Using Social Media for Your Development

When I was working full time with an organization, I never thought about social media. I guess it’s the same for most people steaming ahead at their respective workplaces. If someone asked to connect on LinkedIn I usually put it off because I was too busy doing something.  Plus, I didn't really know how it worked.  It meant that I would have to create a LinkedIn page, something that I didn't think I had the time or energy to do. Then I thought, "Hummmm, is that person leaving their job and letting people know that they're looking?"

Fast forward a couple of years, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Xing and other sites are common place and yes, people are using them to find a job. It’s been splashed all over the place that networking, including social networking brings up to 85% of new jobs. What I never knew back then, is how helpful social media is in keeping up with the newest trends, technology and even buzz words in the industry. There are groups for everything and if a free membership to LinkedIn allows you up to 50 groups, then why not take advantage of them? Here is how I see social media helping both the employed and the active job seeker:

1. If you work full time, it is sometimes hard to keep up with current findings in your field.  You're either too busy putting out fires, creating something, servicing something, attending meetings, etc. While you are toiling away for those 8 - 10 hours a day, your field is changing. By joining a couple of LinkedIn groups or on-line professional discussion groups, you can read/learn/speak of the current opportunities in your industry.  Here's an exmple.  For years I was the only learning and development specialist in my organizational unit of 4,000 employees. I didn't have anyone to bounce ideas off or share tips. I just designed, developed and plowed ahead. Attending a conference was eye opening since there were hundreds of other professionals just like me! I always came home refreshed, energized and excited to try something new.  The same can be said about social media (without the trip to Orlando). The ideas, concepts and sharing are energizing and you can apply tips and share the results immediately.

2. If you are actively seeking work, your deep understanding of the current state of your field and industry can only help you. Your ability to speak comfortably about your past use of certain skills and the future outlook for certain technology, services, and your particular area of expertise will not disappoint.

3. As an independent contractor these same strategies hold true.  Why work in a vacuum when you can research, share information and stay on top of your industry?

Times are rapidly changing and within the past few years social media has become more common.  By taking advantage of it, you can stay current and active and feel as if your are making a contribution.

Preparing for the Interview

A few weeks ago I wrote about creating a statement on your resume that speaks about who you are.  This Impact Statement is all about selling you as THE person that a potential employer would want to walk in and take on the position.  We also talked about the "Tell Me About Yourself" question and how uncomfortable that question is to both the interviewer and interviewee. We suggested asking the interviewer to provide you with direction to your response.
The other day I had to sell myself and answer the "Tell me about yourself" statement at the same time.  I was approached to do some instructional design work for a company.  It wasn't about job search skills training; something I can talk about all day.  No, it was about the cycle of designing, developing and evaluating training programs for a pharmaceutical company - something that I haven't done in several years. So what did I do and how does it relate to a job search?

1.    Did my homework: I looked up the company again and again to figure out what they do and what they offer their customers. I reveiwed the industry wording.

2.    Researched new trends and industry jargon: I went on LinkedIn and joined an instructional design group.  Here I researched new trends in the field. When I didn't see anything, I asked the group if they could help. I got a couple of responses and read up on these.  I also looked up instructional design in the Occupational Outlook Handbook and aligned that wording with my past activities and knowledge of industry buzz words and jargon. I finally reviewed the trends in the field by Googling several professional group discussion boards (you don’t always have to join the professional group to read and respond to these boards).

3.    Designed my elevator speech: I had to change it because the focus changed. This wasn't a meeting about teaching job search skills.  I had to revamp it to include my "Why I'm the best" statement in regard to instructional design. (Gulp!) I went to measurements and statistics. How many years have I been in the business? How many programs and types of programs have I designed, facilitated? How did I measure effectiveness? How have I done needs analyses in the past? What were my successes? Why? By the way, while doing this I also noted my weaknesses.  There are certain areas where I know I lack the skill set and should the customer want these skills, I have to let them know that no, I don’t have the experience for that.

4.    Wrote it out and practiced. I wrote my elevator speech with a slant towards “Tell Me About Yourself.” (In a prior email, the company said they wanted to know about my experience in instructional design).

My statement included my company name, industry, and why I am the best. It generally said, “I am the owner and operator of Blackbird Learning Associates where for almost two years I have designed and developed training initiatives for the New Jersey state libraries and various corporations and community colleges. I have over 25 years experience analyzing organizational needs and designing, developing, implementing and evaluating learning and development programs. I have successfully trained over 5,000 employees in the pharmaceutical, banking and insurance industries.  I follow the ADDIE method of instructional design and I thought that today I would take you through my experience as it relates to the ADDIE method.”

All this work paid off and I received a contract with this company. Every job has different needs and if you prepare and focus on the particular needs of each organization, the selling part beomes a bit easier.  Good luck!

References

Wow - two blogs entries in one day!  I didn't want this one to get past me because I think it is really interesting.  A friend who works in a college sent me this article about emotive references. The article focuses on the different styles of references for both men and women and how some of these glowing tributes can actually hurt a woman's chances of getting the job in an academic situation.  I think that the same thing happens in other, non academic professions.

If this is true, then it seems to me that not much has changed over the past for years. What do you think?

Yahoo Calculator Samples

One of the first topics we talk about in Job Search for Moms is the ability to understand your financial situation in order to plan and conduct your job search accordingly. While the book offers charts and resources for your planning needs, I found that Yahoo Finance offers a variety of calculators in all sorts of financial areas to help you figure out your monetary needs and gaps.  As with any life change, it is important to reflect, plan and assess before moving forward.

November 11, 2010

My Dad was retired military.  He was in the US Army and fought in WWII and Korea.  I miss him.  My friend Laine posted this tribute to the Military in her blog.  I thought I would share it with you.

LinkedIn Groups

If you are reading this, chances are pretty high that you have a LinkedIn account and I am just preaching to the choir.  If you don't have a LinkedIn account, it's something you should seriously consider, especially for help in your job search. The main reason is because more and more companies and recruiters are turning to this particular social media site to help them find qualified candidates.  If that’s not enough, LinkedIn is a fantastic networking source.

This week in one of my job search classes, a participant who happens to be a registered nurse asked if LinkedIn has a group for nurses. Yes, in fact there are 631 nursing groups.  (I just checked.)  Many of the groups offer job search assistance while others help keep the nurses inside the groups on top of their games.

Take a look for groups in your area of expertise or interest.  You'll be pleasantly surprised at the number of members to share information and network with.  There really is something for everyone!  Some general guidelines are:
1. Follow the stated group rules
2. Don't SPAM
3. Ask and answer questions
4. Join conversations
5. Share information that you think the members might find helpful
6. Learn the difference between Discussion and Promotion

Finally, if you are looking for a job, be sure to join the many job search groups within LinkedIn. The newest suggestions are posted and there is terrific advice for the entire job search cycle. It is also a great place to network.

What's the Purpose Behind Weird Interview Questions?

I don't know what else to call them - weird, odd, strange, distorted interview questions.  What I also don't know is why interviewers even need to ask them. I understand that there are certain interviewing techniques and I research, teach and write about them all of the time. It's those weird questions that I just don't get.  What does, "How many pages does a newspaper have?" got to do with an open position unless you are applying for a job with the newspaper? How about, "What kind of car or bird or animal are you?" or "When you pay the toll on the parkway, what lane do you immediately head towards?" (I kind of get this one.)

I personally see no purpose for these questioning techniques especially for the average open positions. Questions should be focused on the position and the skills required for getting the job done.  There should be a dialog to see if the applicant can do the job, fit into the organization and if he or she wants the job. An interviewee usually prepares for the interview by:
a. Researching the company and matching his or her skills and experience to the needs of the organization.
b. Preparing a list of questions to ask the interviewer based again upon the needs of the organization or for general information.
c. Generating strengths, weaknesses and even the "Tell me about yourself " responses.

If an interviewer is trying to throw someone off their game, I can see how a question such as "How many pages in a newspaper" could do it.  If you are a recruiter or hiring manager, what’s the reasoning behind these types of questions?   If we weren't in the economic or unemployment straits we are in it would be comical for the interviewee to take a pass on this job and move on to the next more professional interview. 

What types of weird questions have been asked? Why do you think you were asked these questions?

Using Social Media for Your Business

There is a great article in the Newark Star Ledger today about using social media to enhance your business prospects. The article chronicles a real estate agent who juggles Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.  The same rules can be used for using social media for your job search.  Did you know that many recruiters and companies use social media to find the right candidates?  Many are stepping away from on line job boards in favor of social media.

The rules of social media haven't changed much:
1. Know your audience.
2. Clean up all of your social sites.  This means hiding those people who make the inappropriate comments or have the "unusual" photos.
3. Stay away from certain topics such as religion and politics.
4. Never bad mouth anyone including your former boss, company or peers.
5. Update.  Always update.  Also make sure that your profiles are 100% complete.

Here's another thing to think about.  In social media your voice is going everywhere.  Any remarks that you post in groups (Facebook) can be seen by anyone who Googles you. If you sign up for a MySpace account and put in the required information such as name, date of birth, etc, the whole world will see that too.  Again, tread gently with your comments and information.

If You Are Displaced, Make Use of What is Offered...

I just wrapped up a month long series of resume preparation, interviewing and networking classes for a company in my home state that is eliminating the positions of 140 employees. They contacted me in September and we began training in October. The classes were scheduled for twice a week and each session was four hours long.  We had a total of ten classes. Out of 140 displaced employees, guess how many made use of the job search training? Ten. Wow.

I've had discussions with the directors of various company outplacement centers about why displaced employees don't make use of these free job search resources.  I think we can narrow it down to a couple of things; anger about being let go, apathy about the situation and embarrassment.

The economy is terrible and since I have been offering job search training for almost two years now, I have seen a tremendous increase in the number of participants attending classes in just the past 10 months or so.  No matter what the media tells us, it is not getting better and if you are not prepared with the tricks, tips, and techniques to help you stand apart from the rest of the thousands of applicants for that one job, then you'll fall into a rut. An added benefit is the networking and support that you will receive from your classmates.

If you lose your position with your company, bite the bullet and take advantage of everything they offer you.  Attend classes, use any free resume preparation services if provided, and graciously take the books they offer you.  It is uncomfortable (I know firsthand) but it will make you a winner in the end.