Beyond the resume and typical job search materials, I believe using social media tools can really help build a career changerâ€s bridge to a new occupation or vocation. In my book, Social Networking for Career Success, I explain how social media may help career changers who naturally have a difficult time proving they have what they need to succeed in the next job: How? It solves several problems:

• It allows you to extend your network to meet people you otherwise would never encounter. Statistics show how important introductions and “warm leads” are to job seekers. Companies value referrals from within their organizations, and meeting new people you would not otherwise know via online interactions provides more potential for referrals. (Moving those social networking interactions to in-person or telephone conversations is a good next step.)
• You have easy access to information and resources about your targeted profession. I like to think of social networks as offering a constant opportunity to learn what people in the field and thinking, saying, writing and sharing. Twitter is particularly useful in this regard. In the book, I describe how itâ€s possible to follow content from conferences you donâ€t attend in person via hashtags, and share tips from Mark Stelzner, of Inflexion Advisors, for live tweeting a conference. If you find and follow people like Mark in your field, you may be able to grasp the key problems your new targeted industry is grappling with, without leaving your home and without spending a dime! (I elaborate on all the details in the book for HOW to find and follow the right community online.)
• Social media allows you to demonstrate your newfound expertise, engage in your targeted community, and make a name for yourself in your new industry. Social media canâ€t MAKE you an expert, but if you have what it takes to excel in your new field, you should be able to demonstrate it online. Show that you know whatâ€s going on, suggest solutions based on your expertise in other industries or fields and be someone who contributes to the conversation in your targeted field.
• Your lack of actual experience in the field may become less important once potential colleagues view you as an active contributor. If youâ€re good at sharing what you learn and know, the connections you gain and their willingness to promote you as a contributor will outweigh your actual lack of industry, paid work experience as a factor. (It wonâ€t totally erase it, but it goes a long way to helping you get where you want to go.)
• Being familiar with social media tools may be just the unique skill you need to help you land a job. Social media isnâ€t going away. Having an online profile, a Twitter feed and/or using LinkedIn to connect with prospective colleagues helps show you are staying ahead of the curve regarding technology. In and of itself, that may help you exceed another qualified candidateâ€s credentials.

In the book, I share career change success stories from several contributors, including:

• Alexis Grant (@alexisgrant), social media coach and owner of Socialexis, who is now Careers editor for U.S. News & World Report.
• Jessica Lewis, who transitioned to a non-profit career after 10 years in a different field.
• Kate-Madonna Hindes (known online as @girlmeetsgeek), who used blogging and Twitter to launch an entirely new career as a social marketer and career columnist. (She notes, “Social media changed my life.)

Don’t let the competitive market discourage you from making a change. Dive into social media — I hope you’ll take a look at my book to teach you how to get on the right path — and you may be surprised by the results! Be sure to learn more about my book, Social Networking for Career Success, as I teach you how to use all the social networks you know about — and some you haven’t even considered — and Amazon has it for a great price!

photo by vistavision

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Dan Schawbel is one of the authorities on the topic of personal branding, particularly for the Millennial generation. I am happy to serve as a co-editor of Personal Branding Magazine. The new sample issue is available. This is how Dan describes it:

Summary: Personal Branding Magazine Volume 3, Issue 2 is about brand reinvention through social media and what better example of that than MC Hammer.  Hammer, a celebrity hip-hop star, sold millions of albums back in the 80’s.  Decades later, Hammer is now one of the front men for the social media movement.  He has his multi-million Twitter following and his own social network to keep in touch with his old fans. Aside from Hammer, this issue will help you control brand perceptions, repair a damaged brand and give you tips and tricks for navigating the web 2.0 terrain, so that stay ahead of the game.

I am also happy to welcome a new co-editor to the management team! Jessica Lewis is a communications professional with a significant background in journalism and copy editing. Her specialty is helping organizations connect with their audience by communicating in a concise, informative, relevant and inviting way. Her blog reflects her interest in social marketing and effective job hunting. You may also want to follow her on Twitter @copytailor.

In her introduction, Jessica notes:

You don’t have to be famous to benefit from a personal brand. Douglas Karr encourages us to give it a try, even if you have to take your profile picture on your webcam. He says that even though he has friends who are better at some things than he is, they never get the great opportunities he does.

One sentence from Howard Sholkin’s piece stood out to me as an excellent summary of this issue’s focus: “You can shape your reputation, network and expertise, or others can do it for you, but probably not as well.”

Features:

• Full paid issue (November 1^st): 29 articles total covering brand reinvention, strategy and related topics.  Website: www.personalbrandingmag.com
• Free sample issue (October 26^th): 8 articles total, including how to fix a broken image and how to get a competitive advantage.   Website: www.personalbrandingsample.com
• Interviews with: MC Hammer, Kerry Rhodes, Patrick Lencioni, Steve Rubel, John Jantsch and Mitch Joel
• The 2009 Personal Brand Awards

Here’s a video introduction:

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I can help with every part of your job hunt! Need a great resume? Tips to use social networking? Interview coaching?  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, don’t forget those social networks! Be sure to become a fan of Keppie Careers on Facebook…I’d be thrilled to have you as part of the community! Since we’re on the subject of doing something new…Are you on Twitter? Jump on and touch base with me @keppie_careers.

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This is Part II of a guest post from

You can find Jessica on Twitter @copytailor.

Read Part I HERE, where Jessica addresses hesitations about joining Twitter.

Focus your Twitter usage.

I heard that a college football coach recently said that those on Twitter are “a bunch of narcissists that want to sit and type stuff about themselves all the time.” Twitter sure does lend itself to facilitating narcissists, but using it doesn’t automatically make you a narcissist. You are going to enter Twitter as a niche user.

Career-focused people have smartly taken Twitter and focused it for their own use. They tweet actual information. They work to be seen as unique voices on Twitter. That means they don’t bother with the silly, time-wasting stuff generally associated with Twitter.

And as long as you more often than not aim your tweets at advancing your job search and show interest in others, Twitter will actually facilitate your success. And just as you see the value in a niche blog like this one, you’ll see the value in everyone’s niche microblog.

You can start from scratch. I did.

Step 1 is the most difficult: You’re going to start a Twitter account from scratch. This seems daunting because here you are with a pathetic number of followers trying to get the attention of people with thousands and thousands of followers. Trust me, no one will ever view your follower count as pathetic. If you are focusing your tweets, people will see that you are trying to be a valuable contributor to their conversation. Everyone on Twitter started from scratch. You just happen to be doing that right now. No big deal.

Here’s the bottom line about Twitter: It’s here right now, the people you need are on it, and it will help you get things done faster, whether advancing your career, learning information or targeting your job search. Just ignore the hype and perceptions, think of yourself as a unique voice in what you do (and if you’re not sure what that voice is, don’t worry because you’ll end up developing one), and get really good at being concise!

I’ll be happy to help your follower count grow. Just send me a tweet saying you found me on Keppie Careers.

Need help getting your job hunt going? Learn more about me and Keppie Careers!

The post Guest post: Do something new for your job hunt, PT II appeared first on Keppie Careers.

This is a guest post from

You can find Jessica on Twitter @copytailor.

If you’re reading this post, you’re obviously familiar with the concept of sharing information and opinions via blogs. And you’re familiar with the concept of niche blogs, like this one.

Remember back when blogs were a new concept? When they were generalized as boring ramblings from people enamored with themselves? No one I knew had a blog. I would have been embarrassed to write a blog back then because I would have been seen as enamored with myself.

The general perception of blogs back then is not much different from the general perception of Twitter now. It’s humorous when you realize Twitter is classified as microblogging! What’s wrong with the public perception is it’s making you miss out on great experiences and opportunities — two things that, I know from experience, you likely are sorely lacking as a job seeker.

If you’re going to be a sheep, at least be one with a clue.

Let’s say you feel uncomfortable joining Twitter because you think you’ll be one of the sheep. The people you know perceive Twitter in a negative, time-wasting way. And no one you know is on Twitter. These people are all just staying within their comfort zone, doing what they’ve always done, telling you they don’t have time for the silliness of Twitter.

Let me tell you something: You become a sheep anyway for following them.

You have read about Twitter on Keppie Careers. I know from experience that you likely have been turning away from such praise for Twitter — if you ignore it, it’ll go away and you can feel good that you kept doing what you’ve been doing and thinking, “Oh, I’m not falling for that one!”

One thing I’ve learned in my job search: Do not keep doing something if it’s not working. It sounds like common sense, but with you’re dealing with so many unknowns in a job search, it’s easy to fall back on old advice or latch onto one piece of advice you read online or do what other people do because it’s easier to follow than lead. You want to follow the herd you’re familiar with. The problem is that herd isn’t looking out for you.

Stay tuned for more from Jessica tomorrow!

Need help getting your job hunt going? Learn what I offer job seekers!

photo by xotoko

The post Guest post: You can do something new for your job hunt appeared first on Keppie Careers.

When is the last time you really sat down to review how you were spending your hours? I think about this all the time as a business owner. What is the best use of my time? How can I help the most people? What are the best ways to approach new clients? What are efficient uses of my hours? How can I automate or outsource administrative tasks? What can I do to achieve my personal and business goals more quickly? Are there things that I need to say “no” to in order to stay on track and/or maintain my sanity?

I think many people struggle with these issues, but they are magnified for job seekers, who often allow themselves to be adrift in a sea of “job hunting” that doesn’t have much structure.

I have a client who lets me know that she is doing “a lot of networking” and applying for jobs, but is really frustrated because she has not landed something yet. She believes that she is doing everything she can. However, when I ask about what she is doing (specifically) or re-suggest a particular site or something to consider, she typically has NOT followed up on that suggestion.

So, some advice!

I’d suggest you make a list of all the things you are doing – people you are informational interviewing, companies you have researched, jobs you have applied for and other job seeking activities you have been doing so you can best evaluate the course of your job search. I know you feel that you have been doing a lot, but if you outline things, it may help identify deficiencies if there are any.

Take a good, long look at your list. What can you do MORE of? What can you do better? Maybe it “feels” like you are really busy and you have a sense you are doing a lot, but in reality, you can’t break it down in writing. Make yourself accountable. It makes a difference.

Need some help moving ahead with your search? Learn how I can help!

photo by Leo Reynolds

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