In the eighth chapter of Brad & Deb Schepp’s book “How to Find a Job on LinkedIn”, the website Twitter is presented. In fact, Brad & Deb tell us that “it is easy to dismiss Twitter as nothing more than just a way to fritter away your time to no good end. If you do this, you will make a mistake that could delay the successful end to your job search or cut off a steady stream of new business (p.169).”

This is so true.

Like mentioned in the previous chapter which presented Facebook, chapter eight reveals that Twitter is also a viable place to search for work and discover it. Remember, say Brad & Deb, that you are always asking the perennial Twitter question “what are you doing?” And, so, of course you can say “updating my resume and profile at Dice Dot Com” or “confirming a job interview for tomorrow morning”. So, when people read this, they will essentially “get your drift” that you are actively looking for employment or business opportunities.

Twitter describes itself as a service for friends, family, and co-workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: “what are you doing?”. So, in this microblogging platform, you do not need to write a whole blog post. Rather, you simply need to summarize your activities at that current moment. At one point last year, several actors and actresses had acquired more than one million Twitter subscribers. So, if actress Demi Moore tweeted to tell the world her plans for that day, instantly, all subscribers would be “in the know” as if they were right there with her. The same is true for you. As you build a subscriber base, you can tell these individuals what you are doing and more specifically, that you are actively pursuing work opportunities.

What this means, of course, is that subscribers who empathize with your cause will contribute information that will be helpful, normally. This is the magic of social networking. People who know of specific opportunities will help you out and will become active participants as helpers. Isn’t that great. Perhaps if Twitter was around in 1990 when I went on more than 50 job interviews for an entry-level computer programming job in Boston, then that job search would have been easier! For sure. So, create a nice and professional looking page at Twitter using their basic templates and tweet away. Your chances of producing leads and helpful information is just as good at Twitter as it would be at Facebook, and could even be considered on par with LinkedIn.

All The Best,

Keith

Visit Brad & Deb Online
Visit Pinny Cohen Online
Visit Twitter Online

There is a new & cool website on the Internet called Voizle Dot Com. Essentially, this website has been created so that you don’t have to pass on lengthy URLs to your friends and family, regardless of whether you are chatting via IM (instant messenger) or simply exchanging e-mails. All you need to do is enter the original (and usually long) URL in the top text-box (see image above). Then click on the Create button and a new and shorter URL is created using the voizle domain.

Here is an example for you.

Original URL:

http://health.msn.com/blogs/defy-your-age-post.aspx?post=1641996

Voizle New and Shorter URL (you can pass on to others):

http://u.voizle.com/jx7me

All The Best,

Keith

Essentially, there are nine (9) sister projects of the great Wikipedia project & website. They are all free information sources created to help you with different sorts of information consultation. They, like Wikipedia, are part of the Wikimedia Foundation.

They are as follows (with hyperlinks for you to visit)…

COMMONS

META-WIKI

All The Best,

Keith

The Seventh Chapter of Brad & Deb Schepp’s great book How To Find a Job on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and Other Social Networks formally leaves the domain of LinkedIn and begins exploring other social networks like Facebook. Specifically, the prevailing concept that is presented in this chapter is that most people do not believe that social networks, per say, can really help you find work. Rather, social networks are something that are supposed to be aside from your professional life. In fact, in a survey cited in this chapter (by the company Robert Half), most people think that professional networks alone are the best way to find a job. In fact, almost two-to-one who were surveyed thought that social networks were not an appropriate place to look for a job.

However, this figure has changed since the current recession began in 2008. In fact, since 2008, the overall opinion about social networks has changed immensely. Now, for the first time, people are actually turning to social networks (Facebook mostly) to enhance their job search when they feel they have reached the limits with traditional professional networks like LinkedIn.

Brad & Deb entitle Chapter 7 as “Facebook, For College Kids and Their Parents, Too” because this is the case. In fact, Facebook was started by Mark Zuckerberg inside his dormitory room at Harvard University, however, this “original social college friends network” has expanded and now has over 150 million members. Facebook is now FIVE times the size of LinkedIn. Impressive? You bet. So, if LinkedIn has not helped you, then you can (and very carefully) turn to Facebook.

Chapter 7 is the first step in a series of chapters that address social networks other than LinkedIn. The fact that Brad & Deb have devoted half of this book to LinkedIn says a lot, I believe. At the same time, we need to move ahead at this point and hear what they have to say about Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Plaxo and “beyond”. As previously mentioned, Facebook today has 150+ million members. That is amazing. In fact, Facebook has more than just people there. It also has groups and different ways of subscribing to different groups of all kinds, and perhaps within these affiliations you will be able to network and ultimately find yourself needed work. This blog post concludes Chapter Seven (7) of Ten (10) of one of the greatest and most helpful how-to books that we have right now, especially considering the difficult times that many American and International professional readers are facing. I wish you all success in your job search, and that is why I am doing this “Julie and Julia” blogging approach to better understand this great book by Brad & Deb Schepp.

All The Best,

Keith

Visit Brad & Deb Online (Book Authors)
Visit Pinny Cohen Online (Book Recommendation)

For those of you who accepted Google’s invitation to join the new BUZZ platform, one of my Buzz friends (Alexander Blom) recently informed me that he has a new application which lets you Tweet right as you are creating a Google Buzz. Too good to be true? Will this be too much? Well, I am going to follow this thread for a while and then I will let you know my feelings on this. At the onset, it seems like a great idea, so you don’t have to repeat yourself between platforms. On the other hand, this could become overwhelming, but I am not going to say anything just yet. Let’s let time prove the test and validate this seemingly cool new application. Many thanks, Alex, and let’s see if this program is accepted by Buzzers and Tweeters alike.

Here is the URL to Buzz Can Tweet:

http://www.buzzcantweet.com/

All The Best,

Keith

Using LinkedIn on the Job

In Chapter 6 of Brad & Deb Schepp’s book How To Find a Job on LinkedIn, Chapter 6 is called Using LinkedIn on the Job and the purpose of this chapter is just that: to utilize LinkedIn for professional ends. This chapter provides “creative” answers to this question (p. 127). Of course, you need to make sure that what you are doing at LinkedIn is compliant with the policies and procedures of your company.

Here is a list that summarizes how you may Use LinkedIn on the Job:

1. Using LinkedIn to locate vendors
2. Doing market research including online focus groups
3. Locating industry experts
4. Tracking sales leads
5. Supporting purchasing decisions
6. Staying current with your industry
7. Scouting for possible new hires
8. Conducting reference checks
9. Finding other recent hires

Have a great weekend,

Keith Johnson

Visit me at LinkedIn
Visit Brad & Deb Online (book authors)
Visit Pinny Cohen Online (book recommendation)

Dear Readers:

Today’s post is a simple one but important one. A keyword that you should always keep in your mind, especially in today’s Information Age, is the word repository. Why do I say this? Well, it is because there is always a discrepancy between your actual knowledge-base and applied information. In other words, regardless of whether you are in school or have a job, there is always an active difference between the valuable knowledge that you possess and what you apply. In fact, since graduating from college, there has never been a job where I have been able to apply all of my key knowledge-bases. In fact, most jobs only want you to apply a very limited bandwidth of your total knowledge-base. So, this means that a majority of your knowledge does NOT get applied. So what can you do so that this knowledge does not just wither away? The answer: create a knowledge repository.

How do I do this? Personally, I recommend you establish either a blog or do some volunteer work where you can actively apply your knowledge and skills that you value. Let’s say you are a programmer and your current job is only working with a database and generating reports. However, you also know how to build a website and code HTML, CSS and work with shopping cart programs. So, my recommendation is to do a few volunteer jobs for friends where you can put these skills to work. After this, keep a flash drive with these development files that you can revisit. This is how you establish a repository.

Even as a Technical Writer, I have a knowledge and skills repository. I work mostly with Robohelp from Adobe, but from time to time I help friends with other little projects so that I can apply skills and knowledge that I don’t use on a regular basis. So, like the athlete that uses only a limited scope of skills in his or her sport, he or she can always go to the gym and work out the muscles that are not used in the sport. This way the athlete stays on top of all things. Repository: a great keyword to remember.

Regards,

Keith

The Seven Heavens of Success e-book is now available in the Portuguese language. So, if any of you are from Brazil or Portugal or another Portuguese-speaking nation, click on this link to enjoy my recent e-book, now in your native language

The Seven Heavens of Success: Portuguese Version

For those of you here in the U.S. —> Happy President’s Day.

Cheers,

Keith

Dear Visitors & Blog Subscribers:

Because I have received one-hundred-plus requests for this e-book, I have decided to publish it formally with Lulu Publishers where it now comes with a cover page and download page on the Lulu website. You don’t need to ask me anymore for this book, just click on the following link. As mentioned in the book, the writings in this work are merely reflective and their only purpose is to get you thinking about your career goals and determine which ones are best for you

Click here to download your free copy of The Seven Heavens of Success

All The Best,

Keith

How To Find a Job on LinkedIn: Chapter 5

Welcome readers and blog subscribers! I am glad to see you here on post five (5) of ten (10) about Brad & Deb Schepp’s great book about LinkedIn. The chapters up to this point have been strategic regarding setting up an account at LinkedIn, building your network, and then starting to cultivate professional relationships from that point forward. However, Chapter 5 tells you how to become part of the LinkedIn community.

Essentially, the way you create a positive presence at LinkedIn is by participating in the exchange of information. Specifically, you can ask questions and also provide answers to questions. My recommendation is that you first join a few groups that are related to your professional area. For example, I am a Technical Writer, so I am part of a Technical Writing group and a Software group. This allows me to give answers to questions that other members have asked.

In the screenshot above, you will see that it is easy to ask a question at LinkedIn. At your profile’s home page, click on the More tab, and within that tab click on Answers. A window will display in your browser, and you will need to click on the Ask a Question tab. The contents of this window will modify so that you can enter information regarding the question you are going to ask. Due to space limitations of this blog post, I was not able to capture the entire window, but if you scroll down, you will see additional fields that you must complete as well. When you have completed all these fields, click on the Ask Question button. Your question will be submitted to LinkedIn and others at LinkedIn will be able to respond to your inquiry.

When you ask quality questions, you will demonstrate to other LinkedIn members that you are an individual with awareness and concern about fine details of your area and so this indirectly shows others that you are committed to your professional field and share such professional concerns. So, yes, go to LinkedIn and create a profile, network and get references. You can even send a few messages to close friends and colleagues in the LinkedIn message center. However, to expand your horizons, you need to demonstrate your professional knowledge and concerns about specific topics in your field. This can be done by asking good questions and then responding to the answers that are given by other LinkedIn members. Thanks for such an informative chapter, Brad & Deb! I really enjoyed reading and reviewing Chapter Five.

All The Best,

Keith Johnson, M.S. Education
Technical Writer & Documentation Specialist
Visit me at LinkedIn

Visit Brad & Deb Online (book authors)
Visit Pinny Cohen Online (book recommendation)