Keppie Careers

Social media speaker, social media consultant, job search coach

How to Showcase Your Transferable Skills

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The most challenging thing about making a career change is not always the obvious obstacle. Before stepping off of one career path for another, you may have thought making the time for continuing education in your already busy life would be the toughest part of your career shift. However, many people find it equally, if not more difficult, to illustrate why an employer should value their transferable skills.

For example, if your entire resume is filled with healthcare experience and you are now seeking a position in law enforcement, it is up to you to show the employer how important and relevant the skills you used in the past are for your new target jobs.

How can you be sure the employer knows you are perfect for the job? Follow the following advice to help showcase your transferable skills, and no one will question if you are qualified. 

Identify your skills. You cannot showcase your transferable skills until you know which the employer will think are the most important. What did you do in your previous positions on a daily basis? Make a list. Once your list is complete, pair skills you used with each task with job descriptions that interest you. Pay special attention to skills you can easily use in different organizations. Do not ignore your emotional intelligence. For example, are you a good communicator? Do you have a knack for leading teams? Maybe you are a great negotiator. Identify your best skills and include these on your list.

Research opportunities. Once you have your lists, plug your skills (your keywords) into job-board search engines to see what types of positions come up. For example, you may include terms such as supervise, oversee projects, or leadership in your searches. Keep an open mind and look for a pattern or type of job that keeps coming up.

Use your target employer’s language to describe your previous experience. You don’t want to make the employer try to figure out what you did in the past. Avoid jargon, abbreviations and other words specific to your old industry. Describe your background, skills, experiences and accomplishments using easy-to-understand language that relates to what you want to do next. For example, if you were solving problems, managing people and overcoming obstacles in your past job, describe that background in words your new employer will understand and appreciate.

Use social media tools to feature your expertise. One of the best things about social media is it allows you to showcase what you know and to communicate that expertise to exponential numbers of people. When you share news and information relevant to your industry, you become a go-to source. People will naturally view you as an expert in your arena, which helps fill in perceived experience gaps.

Network all the time. When you are changing careers, your network is even more important than ever because you may need to rely on someone to take a chance on you. Make an effort to tell people what you are doing. For example, attend professional networking events and take on volunteer roles. Ideally, you will be able to fill a role that uses some of the same skills you will need on the job. The best way to showcase your transferable skills is to use those skills with people who can influence your career path.

Focus on your transferable skills and put these action tips to use and you will discover how much easier it is to land a job in a new industry.

How a Mentor Can Help You Land a Job

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Finding a job does not need to be a solitary activity. In fact, it’s better when you can tap into other people’s skills, experiences and resources to help connect with an opportunity. Networking is one great way to accomplish those goals, but having a mentor is an even better way to help you land a job faster.

Who qualifies as a mentor? A mentor can be anyone willing to take a strong interest in another person’s professional success. Typically, the mentor is more experienced and connected in the job seeker’s field, but that doesn’t necessarily mean older. If you’ve changed careers, it’s possible you’ll connect with a younger mentor who has more experience and connections in your new field.

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It’s worth looking for a mentor to take on the following roles:

Suggest Strengths

Sometimes, our most marketable strengths aren’t obvious to us. A mentor can hone in on what you offer and suggest how to market those skills to be attractive to your target employers.

Point Out Weaknesses

Is a weakness preventing you from landing your dream job? Perhaps it requires someone experienced in your field to notice you’re missing a key skill necessary to win the job. A mentor can step in and help you fill in the missing pieces so you’re competitive for the job you want.

Create a Plan

A mentor can help you strategize about a plan to accomplish your goals. Whether this involves focusing on strengths or addressing weaknesses, the mentor can help guide you to your goal based on his or her experience in the field.

Offer Connections

The best mentors open up their networks to their mentees and make introductions likely to lead to new professional relationships. A great mentor can make all the difference for a job seeker, because all it takes to find an opportunity is one great connection. An experienced mentor can be the bridge to that connection for you.

Give Advice

It’s great to read job search advice, but sometimes, having someone with their personal best interest at heart makes all the difference for job seekers. A mentor can provide insider knowledge on everything related to your search. For example, how to apply, when to follow up, how to prepare for an interview and what’s negotiable in an offer.

Teach You By Example

One of the best ways to learn how to do something well is by watching someone else who’s already mastered what you hope to accomplish. A mentor can teach you what you need to know to get the job you want.

Push You to Succeed

Sometimes, you need a pep talk from someone who has been in your situation and succeeded. A mentor can give you that boost and encourage you to stick to your goals.

Inspire You

The best mentors will inspire you to be the very best you can be, which should lead to new professional opportunities.

You’ll never know how much a mentor can help you unless you try to connect with someone willing to serve in that role for you.

How to clean up your social media accounts

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It’s time for spring cleaning, but are you neglecting your social media accounts? Just as you’re supposed to change your smoke detector’s battery when you change your clocks, the change of season is a good reminder to pay attention to your social profiles.

Review your social media goals

What are your plans for social media? What do you want people to learn when they visit your profiles? What feeling do you want them to have? What do you want them to know about you — or NOT know about you? What do you want them to DO when they land on your website? Take the time to audit your profiles to ensure you’re putting out the right messages.

Ask a friend or a coach what they think when they visit your social media profiles and when they look at your streams of information. Make sure you aren’t missing the mark when it comes to shaping a reputation you want to own.

Google Yourself

At least a few times a year, you should Google your own name. You want to know what comes up when people search for you online. What pictures show up? Are they of you? Is there someone who has your name and comes up before you online, even in LinkedIn? Make a note of things that show up high in search, and make a point to spend extra time making those things the best they can be. (For example, LinkedIn likely comes up high in search. Manage your profile there first, before you spend time anywhere else online.)

Update Your Bios

When is the last time you reviewed your bios? Whether they are short (like Twitter’s) or longer (such as your LinkedIn Summary), now is the time to give them a once over. Make sure to include new accomplishments and look over your materials with fresh eyes to update them.

Be sure you keep everything consistently updated. If you update LinkedIn, be sure to also update your resume.

Once you’ve addressed the big picture: scrub your profiles!

Review your “tags”

It’s a great idea to look into what photos you’ve taken over the past year and de-clutter. Be sure photos where other people tagged you are appropriate and speak to your brand. If not, find the “Untag” button. In Facebook, get started by “viewing your activity log.”

Un-follow

Is your LinkedIn feed getting too spammy? Are you tired of seeing the overly politically charged updates in Facebook? Weed out people you don’t want to hear from. In LinkedIn, you can block people (which means you won’t see their updates, and they won’t see your content, either). LinkedIn won’t notify the blocked people! (Just click on the arrow next to the endorse button on their profile.)

In Facebook, if you don’t want to “unfriend,” people, you can unfollow and they won’t be any wiser! Choose the  “following” button on the person’s Facebook page and select. “unfollow”

Disconnect from apps you aren’t using.

Have you given “permissions” to apps you don’t use anymore? Disconnect them!

In Twitter: go to settings and apps – disengage from anything you’re not using now.

In Facebook, find apps behind the Activity log button.

Change Your Passwords

Update and change your passwords.

If you have trouble keeping track of passwords, you can use a password management program such as LastPass. Also, be sure you are using your personal email for LinkedIn; it’s not a good idea to use a work email or an email you never check!

Manage your brand

How are you engaging?

Check how you’re engaging in your networks. For example: look along the left side of your Facebook profile – are there groups you aren’t using? Feel free to remove yourself.

How about LinkedIn groups? Did you join a bunch and never engage? Consider focusing on a few groups for the next few months.

If you use Twitter, click on settings, and check apps. You may want to revoke permissions for some if you are not using them.

Your visuals:

On one hand, a consistent photo makes it easy for people to follow you, but this is a good time to consider a change. IF you have a business, make sure you check your logos and other visuals to make sure they still fit and are on brand.

Your email addresses and notifications

Are you checking your LinkedIn email regularly? Sometimes, people forget what emails they’ve listed for different networks, use a new email address and miss out on opportunities.

What now?

Now that everything is clean and tidy, commit to creating a stream of content that will demonstrate your expertise and grow your influence and presence in your field of choice!

 

How to get a job at the holidays

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GobbleAre you excited about Thanksgiving this year, or dreading it? Maybe you’re between jobs and not really feeling the spirit? Don’t despair and let it ruin your Thanksgiving and holiday season. With a little preparation and the right attitude, you can turn festive occasions into opportunities for you to meet new allies for your job search. Follow these tips to turn your not-working into effective networking at any event.  [Read more…] about How to get a job at the holidays

Can You Uncover Your Passion in a Job You Don’t Love?

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jad_badge_greenHaving a job you love is a wonderful goal. Having passion for your work and enjoying what you do is something most would agree is something to strive toward.

Today’s post is a contribution for the annual Job Action Day. The theme is inspired by Mike Rowe’s online commencement speech for Prager University. “He suggests, instead of following their passion, jobseekers should consider following the opportunities that are available to them—and then bring their passions with them to the job.”

Have you consciously identified a need to have passion for your work vs. considering your job a practical necessity? Do you let your bias regarding this impact your job search? Have you hesitated to pursue job opportunities because you aren’t committed to or excited about the work? Of course, the best career or job is the one in which you’re using the skills you enjoy. But, not every job needs to address all of your passions. It makes sense to use every job as an opportunity to learn something new and keep an open mind; you may find that you really enjoy something you never imagined would appeal to you.

Sometimes, however, a job can be just a job. Many, many people take care of problems at work not because they are passionate about what they are doing, but because they take pride in a job well done. It’s powerful to recognize work can be a way to make a living and doesn’t need to be steeped in passion.

If you are concerned that you should be more passionate about your work, here are some steps to take to make the most out of your current job, no matter what you do.

Evaluate your job.  Maybe there are parts of your job that play to your passions without you even recognizing it! For example, if you are in customer service, you may dislike handling problems all day, but solving concerns is something you really enjoy. Give credit to all the parts of your job that appeal to you.

Leverage your interests. Perhaps you can influence a change in your current work environment. If you’re in a job that doesn’t offer much in the way of upward mobility, consider offering to volunteer to head up an initiative that does play to your passions. For example, maybe you’d like to see your company recycle more, and you can offer to help work on that. Or, maybe you want to organize a collection to donate to the local food pantry. Perhaps you’d like to have a series of speakers come to talk to you and your colleagues. If you volunteer to set it up, your employer may support this effort. Just because your job may be static doesn’t mean you can’t extend yourself and try new things.

Get my free white paper: 5 Mistakes Job Seekers Make and How to Avoid Them.

Learn new things. Would you like to extend your career in a different direction, but you don’t have the resume to support the change? Identify what skills you are missing and take a class. Or, use volunteer opportunities to help get some experience. For example, if you don’t have any formal experience using management skills, managing that food drive or planning a speaker series can give you some of these skills.

Leverage your passions outside of work. If you don’t have a passion for your work, make more of an effort to enjoy your time outside of work. You may even find that newfound passion can become a side business that leads to work happiness down the road. Are you a creative person, but you work in an uncreative profession? Look for a hobby or take a class. When you’re not working, you have more control over how you spend your time, so be sure to tap into your passions. When you spend more time doing what you love, it helps your overall happiness, which will positively affect how you feel at work.

You may be surprised to learn you have an opportunity to include many more passionate interests in your job and in your free time than you may have realized!