As the end of the year approaches, we’re all inspired to make life-changing improvements. While you’re reflecting on 2010 and planning for 2011, take some time to think about your job-search strategy and include it in your resolutions.
Here are six New Year’s job-search resolutions to consider:
1. I will build my online presence.
If you’re reluctant about using social media tools for your job search, let go of your fears in 2011. Building an online presence is likely to take your job search to new heights. What do employers see when they do a Google search for your name? Consider starting a blog, uploading your VisualCV, participating in LinkedIn group discussions, and making new connections with like-minded professionals on Twitter. A strong online presence raises your visibility with potential employers and could help you uncover hidden job opportunities.
[See 10 Smart Ways to Use Social Media for Your Job Search.]
2. I will update my resume and personalize my cover letter.
Don’t lose an opportunity to apply for a job because you haven’t updated your resume. The beginning of the year is a wonderful time to reflect on your career accomplishments and future goals—and incorporate them into your resume, cover letter, online profiles and other job-search materials.
Check out the rest on US News and World Report’s On Careers blog: 6 New Year’s Resolution for Job Seekers
This is a post by guest columnist, Alison Kenney.
Are you inspired at work? Is your current job the perfect job for you? If not, how do you decide what to do next? Are you a good judge of your own strengths? Recently I was reading an interview the New York Times did with Kathy Savitt, CEO of Lockerz, when it hit me…the same tough questions Kathy uses to grill job candidates during interviews can be turned around and used by the candidates to help identify the perfect job or qualities to look for in a new job.
Adam Bryant, who writes The New York Times “Corner Office” column asked Kathy Savitt what questions she asks in a job interview. Here are some of her examples:
Q: “What did you love most about the work you just finished doing?”
I imagine Kathy asks candidates this to get a sense of where their commitments lie. I think it’s a good way to prioritize career goals and help focus a job search. For instance, if you loved writing in your last PR job but loathed pitching media, perhaps you’ll find inspiration as a speech writer, copy writer or freelance writer.
Q: “If you could take 100 percent of your abilities and create a job description, what would it look like?”
You can learn a lot about people or about yourself with this question. It’s a way to turn the tables – rather than squeezing the candidate’s experiences and qualifications into a pre-existing job description, you can find out what someone is really like as a person. Listening to which qualities are mentioned first or highlighted more than others is also telling. It can also be a wake-up call to job seekers whose skills may be outdated or irrelevant to the positions they’re interviewing for.
Q: “Who’s been the best manager you’ve ever had? Who’s been the worst?”
The intention isn’t to name names here, but rather to focus on the qualities that were most, or least, appreciated in a manager. Presumably this will also tell you what type of environment the job candidate is most suited for. For instance, if your favorite manager was someone who gave you a lot of room to make your own decisions, to speak out publicly or to represent the business, you are probably not a fit for more structured environments with multiple managerial layers.
Q: “If everyone here was a CEO and I was to make you the CEO of something, what would it be?”
Kathy says she asks that because she likes to get a sense of the candidate’s passions and what they want to “own” in a new job. This is the ultimate segway into thinking about how you can invent or reinvent yourself, i.e. what do you want to be known for?
Q: “Who’s your wackiest friend?”
This is another question designed to find out what someone is really like. It can also be a good way to see what type of office culture is the best fit for you. Do you have a lot of different types of friends (which could mean you get along with a variety of different people or are very outgoing)? Once you start thinking about which friends are the wackiest, you’ll also start to think about what kind of influence these friends have on you or how their behavior affects you.
Of course, there is no shortage of interview techniques and personality quizzes that can help job seekers find their way along the career path. Back in 2008, USA Today wrote about the turn interview questions are taking (toward crazy). And U.S. News & World Report recently wrote about how to respond if you’re asked a “crazy” interview question.
What was the best interview question you were ever asked?
Alison Kenney an independent PR practitioner with more than 15 years of PR consulting experience. She is based on Boston’s North Shore and has worked with organizations in the technology, professional services and consumer industries. She writes a bi-monthly PR column on LindsayOlson.com. You can find her at www.kprcommunications.com. Learn more about Alison Kenney.
Does your LinkedIn summary say something like ” Public relations professional with extensive experience working with innovative companies in the technology sector”? If so, it might be time to consider a revamp, according to LinkedIn.
Today, LinkedIn released the 2010 list of overused professional buzzwords. Here are the top 10 terms for United States professionals.
- Extensive experience
- Innovative
- Motivated
- Results-oriented
- Dynamic
- Proven track record
- Team player
- Fast-paced
- Problem solver
- Entrepreneurial
Using adjectives to describe your professional experience doesn’t tell the world anything about you. You’ll be much better off describing your experience with action verbs and describing your specific successes along the way. Karen Burns has some good advice on how to power up your resume (and it also works for your LinkedIn profile) and her own list of 50 buzzwords you shouldn’t use on your resume.
LinkedIn also has a few tips to help you get the most out of your profile. Completing your profiles means your are 12 times more likely to be viewed for new opportunities if you have more than one position listed on your profile. LinkedIn also suggests customizing your profile URL so it comes up in a Google search result for your name because most employers are doing a search before you interview.
Source: Business Wire
Everyone makes mistakes once in a while. No matter how long you’ve been in the workforce or how much you’ve honed your interview skills, you’ll still make the occasional mistake. And when you’re looking for a job, some of those mistakes can be fatal.
Here are five common mistakes candidates make during the interview process and lessons you can learn from each:
1. Writing the wrong company name on your correspondence. Job seekers spend countless hours interviewing before finding the right position, so it’s natural to use some of the same content from a previous follow-up letter. That’s fine—it saves you time. But double-check that you’ve addressed the letter to the company you’re interviewing with. It’s also wise to double-check the spelling of the interviewer’s name.
Lesson: A lack of attention to detail could cost you the job. As a job candidate, you must convince the prospective employer that you truly want to work for their company, not any company.
For the rest of the tips, go see my US News & World Report this week at Job Seekers: Don’t Make These Mistakes
Post by guest PR columnist, Alison Kenney.
I’m fascinated by Groupon. And LivingSocial and Local Ginger — to name a few of the many “daily deal” sites I subscribe to.
While I know that the concept of “daily deals” or “limited time-only specials” that is not new, I’m amazed by how many of these sites exist now and am blown away by the estimated valuation of Groupon, as evidenced by the fact that Google was offering to buy it for over $5 billion. Yes, that’s billion with a “B.”
Recently I had the pleasure of listening to Ted McNamara, CFO of Rue La La, another daily deal site. He explained Rue La La’s approach to advertising and customer acquisition this way:
Under the traditional online shopping model, merchants pay Google to appear near the top of the list when a shopper searches for a brand on Google. The problem with this model from an online merchant’s point of view is that there’s rarely a chance to build loyalty. Instead the customer builds their loyalty to Google and its search capabilities and returns to Google the next time they want to find/buy something. Rue La La decided they could scrap their Google Ads budget and be much more cost-effective and productive by encouraging shoppers with exclusive (but free) “membership” to their daily digest of high-end boutiques offering selective merchandise at great value. As a Rue La La member, the customer is more loyal to the site and returns much more frequently.
TechCrunch also wrote about these “build it” vs. “buy it (ads on Google)” options from a local merchant’s point of view and the Groupon vs. Google struggle for local social mindshare.
Groupon’s success and its somewhat stunning dismissal of Google’s acquisition offer have led many to speculate about the future of Google. Groupon has shown that social and local are hot. In addition to failing to acquire Groupon, Google also failed in a bid to acquire Yelp last year and killed Foursquare predecessor Dodgeball after acquiring it. Does Google just not understand social? Are entrepreneurs like Groupon’s Andrew Mason afraid of what will happen to their social local businesses once Google gets them?
What do you think? Do you use daily deal sites personally or as a marketer?
Alison Kenney an independent PR practitioner with more than 15 years of PR consulting experience. She is based on Boston’s North Shore and has worked with organizations in the technology, professional services and consumer industries. She writes a bi-monthly PR column on LindsayOlson.com. You can find her at www.kprcommunications.com. Learn more about Alison Kenney.
This blog is to share my recruiting experiences and discuss thoughts on the job market, PR industry and technology.
Alison Kenney is an independent PR practitioner with more than 15 years of PR consulting experience.
