Keppie Careers

Social media speaker, social media consultant, job search coach

When it's time to move on and your job hunt

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Have you been following this story about the “balloon boy?” I’ve really only been following this from afar. It’s such an outrageous thing – that a boy could have even possibly floated away in a balloon – crazy.

If you’ve been indisposed, HERE is a link to catch you up. When it turns out that the boy, named Falcon, was actually safe, not floating in the air, but hiding (or maybe sleeping) in the attic of the garage, the family proceeded to appear, with all three of their boys, on several morning news shows (Good Morning America, The Today Show, etc), where the 6-year old vomited through the interviews.

Did the family take a break? Close their doors and ask for privacy? No. They proceeded to go on every news show that would have them – most importantly, perhaps – on CNN. Where, in this interview, the child suggests that he did not respond to calls for him because he “did it for the show.”

So, investigators, already suspicious, had their interest peaked. But, does it stop there? No! The family CONTINUED the interview. Finally, when asked again for the child to clarify what he meant by doing this “for a show,” the father took a deep, suspicious sigh and did some fast talking to accuse the questioner of harassing the family.

Watching this coverage, all I could think about was, “When are they going to say when?”

What does this have to do with your job hunt? Ironically, I was writing about tenacity when I was reviewing this footage. (Stay tuned for that post tomorrow). Today, I’m inspired to write a counter-point post – when is it time to say when?

To clarify, I don’t think you should ever give up on your job hunt. You are better off taking your search in a different direction – altering your course because you want a new result. (This may be as basic as revising how you are conducting your search and/or your materials.) BUT, there are times when you need to follow good instincts when it comes to a particular job opportunity.

So often, job seekers, maybe desperate for a new opportunity (or any opportunity) or dazzled by a high salary, close their eyes to all of the red flags raised during the process.  DON’T DO IT!  If you aren’t treated well and with respect during the interview and negotiations, assume things will only get worse once you are on the payroll.

I asked my Twitter friends for horror stories from interview experiences. Susan shared:

One “8 hour interview had me speaking with professors, administrative assistants, students and staff. I was given lunch, but was inerviewed during the meal. I got this job but walked out (not my finest moment) after 4 months due to an extremely abusive supervisor.”

While this is not the worst thing that can happen during an interview, clearly Susan had a sense that this was not the best environment. Should she have known not to take the job? Not necessarily. After all, she did not report illegal questions, extremely inappropriate behavior or actual abuse – all very obvious (and major) red flags. However, I’ve spoken to job seekers who would probably look the other way and accept ANY job offered. It can be a mistake.

You can almost guarantee that the red flags you noticed but ignored during the process will come into play as an employee.  Unfortunately, the reverse guarantee isn’t true.  If everything smells like roses and proverbial harps play before you are hired, it is no guarantee that you’ve landed at Utopia, Inc.

Tomorrow – stay tuned for my post on tenacity!

If you need help mobilizing your networks and your job search plans, learn more about how I can help you!

While you’re at it, be sure to become a fan of Keppie Careers on Facebook…I’d be thrilled to have you as part of the community!

How to write your LinkedIn profile

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I’ve written about using Facebook for your job hunt this week, but clearly LinkedIn is an obvious place for professional networking and connecting. While your resume typically will be a formal document that doesn’t include the words I, me or my, LinkedIn is a place where you can tell a story.

In the “Summary” section, you can describe yourself and highlight something you have to offer that is unique. There is no need to be overly formal – write something that will draw the reader in!

My colleague Barbara Safani inspired me to write about this today with her tweets from the Career Directors International conference during Louise Kursmark’s presentation. Follow the hashtag #CDI09 on Twitter for lots of great insights from the speakers and participants in Orlando this week!

Here’s a sample of Barbara’s tweets to whet your appetite:

LI from Barbara

Feel free to share success stories, questions and thoughts about LinkedIn in the comments section!

While you’re at it, be sure to become a fan of Keppie Careers on Facebook…I’d be thrilled to have you as part of the community!

If you need help mobilizing your networks and your job search plans, learn more about how I can help you!


Why you should be on Facebook

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Yesterday, I shared some ideas to get you thinking about using Facebook as a professional networking outlet, inspired by THIS POST by Sarah Welstead, a Recruitment Marketing Consultant who works with Head2Head and RetiredWorker. She really nails down some great reasons to re-look at Facebook.

Today, the definitive…Why you should be using Facebook. (Also inspired by Sarah. Bold – her thoughts, commentary is my own.)

The ‘fun’ value will help you stay motivated

Let’s face it…Updating your LinkedIn profile really isn’t that much fun. How often do you get sucked into spending hours on LinkedIn, just for the heck of it? Contrast it with Facebook. Admit it- you could click around for hours, if only you had time. Or, maybe you do already. As Welstead says in her post, “If you’re already on Facebook, it’s way easy to use it for building your professional profile!”

Facebook delivers better-quality relationships

Think about this. Have you seen pictures of your LinkedIn network’s kids or dogs? How close of a bond do you really feel with them? Contrast to Facebook. Welstead makes a good point about quality over quantity: You may have a smaller network on Facebook – in fact, the BBC says that 150 is the ideal number of Facebook friends, …but because you’re able to have more meaningful interactions, with more people, on a daily basis, those contacts are likely to deliver more ROI in the long run than 1000+ LinkedIn connections.

Bonus tip from Sarah: “People are always more likely to trust someone they’ve known since Grade 8 than someone they’ve met at work, even if they haven’t talked to them since high school.  So rekindling an old relationship will always be easier than forging a new one.”

Another stat from Welstead: At least 50% of your contacts aren’t using LinkedIn!

You want to cast the widest net possible, and the numbers show that Facebook has the most people. I have a friend who is skeptical about all of these social networks. She badmouths them left and right and never hesitates to make fun of the Facebook fanatics. But, guess what? She has a profile there now. The pressure was too much for her! She finally realized that there are some nice results from being able to see pictures of people she cares about but has no interest in talking to! You can’t find her on LinkedIn, though, so don’t even try!

How many friends do YOU have like that? You don’t want to miss opportunities by “poo poo-ing” Facebook.

Facebook is a better ice-breaker

If you connect with your old pals, the nostalgia factor is likely to kick in and it’s just easier to start a conversation. Who is going to argue with that?

Facebook helps you stay top-of-mind with the people who are most invested in you and your career

Update your status, share your expertise, and you may be surprised how many people pay attention. A reminder – this is not a suggestion to run to Facebook, set up a profile and link to old friends for the purpose of asking if anyone has any job leads. Build a network, share information, connect with old friends and THEN, if there is a good opportunity, you can share your needs. Give before you expect to take. Don’t forget, most people don’t think they can help a jobseeker, so if you go “out” as one, you may find that networking does not work for you.


While you’re at it, be sure to become a fan of Keppie Careers on Facebook…I’d be thrilled to have you as part of the community!
So, what are your favorite social networks? Do you like Facebook? Do you have success stories? I would love to hear from you in the comments and would consider writing about some successes!
If you need help mobilizing your networks and your job search plans, learn more about how I can help you!

photo by Brian Veloso

Facebook for your job hunt?

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FBfriendwheel693439830_51fcf34cc4_mI don’t write very much about using Facebook for your job hunt. Why? Honestly, it’s not my favorite social network. I’m a bit of a Twitter fanatic, and LinkedIn is an obvious social networking tool for job seekers. I usually say that Facebook is my #3 “go-to” social network for job seekers.

That said, you may have read recently that Facebook has reached over 300 million users. We know that, if it were a country, it would be the world’s 4th largest. My friend Dan Schawbel tweeted stats that LinkedIn just hit 50 million users and Twitter has ~20 million.

So, it would be unwise to ignore how job seekers can mobilize their Facebook networks for professional networking. That’s why I was so excited to read THIS POST by Sarah Welstead, a Recruitment Marketing Consultant who works with Head2Head and RetiredWorker. She really nails down some great reasons to re-look at Facebook.

Some of her points? (In bold – commentary is mine.)

Just because it’s ‘fun’ doesn’t mean it’s not ‘productive.’

Au contraire, mon frere. (Ah, Facebook reminds me of high school – just something my old friend used to say!) How amazing is it that something that is a “guilty pleasure” for some can actually be useful! How is it useful to reconnect with old high school (or grade school!) friends? Read on…

Still a ‘sphere of influence’ – just a different sphere

You need to network? Well, Facebook is a network! I have a colleague who mentioned that she gets a lot of referrals from connections on Facebook, as her high school friends are all professionals now, many of whom need resumes and job search help.

Similarly, you can connect with friends on Facebook for professional information and advice. You never know who knows someone who knows someone.

Your school friends have grown up into successful people – who’ll make great business contacts!

Welstead notes in her piece: “Remember, people tend to move in peer groups:  That means that if you’re ambitious and successful now, the kids you hung with in high school or university, and the friends you made in your first career jobs in your early 20s, have probably gone on to be successful and ambitious, too.  In other words, they’re worth knowing for professional reasons.”

So, if you use Facebook only to take quizzes and complain about your spouse, it probably won’t be terribly useful for professional networking. But, if you include enough information to let people know about the professional you, it can be a very personal and successful way to connect.

While you’re at it, be sure to become a fan of Keppie Careers on Facebook…I’d be thrilled to have you as part of the community!
Stay tuned tomorrow for more great reasons to be on Facebook!
If you need help mobilizing your networks and your job search plans, learn more about how I can help you!

Crush It! by Gary Vaynerchuk, a review

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book-header-transI’ve heard a lot about Gary Vaynerchuk. He is well known and widely lauded for his approach to personal branding for business owners. He “leveraged social media tools such as Twitter and Facebook to promote Wine Library TV,” a video blog about wine. He’s hob nobbed with Meredith and Ann on the Today Show, shared wine with Ellen and Conan and been featured on Nightline, among other appearances.

So, when I was invited to participate in launching his book, I was happy to join in. (I love reading advance copies to share with my readers!)

Gary’s book is a high-energy guide for business owners and would-be business owners to harnessing the power of social media to fuel not only your bottom line, but also your personal brand. (And, if you don’t think you need a personal brand because you are happy with your day job, Gary’s response, “What you think you’re invincible?” He notes, “Developing your personal brand is the same thing as living and breathing your resume every second that you’re working” (p. 38).

He reminds readers how important it is to create bonds with other professionals in your field and to share your ideas and expertise on the social networks. (I LOVE when other writers second what I tell my readers!)

Gary thinks traditional resumes are going to be irrelevant. This is a common belief among the social media elite. I agree that your reputation (aka, personal brand) will be key, but having a great traditional resume is still important for most people! The good thing? Pursuing a new media strategy to support your professional reputation does not prevent you from having a terrific, traditional resume. The best approach? A multi-tiered plan that has potential to appeal to everyone in your target audience.

Other terrific points relevant for job seekers from the book? Wait for it…this is key:

If you are authentic, you will sometimes lose people along the way!

Gary knows this – he admits that his loud, in your face, brash style does not appeal to all wine lovers. He says, “I lose about 12 percent of my viewers right off the bat because I yell and scream like a maniac” (page 85). You can’t be everything to all people, whether you are a job seeker or an entrepreneur. And, you really shouldn’t try. When you differentiate, you will lose some people, but those probably are not “your people.” On the other hand, by strongly focusing on what you have to offer – your best and authentic you – you have a better chance to connect and appeal to a community of “good matches.”

Crush It! is a terrific guide for anyone (entrepreneur or job seeker) who needs a nudge and a guide to begin to shift his or her mindset to move forward with today’s tools. Stay tuned for more thoughts from his book tomorrow, the official launch date!

If you need help using social networking tools for your business or job search and just need a helping hand, contact me to learn how I can help!