Keppie Careers

Social media speaker, social media consultant, job search coach

If you stay in traffic, it’s going to take you a long time to find a job. Or: More marketing tools to find a job

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Last week, I wrote about hearing John Jantsch speak during his recent visit to Atlanta. (John  is the author of Duct Tape Marketing and the soon to be released, The Referral Engine.) He pointed out a hierarchy of the customer’s experience as marketers see it:

People must KNOW – LIKE and TRUST you…This leads them to:

TRY – BUY – REPEAT – REFER

To sell, you must “create a better customer experience,” which helps solve lead generation issues for those who are seeking customers and clients. Clearly, these marketing fundamentals now rely on creating necessary feelings of trust and encouraging people to try and buy via online channels. It is no surprise that being online and establishing a presence there (in what John calls the “free real estate”), helps move people through the necessary channels for success today.

However, Jantsch made an important point:

“The fundamentals of marketing have not changed,” despite the fact that the tools are different.

I thought that was such an interesting point, and one that is often overlooked. Yes, the mechanisms have evolved and the ways to connect and establish “deeper relationships” are different today than even a year or two ago. (Twitter, anyone?) However, the main points are not different. The  idea is to establish relationships and trust. That is an age-old goal for anyone selling something.

The same is true of job search. I recently helped a client who works in a marketing capacity. He refuses to embrace the “free real estate” of social media for his job hunt, insisting that he does not want to be too self-promotional. This was surprising, coming from a marketing professional, and frustrating for me. I worry that he is approaching his search with only a percentage of what he needs to be successful.

Many of you probably also bristle at all of this “social media for the job search” talk. You may remember a time when all you needed to do was send out a resume, make a few calls, and you would be hired. Unfortunately, those days are over. But, one thing has NOT changed…To easily land, you needed to be able to make a few calls. Today, a “few calls” may translate into having several hundred followers/friends on Twitter, many hundreds of connections on LinkedIn and a professional Facebook page that allows you to leverage relationships with long-lost high school friends and new contacts all in one place.

Having an optimized resume is crucial, but adding a layer – a “social” or online version that is more interactive and allows readers to dig deeper is becoming more important. Just a cover letter was the norm. Now, your calling card may be a blog.

John said it well – “How you move HAS changed, but the point is to create awareness.” That has ALWAYS been the point of job search.

John suggests engaging in social media with this in mind:

  • Listen first
  • Claim your free real estate
  • Publish content – or limit your ability to succeed.

For job seekers, I’d suggest thinking the same way. Connecting and building relationships has always been the point. Yes, there are a lot more ways to get there today. To be successful and efficient, you want to build deeper relationships and expand your network beyond your immediate circle. I cannot think of a better way than by engaging in social media.

Think about it this way: If you needed to get from your home to a friend’s house, and the only way was through treacherous traffic, wouldn’t you appreciate a new bridge that could take you directly there, bypassing the aggravation of bumper-to-bumper cars?

Think of social media as your bridge. If you stay in traffic, it’s going to take you a lot longer to get where you want to go.

Altruistic Tuesdays – Should you consider working for a charity?

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Have you considered making a change for a career in the non-profit sector? Now might be a good time to start thinking about it.

Dan Macsai for Fast Company reports that The Chronicle of Philanthropy found:

Despite tough times for charities, a trio of new surveys of nonprofit organizations in New York, New Jersey, and Washington [DC] shows that most plan to hire in the year ahead—and that the overwhelming majority plan to raise staff salaries in 2010 or at least hold them steady.

The survey, which studied 1,200 organizations from October to December of 2009 (700 of those located in New York) points to higher salaries for fund-raising jobs, which were up by 10%. Senior-level finance jobs paid 7% more.

Gayle Brandel, president of Professional for Nonprofits, said, “Even in tough times…nonprofit clients…have a hard time filling those roles, “so they’re willing to pay a little more.”

Fast Company offers some advice:

“Safe bets include educational groups, hospitals, and charities that work with homeless people or AIDS patients–program areas that received increased government funding. However, it’d be best to avoid small social-services or arts groups, both of which “seem to have the toughest time,” says Gayle Brandel, president of Professional for Nonprofits.”

Professionals for Nonprofits 2009 salary surveys are available free on the company’s Web site. Go to: http://www.nonprofitstaffing.com.

If you are in the Atlanta area, Opportunity Knocks and the Georgia Center for Nonprofits are presenting a day of workshops and consultative sessions to help you improve your job and nonprofit career development strategies and job-seeking skills. This is how they describe the event:

Led by experienced and qualified career consultants, nonprofit leaders and subject matter experts you will learn how to become more competitive in the nonprofit job marketplace.

Who Should Attend? Nonprofit professionals seeking to advance their career and for-profit/corporate professionals looking to switch careers to the nonprofit sector.

PARTIAL SCHOLARSHIPS STILL AVAILABLE!

March 23, 2010
The Lodge at Simpsonwood
Rollins Center Building
4511 Jones Bridge Circle, NW
Norcross, GA 30092
8:00 AM – 4:30 PM

Click here for information.

(I will be volunteering for part of the day at this event. Hope to see you there!)

photo by olib

Spring forward – The Progress Challenge

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It seems appropriate, on the day that we “spring forward” on our clocks, to share some things that I enjoyed about another book by Dean Lindsay, The Progress Challenge. (Read my review of his book, Cracking the Networking Code HERE.)

Lindsay notes,

“Change is inevitable, progress is a choice.”

In his trademark, high-energy style, Lindsay explains how to BE progress – to choose progress. He explains the connections between how we think about what we do and doing it, and provides a blueprint for meeting this challenge. He begins the book by asking a question that I believe is relevant for job seekers – What is motivational, and are you it?

Have you thought about it? He suggests that “each of us has the need and the opportunity to be motivated every day of our lives” (p 29). He points out, “Why else would others listen to us, utilize our services, hire us, be led by us?” Right from the start, a key career message. How do you motivate others? What impact do you (or might you) have that will appeal to someone?

Lindsay explains how to think about how to move forward and offers many suggestions to help even the most unmotivated candidate shake off the stress, anxiety and general malaise that may be preventing him or her from springing forward.

One coping mechanism that I like? “#5 Find and Create Humor (p. 138). How many times have you stopped to try to find a single iota of irony or laughter in a situation. If even things are so bad, laughing at it  (or thinking of crazy ways that it could be EVEN WORSE) can sometimes provide a little relief. Can you laugh at yourself? Is there any humor there? If not, maybe creating some would help?

The author reminds his readers: “Progress does not demand perfection, only persistence” (p. 198). How perfectly true! I often remind myself that the “Perfect is the enemy of the good” – if you stay paralyzed, waiting for perfection, it’s unlikely you will ever move ahead with your plans. Similarly, progress does not need to be perfect, it just needs to be moving, which requires consistent and frequent effort on your part.

I enjoyed The Progress Challenge and am sure anyone (job seeker, salesperson, manager, leader, anyone with an eye on the future) will get a lot out of the, yes – motivational book, quotes and action plans.

Want to receive a free copy? Leave a comment about what motivates you, what is keeping you stuck – what you think about any of this! I will choose a winner at random and Dean will send you a copy of his book! (He may even send out several!)

Learn more about Dean Lindsay at his website: www.DeanLindsay.com or follow him on Twitter @DeanLindsay.

What pretzels have to do with your job search (or) why job seekers should focus on helping others

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Today, I was at Target. This is nothing all that unusual, to tell the truth. This morning, I was looking for individually wrapped snack packages. Perusing the aisle, I stopped in front of a man and his boxes. It seemed that they were right where my targeted snacks would be. He was stocking the shelves and quickly moved his boxes so I could find what I wanted.

No, it wasn’t there. So, I asked him if he knew where to find them. He explained that he was the “Frito-Lay guy,” and gestured to his array of chips and snacks on the shelf on the opposite side. “Hmmm…,” I said, looking at the chips – none individually wrapped. “Thanks, but I was really looking for something in small packages.” He stopped what he was doing, stood up and walked down the lane, noting that what I wanted was probably there. I was impressed that he was being so helpful, especially since I wasn’t looking for “his” stuff.

I thanked him, picked out some snacks, and then remembered that I needed pretzels! Usually, I find what is on sale. Today, there was no question that I was going to choose Frito-Lay snacks. (Sometimes, there is more to your choice than price!) Laughing, I told the man that he had sold three bags of his pretzels by helping me find his competitors’ treats! I have a feeling that I’ll remember my little encounter with the Frito-Lay man whenever I am looking for snacks. Will I always choose that brand? Maybe not, but this story will most likely cross my mind every time.

Turning back down the lane, I said to myself, “I guess I know what I am blogging about today!”

If you are a regular reader, you already know the career connection…If you are looking for a job, have you considered focusing more on how you can help other people? Small acts of kindness not only help you engage and connect with your community (whether it is online or in person), they also may remind you of your valuable skills that you can use to impact others.

I’ve written about the value of volunteering during a job search, but just reaching out to your immediate community and making an effort to extend yourself and help people who ask (or even those who do not ask) can have a real impact. You never know what might result from focusing part of your job-search strategy on helping other people.

What do you think? Has helping other people helped you in your job search? Do you think making an effort to think more of others has the potential to improve your mood – and maybe your prospects? Share your ideas in the comments!

Why it's a good thing that job seeking is not an Olympic sport and some inspiring stories

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It’s tough not to be inspired by the Olympic athletes. I have been keeping a running list of topics that seem like perfect “career” messages for job seekers. Without fail, they are the type of messages that have to do with “keeping your head in the game,” “persevering despite all obstacles,” “overcoming significant challenges” and “fortitude, endurance and courage.”

Have you considered how many athletes are at the Olympics who don’t have much of a chance of distinguishing themselves in their sport? With over 5000 athletes and only several hundred medals to be awarded, the chances of winning are pretty slim for the majority of the participants. However, they come and try their hardest to make themselves and their countries proud of their efforts.

Lucky for job seekers, your chances are much better! I don’t mean the ratio of jobs to applicants (as that really depends on your situation), or the statistical chances of landing a job. I’m thinking of the percentage of your job search that is in your hands.

To consider in the category of “be glad job search is not an Olympic sport”

Think about the partner sports…It’s you and one other person. You need to rely on your partner to keep up his or her end. An injury, a mistake on that person’s part, and the pair’s Olympic dreams can go up in smoke. Wouldn’t you hate it if you had to job search in pairs?

How about if a bad interview meant you needed to wait 4 years for another try? How many stories are out there of Olympians who had an injury or a bad run in Torino. Think about Hannah Kearney, who won a gold medal in women’s moguls last week after failing to qualify four years ago, even though she was the defending world champion.

What about the margin of victories? A tweet from @resumestrategy noted: Difference between 1st and 13th in the men’s giant slolom: 9/10th of a second -> talk about difficult performance metrics. It seems almost cruel that people work their whole lives and their dream can be lost in such a small margin. Granted, they chose a sport and know the stakes. But, so many sports involve outside influences beyond the athlete’s control, it is amazing that so many people devote themselves to it.

I know that many job seekers will read these thoughts and think – this is JUST like job search – things turn on a dime, control lies elsewhere and all you can do is hold your breath and hope. I take a different approach. I really believe job seekers CAN and DO control their own destinies, and that there is much about the search that is in the job seekers’ hands. Yes, there are “judges” (interviewers) and there are sometimes small margins of difference between you and the next candidate, but comparatively speaking, I believe your hard work and dedication to your career and job search is much more in your control than you may think!

In the category of – “this may inspire you”

Did you hear the story of Chinese figure skaters, Shen Xue and Zhao Honbo? They came out of retirement to win the gold medal in pairs figure skating that eluded them. Married, they have been living dormatory style and training, putting “real life” on hold At 31 and 36, they are ancient by skating standards.  They remind us that “what you do in-between” is important. So true – job search, similarly, is not really something that you should be doing only when you are looking for a job. It is equally important to manage your career and your time “in between.”

Who did not hear the heartbreaking story of Joannie Rochette, the figure skater from Canada? Her mother died of a heart attack on the day she and Joannie’s father arrived at the Olympics. Joannie skated beautiful programs in spite of her grief and won a bronze medal. Grace under pressure seems an understatement – an athlete favored to possibly win the gold, with the hopes of her country riding on her shoulders…She still managed to skate well and make the most of her Olympic experience.

Don’t forget about the men’s figure skater gold medalist, Evan Lysacek. When asked in an interview what he had given up to achieve his gold medal dream, he paused, took a breath and replied, “Everything.” Wow…The commitment and endurance it took for Evan to put his life on hold to pursue a dream…A slippery one (no pun intended), that relies on talent, effort, and – let’s be honest – a little luck.

Keep some of these stories in mind the next time you get discouraged about your job search…I hope they will inspire you to keep going with gusto!

photo by selihpxe8