Using Twitter For Your Job Search

Today I'm going to write about something that I admit, I’m not very good at using – Twitter. I’m pretty savvy with my website (thank you Christine.biz) and blog (thank you me) but Twitter makes me feel amateurish.  I do know that Twitter is already a great learning tool (see Grey's Anatomy Episode 13  about Tweeting in the operating room) and it is a wonderful way to help with your job search.

I have had a Twitter account for about a year.  At first it just sat there and I didn’t have the time to figure out how to follow people or have them follow me.  Slowly, I discovered that Twitter is just one of the many tools that can be used to offer job search advice and help my business; I learned to use it a bit more.  I’m still stumped at some of the lingo and functions, but with time and research, I’ll figure them out.

Since this is a blog on the job search, I thought I’d share with you a couple of ways that you can learn AND look for a job on Twitter.  You first need to sign up for a Twitter account and then connect with people and organizations.  You then need to Tweet, or add content. The Twitter basics in the Help section can walk you through these as well as explain some of the lingo such as # and RT and @.  There are two pieces of advice that I’d like to share to get you started; job search help and looking for jobs (these sound like the same thing but they’re different).

1.       Job Search Help: There are numerous Tweets from companies, individuals or sites on Twitter that offer job search advice.  You can learn how to create a resume, interview, network, look for a job as a new graduate, senior, new mom…. The list goes on.  By simply typing Job Search in the Search box, you’ll be connected with many links and Tweets about the process.  It can be overwhelming though and you’ll need a bit of time to pick through the Tweets.  I found this great list of job search Twitter addresses from Career Rocketeer™.  I’ve bookmarked it and refer to it often.

2.       Looking for a Job: Once you get established and walk through the basic how tos, go to the Search box and type in your job title.  Recently I entered my title, “Learning & Development” and a scrolling list of learning and development jobs appeared.  They were global and domestic listings and many included salaries, companies and recruiting firms.  Most had a URL link or shortened URL link to save character space) that I could click to find out more information including the application process.

Twitter is a good place to connect and network too as many of the Tweets are from people in your field.  You can “Follow” these tweets and you can also post a tweet about your job search.  Since you are allowed 140 characters to type, you can ask something like, “Anyone know of an IT engineering position in NJ?”

These are just two simple ways to use Twitter to help your job search and I am sure there must be hundreds more.  I’m still trying to figure them out.  Please add your suggestions – we could all use the advice!