you’ve worked with.
3. Great communication. Working offsite requires an employee with above-average communication skills. Make every aspect of your resume as clear as possible to demonstrate that you have great communication skills.
4. Technical skills. The specific skills that each telecommuting position requires vary but most employers will want telecommuting workers who are technically-savvy. Even if you aren’t already familiar with the software and tools a company uses to work with telecommuters, knowing a variety of other tools can mean that you can pick up new skills quickly.
5. Professional objectives. If you include an objective — and not every resume needs to — it has to be professional. There’s a certain type of prospective telecommuter whose objective is just to “work at home and do X,” where X does not convince an employer that the applicant is professional. Make sure your objectives don’t play into any telecommuting stereotypes.
6. Access to hardware. Some employers will provide equipment and software to their telecommuting employees, but many hope that you have a computer and an active Internet connection in place. Mentioning that you do, in the context of past positions, or other parts of your resume package, can speed up the application process.
7. Your reasons for telecommuting. Employers probably won’t outright ask if you’re telecommuting because of family, health concerns or other reasons, but they’ll make assumptions. It’s probably best to be clear about your reasons for wanting to telecommute from the outset.

Share your resume tips in the comments.

Photo by Flickr user Fabio Bruna, licensed under CC 2.0

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Using Social Networks to Job Hunt - Career advice blog - Position Ignition - taking you to the next step in your career

It’s a nice idea: getting a new job, or at least an interview, from the comfort of your own home by using Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. In reality, it’s not as simple as it seems and there are a few things to bear in mind if you’re going to make social networking sites part of your job search. Here are five tips for getting a new job through social networking.

1)    Review your online reputation

It’s all very well planning to woo potential new employers and contacts through your tweets, Facebook updates and LinkedIn recommendations, but don’t forget that employers can see all your status updates, photos, videos and groups. Unless you lock your social networking profiles, potential employers can view them even if you don’t initially contact them through Facebook or Twitter. All they have to do is Google your name and some of the first results that come up will be for your profiles on LinkedIn and other such sites. So if you want a new job, it’s time to remove the inappropriate Facebook pictures and to stop using Twitter to moan about your current employer. Even if you don’t want a new job right this minute, it’s worth changing your online habits anyway if you a) will potentially be job hunting in the future and b) your current employer wouldn’t be impressed if they checked your Facebook page as it is now. That said, it’s just as possible to make a positive impression online as it is to leave a negative one. If you’re looking for a new job in tourism because you’re interested in travel & culture, make sure you actually list these as your interests so potential employers can see why you’d be suited to the industry.

2)    Know where to look

As open and accessible as social networking sites are, potential employers aren’t going to come flocking to you just because you tweet, “I’m looking for a job in tourism, please contact me if you can help”. You’ll have to find them, because it’s unlikely that they’ll find you. Twitter has various types of applications that can help you seek out potential employers and useful contacts. Directories such as Twellow can help you find people in your chosen field; keyword trackers like Monitter can identify who’s using phrases specific to your industry; and you can use apps such as Twitscoop to track trends and events related to your desired job. On both Facebook and LinkedIn you can join groups discussing your career interests, with the latter also having a Q&A function where you ask and answer the questions that will draw you into a network of potentially useful contacts.

3)    Communicate with the relevant players

Once you’ve found contacts that could be useful to you, don’t just ask them if they know of any vacancies going and then leave it at that. It’s important to build up an online relationship with the relevant players so that even if they don’t know of anything that would suit you straight away, they’ll remember you if something comes up further down the line. By all means speak with them about your job search, your skills and your industry of choice; just make sure not to make it all about you. What makes a relationship, both offline and online, is the mutual understanding that it’s about give and take. Reply to your contacts’ tweets asking for help and contribute to the discussions they start. Not only does it show that you’re willing to give, but it also showcases your expert knowledge of their particular industry or field.

4)    Be willing to learn

Although it is important to show that you have both interest in and knowledge of your chosen industry, it’s also important to demonstrate your willingness to learn and to build up your skills. Ask industry players for advice about your job search, use group discussions to clarify points you’re uncertain of, and listen in on others’ conversations and discussions. You can also use social networking to build up your experience and skill set offline. Even if you ask someone if they know of any paid positions coming up and they don’t, you can press them for information on volunteering or work experience opportunities. If you’ve actually set out to gain some voluntary work experience before looking for a paid job, connect with the voluntary sector experts that can sort you out with opportunities suited to your desired career path.

5)    Don’t limit yourself

As useful as social networking is in getting a new job, don’t rely on it as your only method of networking and job hunting. Integrate it with both offline and other online strategies such as looking at relevant companies’ websites, attending industry events and using your existing contacts. At Position Ignition we have a variety of ideas for making your job search work for you, so feel free to contact us, be it through Twitter, LinkedIn or a more conventional method!

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For more information or help with your career challenges contact: enquiries@positionignition.com

Position Ignition Career Blog: www.positionignition.com/blog

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The Job Search, Reconsidered | Brand-Yourself.com Blog

While monitoring a lot of chatter on Twitter recently regarding the usage by companies of social networking to fill jobs, something struck me that I had not processed previously: not everyone is doing it!

Talk about a revelation.  I am aware of the slow adoption of social networking for some companies, but this week something was really clarified for me.  While having many conversations (don’t worry I won’t name drop), it became obvious that the “old school” recruiting mentality is still a big deal for many recruiters to either accept and use or get their organization to approve.

But what does this mean for you as a possible job candidate?  For one, don’t exclusively use social networking to find your next position.  Yes, social networking is important to get you in contact with the right person/people within organizations.  However, you still need to continue to use more traditional job searching tools. 

Ideas about where to focus today:

• Social Networking – You MUST be here and you have to be an active participant.  On Twitter, follow the hashtags of #jobhuntchat or #tnl to get insights from the HR and recruiting world.  Do not make social networking your sole strategy to find a job, incorporate it into the big picture!

• Work the Referrals – Referrals, referrals and more referrals.  You must treat every event like a networking event.  When you are job seeking, you need to be engaging in conversations anywhere.  It could be at your local Panera Bread or Atlanta Bread or Starbucks or wherever!  You need to be on your toes to connect with anyone that you have the potential to bump into.

• Company Career Pages – A must-do activity.  Everyone has a company they would like to work for, be it a global brand or a local organization.  No matter the company, you need to create a profile in their careers section and register for openings.  Most company careers systems will allow you to create a search string (based upon keywords and/or title) and have new positions emailed to you.  This is the way to get in-the-know of immediate opportunities.  Why?  Companies post to their corporate pages before external job boards.

• Job Boards – You must continue to use job boards.  Did you know that in the Monster.com resume database that 72% of resumes are from people currently employed?  Staggering fact, but it continues to highlight the importance of a job board.

The best advice I can provide is to have a blended job search strategy.  Sure, it is partially about who you know.  But who you know may not always think of you.  Treat a job search as your full time J.O.B. (thanks Eric!), create a plan and work the plan.

Image Credit to AfterCollege.com

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Keith McIlvaine manages the recruiting social media strategy for a Fortune 500 company and is an avid networker.  He is a corporate recruiter, social media advisor, coach, speaker, blogger and an all around fanatic.  Connect with Keith on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or on his blog at the HR farmer.  (The statements posted on this site are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer)

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How to Create a Searchable Resume Profile | Brand-Yourself.com Blog

From Brand-Yourself.com

Today we have a special guest post from Ozzie Saunds.  Ozzie is an experienced Career Specialist who has worked with North America’s largest job board and the world’s second largest international recruitment firm. Currently the founder/owner of a successful recruitment
organization, he is committed to continuing his efforts of maximizing the potential of every career professional he works with by consulting them through the job search process. You can visit his blog at WriteMyResumeNow.com

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A typical approach to a job search includes creating resume profiles on popular job boards, such as Careerbuilder, Monster or Yahoo Jobs, and then targeting professional social media websites like LinkedIn, Google Profiles and Brazen Careerist. Perhaps the very ambitious job seeker takes it a step further by creating a blog which showcases all of their qualifications.

While searching for employment, job seekers can improve their chances of being hired by being more visible on the internet. But being visible does not always mean being registered on every job portal imaginable; being visible means having searchable resume profiles that get noticed.

Utilize SEO to Create Resume Profiles

Chris Perry, personal branding expert and the founder of one of the largest career blogs, Career Rocketeer, suggests that the structure of the internet does not always allow the best job candidates to be visible. In order for a resume profile to be found on the internet, it must be searchable. In order for it to be searchable, resume profiles must include keywords that correspond with search terms that hiring managers and recruiters use to locate top talented job prospects. Furthermore, not only do resume profiles need to include important keywords, but the placement of these keywords is also important to search engines.

The world of employment is competitive and involves many job candidates, all with similar skills and qualifications, just like how the world of business includes many organizations all with similar products and services. The manner in which organizations fight for prime positioning, aiming for the first page on Google, is the same manner in which a job seeker must fight for prime positioning on job boards and professional social media sites such as LinkedIn. The reality is that the best company does not always climb to the top of the search results of an engine, just like how the best job candidate with the most qualified skills sometimes gets placed after the person with little experience. So just how does a candidate implement a SEO approach to creating their resume profile?

Resume Keyword Approach

1.      Repetition: Read a good amount of job postings that are related to the industry that is of interest. Keep a close eye on the required qualifications. Include them in the personal profile/summary section. Repeat these words in the “core competencies” or “area of expertise” section. Repeat them again, varying the terminology, within the body of your resume. For example, say a job seeker uses sales in the personal profile section and negotiation in the core competencies section – it would be effective to repeat sales and negotiation in the body of the resume and add business development, account management, bargaining and consulting too. But also keep in mind if the job posting says sales experience required instead of business development experience required, place greater emphasis on repeating sales throughout the resume profile.

2.      Placement: Use the keywords early on in the personal profile/summary section of your resume profile. Keep in mind that the search engines will value the keyword terms you used first at the beginning of your resume profile over ones you used later. So if a job posting lists experience in engineering design, function analysis, and solution implementation as a minimum requirement and has testing and subcontractor management as additional benefits, put the three minimum requirements in the personal profile section and follow it up with a core competencies section that includes the two additional benefits.

3.  Showcase: Attach powerful action words to the qualification keywords to illustrate how skills were effectively used to accomplish organizational goals. For example, using the job posting qualifications listed in the placement resume keyword approach, a job seeker could say, “Achieved a 100% output growth rate within a 6 month time period by implementing (qualification keyword) an automated performance review solution (qualification keyword) leading to the escalation (action word) of department productivity.

Strong Resume Profiles are Keyword-Rich

In order to develop an exceptional resume profile a candidate must not only have great qualifications, but must also have a strong keyword strategy in place to ensure that all their outstanding qualifications become visible. If a job seeker incorporates SEO techniques into their resume profile development process, they will be one step closer to finding a job. With repetition, placement, and a showcase keyword SEO strategy in place, a resume profile not only becomes exceptional but searchable.

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Take Your Personal Brand beyond the Web | Brand-Yourself.com Blog

Building a personal brand is a marketing process. The hallmarks of a well-constructed brand include consistency, authenticity, specificity and all the brand parameters we discussed last week. Following on that lesson, let’s remember the first law of marketing: perception is reality. What this means in the context of branding yourself is that success is more about how others perceive you than what you say about yourself.

In the arena of personal branding, there’s too much talk about the technology. There’s scarcely any talk about content. The technology is fine. We all need to understand the technology behind social networking and social media.

Moreover, we should leverage the opportunities afforded by social technologies. Build a great Web presence—absolutely! And by all means, use social networks to connect with people who can inform, advise and amuse you.

But technology is just the medium. And what really matters when it comes to branding yourself is the message. I’m talking about the content behind your personal brand. A personal brand is just a front, or a façade, if it’s not solidly backed by content. From the perspective of your audience (those important individuals whose perceptions truly matter and can affect your career and your future opportunities), those who are truly interested in you (to hire you, to evaluate you, to reward you, to recommend you, to promote you and to include you in exciting projects and cool, new ventures) will drill down beyond your branding into your content. Back to the first law of marketing, the practice of telling is largely ineffective because people learn by discovery.

So, what will people discover when they drill down into Brand You? Invariably, they will examine the following:

Your traits – are you reliable, likable, trustworthy, motivated, driven?

Your credentials – degrees, professional certifications, GPA

Your accomplishments – what have you completed, led, generated, invented, improved?

And what if you are already employed? How does personal branding translate in your workplace? In my opinion, it matters greatly—as much or more so than when you are seeking a job. If you worked for me at my marketing firm, you would be evaluated annually on your performance across several key measurements including: reliability, teamwork, productivity, leadership, communications, concern for customers, creativity and community service. All of which is about content. I invite you to learn more about this in the new, “How-To” book that I recently co-authored, Effective Immediately: How to Fit In, Stand Out and Move Up at Your First Real Job.

Use personal branding to attract favorable attention. Have a great content to back up the branding. If you want to succeed in your career, don’t stop with the technology. Focus intently on goal-setting, striving, improving and achieving. That’s what truly matters.

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HOW TO: Determine and Sell Your Differentiation | Personal Branding Blog - Dan Schawbel

Employers and clients are looking for ways in which you are different from everyone else – your unique selling proposition (USP). And if you don’t know your USP, there’s no way you’re going to be able to articulate it and sell others on your abilities.

What do you bring to the table others can’t?

That’s the question you need to ask yourself. Try this exercise: Write down every skill, piece of knowledge, ability, and characteristic you have. I find it’s often hard to evaluate yourself, so ask friends and family to add to the list once you’ve given it a first shot.

This list becomes your “unique you.”

What do you need to market your “unique you”?

• Professional website or online portfolio
• Presence on relevant social networking sites
• Business cards
• Elevator pitch
• Accomplishment stories

What are “accomplishment stories”?

When you’re applying for a job, employers want to hear about the results you’ve had in the past and how you could repeat those results at their organization.

Take the top 5-10 bullets in your unique you list and write stories surrounding them.

Some questions to ask yourself about each skill:

• How and why did you obtain it? (Describe the entire situation, start to finish. You can always make your stories more concise later.)
• How can the skill be applied to situations other than the one in which it was first obtained?
• How have you continued to develop the skill since you obtained it? (For example, have you taken additional courses or applied the skill to an after-school job?)
• What makes it important to have?

Some questions to ask yourself about each characteristic:

• Is there an example (or two) of a time when this characteristic came in handy? (Again, describe the entire situation to the best of your ability.)
• How does this characteristic help set you apart from other candidates? (For example, would having a team member with this characteristic help the employer in some way?)

An alternative to accomplishment stories: case studies

If your goal is to land clients rather than a job, you can write case studies. These should contain the following sections:

• Problem/Situation
• Solution
• Results

Again, notice the focus on results.

So, what do you bring to the table that others can’t, and what is your plan to tell potential employers or clients about it?

Author:

Heather R. Huhman is a career expert and founder & president of Come Recommended, an exclusive online community connecting the best internship and entry-level job candidates with the best employers. She is also the author of #ENTRYLEVELtweet: Taking Your Career from Classroom to Cubicle (2010), national entry-level careers columnist for Examiner.com and blogs about career advice at HeatherHuhman.com.

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Job Search Ideas to Fast Track Your Job Search - Secrets of the Job Hunt Career Podcast

Reposted from CareerAlley

"New ideas pass through three periods: 1) It can’t be done. 2) It probably can be done, but it’s not worth doing. 3) I knew it was a good idea all along!" - Arthur C. Clarke

If it helps you get a job, it must be a good idea. Now I won't go as far as to say there are no bad ideas in job search (there are plenty - see below), but the good ideas are all time tested. Some are basic, like "Prepare for your search" while others are more complex like "create an elevator speech", but all of these are essential to finding a new job. Even if you've been on the job hunt for awhile, some of these basics may help jump start your search. As an example, have you leveraged your college career center (it doesn't matter how long ago you graduated)? What about professional associations? Broaden your approach and follow these tips.

• LOOKING FOR A CAREER, NOT JUST A JOB - This article, from The University of Akron, provides all of the basics for your job search. From "what do I want to be when I grow up" to the basic steps (resume, cover letter, references and interviews). The article includes job search etiquette, how to use phone and voicemail as well as pointers on what to do (an not to do).

• Fast Track Your Job Search - Ten Steps to Find a Job Fast - About.com's Alison Doyle provides this article which provides the basics for fast tracking our job search - job search plan, resume, cover letters, websites and more. There are embedded links throughout the article for each of the main categories as well helpful links at the bottom of the page.

• Fast Track Your Job Search Through a Professional Association - Professional associations can be a great resource in your job search. This article, from search firm Spherion, reviews what you should do to connect and leverage professional associations.

• Job Hunting Tips: Strategies for Finding a Job Online - This article provides some job hunting tips along with embedded links. The best websites, networking, how to prepare your searches and more.

• Job Search Strategies - A great list of resources, this site leads with a list of quick guides (each of which leads to a detailed page) like "ask the employer", "interview effectively" and more. Below this are links for FAQs such as - "How do I use Site Search?", "How do I find jobs to apply for on the internet?" and so much more. In addition to this there are numerous links to additional resources on the left hand side of the screen.

Okay, what about those bad ideas? There are plenty, read below.

• True Job Search Blunders - This article, posted on Careerbuilder.com has some pretty funny (and sad) blunders. Now many of these are hard to believe, but all are true. Hopefully you won't need this advice, but it is certainly worth a read. Once you are done, check out some of the great links on the left hand side of the page.

• 3 Phone Blunders that Can Hang Up Your Job Search - A few more for your review. This one is provided by pongoresume.com and, while not as funny as the prior link, this is worth a read as well. So often we don't have job search in mind when it comes to our personal lives, but you never know what others will find annoying.

Good luck in your search.

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Networking: How to ask for a favor - Secrets of the Job Hunt Career Podcast

The other day I received an email asking me to do someone a favor. The request made me feel uncomfortable and I pondered for a day on how to respond. As an active networking job seeker, I am fairly certain you
run into these kind of scenarios as well.

"Could you introduce me to..."

"Would you give my resume to..."

"Can you call your contact and ...."

If my dear friend, past colleague, family member or someone else close to me were asking for this type of favor, I wouldn't think twice. Would you? (well, in 99% of the cases). I
probably wouldn't have a problem telling them why I couldn't do it
either.

The problem lies when the person making this request in a virtual unknown. Maybe you've met them once before, maybe even a couple of times. However, you feel uncomfortable being able to carry out
their request.

Being the straight forward, no-nonsense kinda gal I am, I emailed him back and explained to him as nicely as possible that his request was a tad unreasonable.

1) I didn't know him well enough

2) He didn't provide specifics about why he was qualified or interested in the job

3) There was no reason provided as to what was in it for me (WIIFM) to do this

4) He assumed that I knew these contacts well enough to put in a good word

In my email, I also explained what he could do to try and make this an easier request. I listed all four of these things and how to fix them and invited him to
call me for clarification. He did. We spoke. I think he got it.

Here are the two lessons from this post:

1) Learn how to appropriately ask the right people for referral and favors.

2) Teach others the errors of their ways so that next time they will better succeed

I truly believe that each one of us has a duty to help educate and develop one another. Do you have a similar story...how did you
handle it?

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How To Choose A Career Or Job Fair

Career fairs (or job fairs as they are sometimes called) are not created equal.

A few weeks ago I wrote about the pros and cons of going to a career or job fair.  They are not for everyone.

And once you’ve decided to attend one, it is time to get choosy.  Just because you have time, doesn’t mean you should attend them all.

So, how do you choose?  Well, it may be that there is only one game in town.  Your choice is made for you.

But if you live in a major U.S. city, you will likely have many to choose from.  So here’s my criteria to use:

1.  Who is the organizer?

Some events are organized by companies.  Some by industry or local networking groups.  It is important that the organizer be a big enough group to attract quality companies and to pull together a well-planned event.  Look for evidence of “organization” such as agendas, announcements and the like.

2.  Who are the sponsors?

Is someone (a sponsor of the event) hoping to market to you?  Nothing wrong with that really as long as that sponsorship doesn’t get in the way of your objective.  And doesn’t become a distraction.  Determine if the sponsors are related to and supportive of the event’s true purpose.  If not, you may see more of that sponsor than you’d like on event day . . .

3.  What companies have publicly committed to attending?

This is a big one.  And often times, event organizers will not announce companies planning to attend.  Either because they are still working on getting commitments or the companies don’t want to be public about it.  Fearing that they’ll be taking calls and e-mails from anxious job seekers in advance.  If information is available, how many of the companies are on your target list?  And, also important, what types of jobs are available?  At what levels?  And what pay?

4.  Who from each company will be attending?

This is not always easy information to get prior to the fair.  But it will help you in preparation.  And will help you to determine whether the value in attending is there.  Is it a “resume collector” or someone with whom you can actually network and influence?  Some would say that even a resume collector is worth meeting.  And I agree that a nice approach to anyone associated with a target company is worth trying.

5.  Where is the event being held?

Is it at a sponsor’s office?  A hotel ballroom?  Perhaps at a target company’s HQ?  Location matters because you can get a sense for the size of the crowd expected (i.e. how many others will be there trying to influence the same people).  You can also get a sense of the event’s focus.  An event held at your target company’s HQ, for example, will let you get a peek at their culture or allow you to meet a few additional people.

6.  Is there time for networking and is it structured?

Some career fairs don’t have structure.  You simply walk in the door, get a badge and walk at your own pace around the room.  Standing in line at tables that fit your objectives, meeting with someone for a few minutes and moving along to the next table.  A good event will structure your time a little better.  Allowing you to schedule time with reps from your target companies vs. waiting inefficiently for someone to come available.

7.  Are there breakout sessions or speakers?

I like events with multi-dimensional benefit.  Because the prep, drive and attendance time needs to pay off.  So if I can hear a speaker and get a few ideas.  Or learn some new interview or networking techniques via a good breakout discussion.  To me, that’s a bonus.

8.  Is there a fee to attend?

If not, be ready for a bigger crowd and more sponsor messages.  But free events can be a great value.  Do not let this issue drive your decision.  But be conscious of this piece.  If there is a fee, what will you get in return?  Less competition, better speakers, more one-on-one time with each company?  Here you can decide if those are valuable to you.

9.  Has anyone in your network been before?

If the fair is a regular event, the odds are that many veteran job seekers can tell you very quickly if the value is there.  So take advantage of your network here and get the real skinny.  Especially if it is a paid event.  Ask them these questions and the important one: Was it worth it?

10.  What online organization and planning can you see?

How did you learn about the event?  Friends?  From the sponsor?  A good event should have an online component.  A place to go to learn more.  If they don’t and if the only way you can learn more is to refer to the one-page handout, you may be heading to an event that is less organized.  But, again, ask questions.  If there is a phone number, give them a call.

Now, clearly not every event will meet these hurdles.  Some questions cannot be answered based on the data you’ll have.  And I’m not suggesting you eliminate every event by being over-critical.  Or spending too much time deciding.

But I am saying to think about where you spend your time during job search.  It matters.

And so do you.

Photo Credit

via timsstrategy.com

Posted via web from AndyWergedal