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#CareerAdvice :#CareerAdvancement -Four Things To Do This Summer To Advance #YourCareer .

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Summer is the perfect time to focus some attention on your career success. Why? Because work inevitably slows down a little then; people take vacation and leave early on Fridays. In most industries, it’s a time for relieving some of the pressure.

You too need to use your vacation time to recharge and get some perspective, so don’t miss the beach and backyard barbecues. But while you’re at it, make time for some career-focused action that will give your personal brand a boost when the workplace is back to its bustling buzz in the fall.

Here are four things that will help you and your brand blast into September.

1. Prepare For Your Annual Review

For most companies, the (often dreaded) annual review process happens some time in the last four months of the calendar year. Don’t wait for the email from your boss scheduling your review meeting. Prepare now so you can ace it. Here’s how:

  • Do an inventory of your wins to date. Think back over the first half of the year and document your biggest contributions. Focus on the ones that are really important to your manager and help you showcase the value you deliver to the team and company. Document them using this formula: C-A-R.
  • C is for challenge. Describe the challenge you sought the resolve.
  • A is for action. Describe what you did to solve the problem or meet/exceed the need.
  • R is for result. Record the specific, measurable results of your action. How can you measure the value of your contribution? If you can quantify it, all the better.

  • Get input and feedback from others to help you make your case. Collect your fan mail and accolades, especially from senior leaders or people respected in your field.

    Think about what you would like for the coming year. More responsibility? A leadership role? An international assignment? Put together the pitch that will convince your boss to help you make it happen.

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    What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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    2. Mentor, Lead And Support The Intern

    If you want to demonstrate that you’re leadership material, take on the role (official or not) of managing the summer intern(s). You’ll feel great about helping a junior-level colleague build skills that will be helpful to their career success. In many companies, the intern is not given a lot of direction, support, feedback or mentoring. That creates an opportunity for you to become known as someone who leads the way.

    3. Put Your Q4 Social Media Calendar Together

    You know how you always say, “I wish I could be more regular with my social media. If only I had more time.” Well, with the summer here, you have a little more time. But instead of just upping your social media contributions in the summer, prepare a plan for the fall that will ensure that you’ll be visible, valuable and available to the people you seek to influence. Then:

    • Identify the most important social media platform for increasing your visibility with stakeholders.
    • Determine what you’d like to say. What’s your message and point of view and how can you best express it?
    • Create evergreen content for the platform you selected. If you chose LinkedIn, for example, write articles for your LinkedIn Blog. Commit to writing four so you can publish one each month—September through December. They need not be long, just make sure they deliver value to the community you seek to influence.

    4. Update Your Digital Brand

    Egosurf. That’s what it’s called when you google yourself. Then check out what shows up on page 1. Ask yourself what people would think about you if they hadn’t met you and were just forming a first impression of you from your Google results. Then determine what changes you’d like to make to align that first impression with your real-world personal brand.

    Pay close attention to your LinkedIn profile. It will likely show up toward the top of your page-one results. If your headshot is out-of-date, update it. If your About section is missing some of your latest wins, edit it. Make sure that your LinkedIn profile conveys your authentic credibility and likability, and make sure the answer to this questions is yes: Would someone want to get to know me after reading my LinkedIn profile?

    How’s that for a list of Summer Camp activities? When you complete it, you’ll feel accomplished, and you and your personal brand will be prepared to make the final quarter  fruitful.

    Author: William Arruda is the cofounder of CareerBlast and creator of the complete LinkedIn quiz that helps you evaluate your LinkedIn profile and networking strategy.

    I’m a personal branding pioneer, motivational speaker, founder of Reach Personal Branding and cofounder of CareerBlast.TV. I’m also the bestselling author of the definit…

     

 

Forbes.com | July 18, 2019

#CareerAdvice : #JobSearch – 13 Tips For Standing Out On Your Next #JobApplication .

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When applying for a job, you may be one of the hundreds or thousands that are all going for the same position. It can be a real challenge to get recognized and land that job that you are so fiercely competing for.

With a little effort, however, you can learn how to stand out from the crowd and win that employer over. Whether by using creative techniques such as creating a personal brand video and leveraging social media, or by going the more traditional route of showcasing your experience and developing strong communication skills, there are several strategies you can use.

For the best strategies, we asked 13 members of Forbes Human Resources Council to share their input on the most effective things job candidates can do to get noticed by recruiters.

1. Be Perceptive

If a candidate can show they are really perceptive to what the real need is in the job description, they can stand out. This is beyond just repeating buzzwords or listing the same skills. It’s truly ensuring the resume is reflective of how they can make a difference by demonstrating they understand what it will take to be successful in the role and can be the solution the role is designed to address. – Hafiza Gujaran, AlixPartners

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2. Have Good Communication Skills

What’s the one requirement employers list for every job? Good communication skills. Candidates who can demonstrate this in their emails, conversations, resume, cover letter and application materials are already ahead of the game. In addition, those with an interest in writing and whose communication skills extend to blogs, articles and social media posts truly set themselves apart from others. – John Feldmann, Insperity

Forbes Human Resources Council is an invitation-only organization for HR executives across all industries. Do I qualify?

3. Showcase Your Point Of View

Regardless of level, companies look to hire individuals who can replicate success and bring innovative solutions to their organization and industry. Candidates should consider showcasing their ideas and thought leadership by writing an article on a relevant industry challenge or topic. This will increase your visibility and demonstrate you have a point of view. – Geline Midouin,McCann Health

4. Leverage Your Network

Do your research and see what connections in your professional or personal network may lead you to a great contact within the organization. Ask for introductions and referrals. If you don’t have a connection to someone in the organization, consider reaching out to someone on the recruiting or hiring team to establish rapport and express your genuine interest in the company and role.  – Alina Shaffer, LivingHR, Inc.

5. Customize, Customize, Customize

Candidates must customize their resume for every job. The day of a single resume for all applications is outdated. For every application, the candidate must review the job description and then customize their resume to the exact specifications listed. Frontline recruiters are looking for the candidates that best fit the initial parameters. – Ben Weber, Vendor Resource Management

6. Focus On Outcomes And Impact

Most resumes are a list of responsibilities. Stand out by including what outcomes you have achieved and what impact you have made by doing the things that you have done. Don’t just say that you lead a team of 20 people. Talk about how you have taken your team from a 20th percentile engagement group to a 90th percentile engagement group. – Lotus Buckner, NCH

7. Showcase Your Skills In Relevant Ways

Showcasing achievements in unique ways can really help candidates stand out⁠—like the candidate who submitted her resume in chocolate or the engineering graduate who built his own portfolio platform to land a job out of college with NASA. A portfolio approach is relevant across industries, differentiates candidates and helps them prove their skills while demonstrating organizational fit. – Jeff Weber, Instructure

8. Quantify Accomplishments

One way to stand out from the crowd is to ensure that your accomplishments are quantifiable. They should be expressed in terms of numbers, percentages or time frames. Then be prepared to answer follow-up questions on specifically how you accomplished that feat with compelling examples that you could replicate at another company. – Sherrie Suski, Tricon American Homes

9. Voice Your Interest Directly

Standing out can be difficult, especially when competition is high. One common factor for hiring managers is time. Even with technology supporting applicant reviews and rankings, hiring managers still have functional areas to run, so a little creativity goes a long way. Candidates should consider contacting the hiring manager directly to express their interest and value they bring to the position. – Dr. Timothy J. Giardino, Cantata Health & Meta Healthcare IT Solutions

10. Create A Short Personal Brand Video

Applicants should create a short personal brand video that gives an employer a sense of their skills, achievements and personality, then link to it at the top of their resume or provide it in an online application. Ensure the video is professional, clean and culturally appropriate to hiring companies. That way, employers can quickly gauge an applicant’s work and demeanor to see if they’re a fit. – Genine Wilson, Kelly Services

11. Use Social Media To Connect

Join social media groups that pertain to your career choice and follow the company (or companies) you’d like to work for. Then, interact with the company on Twitter and Instagram in a positive and professional way. This gets your name in front of them and shows the hiring manager your personality before they even meet you. – Greg Furstner, SkillPath

12. Create A Stellar LinkedIn Profile

There’s nothing more disappointing than getting inspired by an awesome resume and then visiting that candidate’s LinkedIn profile to see unprofessional pictures, date and job discrepancies with the resume and nothing else of interest. Seeing the causes they care about that may align with our company’s mission definitely (in addition to a stellar resume) elevates that candidate’s status compared to peers. – Rachel Lyubovitzky,EverythingBenefits

13. Add Colors To Your Resume

Adding different colors to your resume can make a big difference. Different behavioral styles respond to different colors⁠—notice that many large companies use colors in their logos. However, using too much color or creativity could be distracting. So use good judgement. Make sure the resume is formatted correctly and spelling is correct. Have a few different people review it for you. –Frank Molinario, Security First Insurance Company Inc

Author: Forbes Human Resources Council

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Forbes Human Resources Council is an invitation-only, fee-based organization for senior-level human resources executives across all industries. Find out if you qualify a…

Forbes.com | June 17, 2019

#CareerAdvice : #JobSearch -This is the Easiest Way to Make your #LinkedInProfile Stand Out…One Small Tweak can Make a Big Difference.

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Whenever I deliver my LinkedIn workshop, I get a lot of pushback on the following point: How to write your headline on the social network.

A LinkedIn headline is the line directly under your name–on your profile page, in the sidebar of people similar to you, and what people see in search results when they type your name. It’s the thing that people view the most after your name and headshot.

But most people don’t exploit this opportunity. Instead, they fall back on LinkedIn’s default settings–which copy and paste your job title and employer into this critical field.

A JOB TITLE TELLS YOU NOTHING

My “official” title is president of the Jonathan Rick Group. But if I’d put that on my LinkedIn headline, most people will probably look at it and have no idea what that means.

Sure, the word “president” may be impressive, but it doesn’t give you any clue about what the job involves or what I can do for you. As much as I’d love to flatter myself, it’s unlikely that a prospective client would see the headline, “JRG president,” and instantly think, “This guy can solve all my digital marketing needs!”

I’d go so far as to say that the same thing would apply to my previous jobs, such as “senior strategist at Rock Creek Strategic Marketing,” and “senior consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton.” You may have heard of Booz Allen, but unless you’re a senior consultant at Booz Allen, you probably have no idea what my responsibilities looked like.

There’s a simple solution to this–customize your headline. Instead of meekly recording your title and company, try following the tried-and-true strategy of describing what you do and who you help. This is your elevator pitch in 120 characters.

Here are a few examples:

  • I help trade associations raise mountains of money.
  • I help Fortune 500 CEOs and tech entrepreneurs navigate and influence Washington, D.C.
  • Whatever the subject, I’ll make your message UBER: Understood, Believed, Enjoyed, and Remembered.

Earlier, I said that some folks rebel at the idea of a personalized headline. Let’s review their four strongest objections.

1. “MOST PEOPLE DON’T CUSTOMIZE THEIR HEADLINE”

This is true–but it’s because most people don’t know any better, just like they might not know the difference between a hashtag and a handle.

 

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2. “A CUSTOM HEADLINE TYPICALLY MEANS THE HEADLINER IS UNEMPLOYED”

Yes, plenty of people position themselves as consultants when in fact, they aspire to be consultants. An image I recently saw on Twitter captures the point poetically.

Don’t let that put you off, though. Let’s not let these self-proclaimed influencers/evangelists/whisperers ruin a good thing. After all, puffery tends to dissolve upon impact: Spend a few seconds scrolling through someone’s profile, and it’ll be clear whether they’re living up to their title, or whether they’re lying about it.

3. “THEY’RE TOO FLOWERY”

I’ve also heard plenty of people claiming that while a custom headline may be a good idea, in theory, people use it in off-putting ways. In short, they think that these made-up banners are too flowery or pretentious–and often both.

Again, I sympathize with this viewpoint. But just because someone else’s headline is fluffy doesn’t mean your headline needs to be. I’ve long railed against what I call the “laundry listers” (who can’t decide who they are, so they throw in everything) and the “keyword stuffers” (who use jargon instead of English to seduce the algorithms).

Here are some examples of a straightforward and not flowery headline:

  • Public policy advocate for the greater protection of our civil liberties
  • Licensed mental health social worker, treating trichotillomania and OCD
  • CPA, with 20 years of experience, specializing in real estate

To me, these lines sound far more intriguing and substantive than an unclear job title at a company people might or might not have heard of.

4. “I WORKED HARD TO GET HERE”

This objection seems to be one that people are extremely passionate about. If the first thing someone learns about me is that that I work at, say, the White House, he’s more likely to browse through my profile than if he sees I work at the White Group.

People argue that if they spend their days at a prestigious place, they shouldn’t obscure this accomplishment. After all, it takes talent to land at Goldman Sachs or Google, and isn’t LinkedIn all about showcasing that?

There are two issues here–one technical and one philosophical. Both revolve around prioritization.

The thing is, a custom headline doesn’t replace your title and company. The latter still very much forms part of your profile, at the top of your “experience” section. They’re just not the first thing people see.

When you value the institution over the individual, you also convey your insecurity. This mind-set suggests that you tie your professional identity to the company you work for, and that where you work is more important than what you do.

Instead of yoking yourself to your employer, cultivate your own identity. Recognize that your worth doesn’t require external validation. Your business card doesn’t bind you. It’s great to say, “I went to Harvard,” and that’s definitely something you should be proud of. But don’t let it define you. You’re much more valuable than that.

Author: Jonathan Rick is the president of the Jonathan Rick Group, a consultancy that helps people overhaul and optimize their LinkedIn profile. Follow him on Twitter at @jrick, where he tweets about the latest tricks in professional branding.

 

FastCompany.com | October 21, 2018

#CareerAdvice : #JobSearch – What #Recruiters Look at When Stalking Your #SocialMedia … You probably Already Know Recruiters are Looking at your #LinkedIn Page, but What About your Other Social Media Platforms?

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You know, the ones where you post pictures of your latest vacation, share what you had for dinner and occasionally tag your friends in memes. Why, you might wonder, would a recruiter possibly be interested in viewing things like that?

As it turns out, those personal details are precisely why recruiters and hiring managers keep tabs on applicants’ social media accounts, says career coach Hallie Crawford. “It can help them get a more accurate idea about who you are outside of your resume — a more personal view into your life,” she explains. “A resume can tell them your qualifications, but your social media profile can help them determine your personality type and if you would be a good fit for company culture.”

Plus, recruiters are looking for red flags — risqué photos, bad language, signs of drugs use — that would show them you’d be a less than ideal man or woman to have in their offices.

So now that you know why they’re looking, how about knowing what they’re looking at?

Facebook

According to Crawford, recruiters and hiring managers are concentrating their efforts on two sections of your Facebook page — your “about me” section, and your photo albums.

About Me: “They will want to see how you describe yourself and if it matches up [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][with] how you have described yourself in your cover letter and resume,” Crawford says. Any discrepancies could cost you points pre-interview. What’s more, Crawford says, “they will also be looking for proper spelling and grammar” in this section, to see how seriously you take those skills.

Photos: When it comes to your photos albums, “a hiring manager will be checking not only your photos but also your descriptions,” Crawford warns. “A hiring manager wants to see if you represent yourself in a professional way.” To come off in the most positive pre-meeting light, “you will want to avoid using profanity, sexual or drug references,” Crawford says.

5 Mistakes That Will Keep You From Getting Hired

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Twitter

Who You’re Following: “Recruiters like to see if you have any mutual connections and if you are connected with others in your industry,” Crawford explains. Following others in your industry is a smart thing to do no matter what — watching their feeds can give you a scoop on a new job opening, company announcements, the latest tech and much more.

Tweets: “Recruiters will be checking to see if you share useful information, if you share information relevant to your trade or if you just use tweets to fight with others,” Crawford says. If you’re applying for a job, take a look at your tweeting history and consider deleting anything that won’t show your best — and most thoughtful — self to a potential employer.

Instagram

Followers: Recruiters will check out the kind of followers you attract, Crawford says. Plus, they’ll want to see “how friendly and social you seem to be with your followers,” she says. What you say to them and what you say back, she explains, “can also give them insight [into] your personal relationships and if you would be a good cultural fit for the company.”

Pictures: You probably figured this, right? But recruiters are looking to see more than your photography skills (or lack thereof). “They will want to see how you represent yourself,” Crawford says. For example, “if you are at a party, do you represent yourself in a dignified way?” Crawford asks, or, “do you post things that others would consider inappropriate?”

Read Next: 16 Tips for Building an Online Personal Brand
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Your #Career : The Three Smartest Ways To Use #LinkedIn Early In Your Career…Why Bother using LinkedIn. When you Don’t have Much #JobExperience to Put On your #ProfilePage ? Here’s Why–and How to Do It.

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LinkedIn is a great place to build a network, diversify your knowledge, and find new career opportunities–even when you’re early in your career. Students and recent grads may neglect LinkedIn, thinking it’s premature to start investing time into the platform before actually building up a solid amount of work experience. That’s a mistake.

I’ve found unexpected opportunities lurking within LinkedIn that simply require some ingenuity to take advantage of. Here are a few tips that have worked for me in the past few years I’ve spent in the tech industry after graduating.

Related: How To Update Your LinkedIn Profile At Every Stage Of Your Career

1. START NETWORKING CONVERSATIONS YOU CAN TAKE OFFLINE

Yes, LinkedIn is kind of like a database. You load it up with information on your interests, objectives, skills, and accomplishments so the leaders and peers you connect with can tell what you’re all about. Obviously, when someone checks out your profile, you’ll want it to be thorough and compelling.

But all the work you put into your profile is just a springboard for reaching out to other professionals in your industry. Whenever you come across someone you’d like to connect with on LinkedIn, your real objective should be to take the conversation you strike up offline as quickly as possible. Don’t treat LinkedIn the way you might operate on Instagram, racking up contacts you have no intention of interacting with in the real world.

LinkedIn is a means to an end, and that end goal should always be real-time conversations–ideally face to face, or by phone if necessary when you live in different places and don’t plan to visit soon. Using LinkedIn to set up face-to-face meetings with new people is a crucial and underutilized tactic for younger professionals working to build their networks in a meaningful way.

Related: Recruiters Explain What The Worst LinkedIn Profiles Have In Common

2. TREAT LINKEDIN LIKE A FREE SEMINAR

Learning quickly at a new job is one of the most exciting and daunting tasks entry- and associate-level workers usually face. First you have to learn your role and size up the work culture. Then you’ve got to get a handle on the industry and understand how your company is competing in the market. LinkedIn can actually help you with all of that.

So search for and join groups, follow leaders, comment on conversations, and share interesting stories. You can start by following industry-specific groups, first as an observer, and then as a participant as you get more comfortable. Make sure you also pay attention to what your company and its competitors are posting. Staying engaged–even by checking in on the chatter just once a week or so–can help you stay informed and ahead of the game.

 

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Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall

Google+:  https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search:  https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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3. SCOUT FOR JOB OPPORTUNITIES WHEN YOU AREN’T ACTIVELY LOOKING

Even if you’re not actively looking for a new job, you should be using LinkedIn to reel in potential opportunities pretty much all the time.

How? The first part is just network building: Add the people you meet through work and at industry events on LinkedIn, and follow up with personalized notes. This might not feel like job searching, but it’s a crucial precondition to hearing about openings that may bubble up. Plus, if you want to reach out later when you are ready to job search, they’ll remember who you are. The second step is to keep putting yourself out there. Write articles, comment on your connections’ posts, and share interesting news stories you read. This is another great way to lay a breadcrumb trail that potential employers can find.

When you’re early in your career, recruiters and search firms might not be as likely to land on your doorstep–they’re often retained to help organizations fill higher-level roles. So it’s all the more important to be proactive, treating pretty much all LinkedIn activity as a potential step toward your next role. With that said, when you do get contacted about job opportunities on LinkedIn, make sure to respond even if you aren’t interested. You never know if you might want to work with that organization some other time.

In short, LinkedIn is a great place to learn, grow, and build relationships–even when you don’t have the most impressive credentials to plaster your profile with. It’s a competitive business world out there, and early-career professionals should get engaged early in order to get an edge over those who don’t bother to do the same.

Stephanie Glass is the head of product marketing for Aera Technology’s AI solutions, where she’s responsible for product strategy and the execution of product marketing programs. She brings to Aera experience in AI, machine learning, planning, and analytics, with past roles at Anaplan, GoodData, and Jive Software.

 

FastCompany.com | April 25, 2018 | BY STEPHANIE GLASS 3 MINUTE READ

Your #Career : 5 Reasons You’re Not Hearing Back from #Recruiters (Prospective Company)……There is So Much About the Recruitment Process that is Beyond Any of your Control. Control the Parts of the Process that you Can, and Take the Rest in Stride!

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Not hearing back from recruiters can chip away at our confidence and motivation to continue a job search.

Rather than getting discouraged, let’s look at some common reasons recruiters might not be calling you back and discuss your possible course of action to see better results. 

1. Your Resume

Your resume is the first critical step to getting you through the door. Some common resume mistakes include: 

Format: Color, pictures, funky fonts, wasted white space, misaligned paragraphs, and inconsistency all create an unfriendly experience for a recruiter

Grammar: 58% of recruiters will automatically dismiss a candidate over typos. Make sure to always print your resume out and have someone read it over! 

Content: Your professional story and accomplishments should stand out immediately on your resume. If the bullet points are not relevant to the job, it will serve as a distraction. 

Consider your resume as a marketing piece that is constantly evolving. Don’t wait until you are unemployed to build your rockstar resume, as this should be a continuous practice. 

What Recruiters Want to See at Each Stage of the Interview Process

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What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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2. Your LinkedIn Profile 

Think of your LinkedIn profile as an extension of your resume, and landing page for recruiters to see what you’re all about. When it comes to LinkedIn, two red flags for recruiters include:

  • Having an incomplete or unprofessional LinkedIn page: Your profile is a reflection of your personal brand. Having a sloppy, incomplete, or unprofessional page will leave a bad first impression with a recruiter. 
  • When your resume and LinkedIn don’t align: If the dates and titles on your LinkedIn don’t match up, this will raise concerns with recruiters and make them question your level of detail, or how truthful you’ve been about your work experiences. 

Make sure your LinkedIn profile has a dynamic headline with up to date and accurate information. Like your resume, it must be perfectly formatted, with a professional headshot, and no typos! Highlight your achievements and make sure your skills are listed. There are so many ways to up your LinkedIn game, so don’t miss out on this low hanging fruit! 

How To Update Your LinkedIn Profile Without Alarming Your Boss

3. You’re not qualified

Unfortunately, you simply might not be qualified for the job you’ve applied to. It’s possible that not all the criteria required for the job was not listed, or the needs of the job have changed. Take the time to properly evaluate the position and consider if there is a strong enough alignment between your credentials and job requirements. 

If you’re not qualified on paper, but know you could still add value to the organization through this position, you can always try bypassing the recruiter by reaching out directly to the hiring manager through LinkedIn. This way, you can sell yourself directly to the decision makers and demonstrate how your work has consistently led to successful outcomes.

4. The job was put on hold

Candidates can often make it far down the interview process before the organization decides to put the job on hold. Reasons for this can vary from lack of internal agreement about the role, hiring freezes, or changing needs of the organization. 

Ideally, the recruiter should communicate any changes, but unfortunately, this is not always the case. There is not much you can do besides follow up with the recruiter and tactfully ask for an update. 

Is it Still Possible to Get Hired After Being Rejected?

5. An offer was made to another candidate

The competition for most jobs is fierce! Typically, a recruiter will consider a handful of candidates before narrowing it down to one person. Additionally, an internal applicant might have appeared and been given preference for the role. 

6. Your interview didn’t go as well as you thought 

Evaluating ourselves and our performance objectively is quite challenging, even for the best and the brightest of us. Think back to your interview, and really reflect on how things went. 

The only way to really make sure you’re performing at your best is to prepare, prepare, and prepare! Ask for feedback whenever possible or consider having a friend do a mock-interview with you. Constructive criticism is important and the sooner you understand where you’re going wrong, the sooner you can make improvements! 

There is so much about the recruitment process that is beyond any of our control. Though it can feel like a personal hit when a recruiter ignores your efforts, remember that a big organization can receive up to 900 applications for a single job posting. Control the parts of the process that you can, and take the rest in stride! 

 

Stacy Pollack is a Learning Specialist with an MA in educational technology. She is passionate about building leadership programs that engage and contribute to the success of her organization. She loves to share her perspective on job hunting, career building, and networking for success. Connect with her onLinkedIn or Twitter.

GlassDoor.com | March 20, 2018 | Stacy Pollack

Your #Career : Do This To Write A More #EmotionallyIntelligent #LinkedInProfile ….Don’t just List Out Skills Associated with Emotional Intelligence. Here’s How to Adapt a Technique from Psychology to appear More Approachable on LinkedIn.

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LinkedIn is a great place to network and look for jobs, but a lot of people’s profiles feel stiff and standoffish–at least compared with other social media platforms. We talk all the time about the rising value of emotional intelligence in the workforce, and there’s lots of advice on how to show it off on a job interview.

But that doesn’t often carry over to LinkedIn, which often just presents a litany of information about people’s accomplishments: what they’ve done, which jobs they’ve worked, the schools they’ve attended. It’s hard to get a sense of who they are. Ideally, your LinkedIn account should be just as good at making interpersonal connections as you are in real life. Here’s how to get that to happen.

Related: This LinkedIn Recruiter’s Tips For Showcasing Soft Skills On Job Interviews

TWO WAYS TO DESCRIBE YOURSELF

Some of the challenge here is LinkedIn’s format. The easiest things to add to your profile are straightforward data like your employment and education history. Sections like your “Headline” and “Summary” are harder to fill in, because it’s not always clear what you’re supposed to say about yourself.

It’s true that you’ll want to use keywords so recruiters and hiring managers can find you, but it’s also crucial to simply appear personable. And to do that, it helps to understand some of the psychology around how people define themselves. Researchers on self-concept have found that we typically use two distinct modes, called “self-construals.”

An “independent self-construal” involves defining your sense of self in terms of the qualities you possess without reference to other people. If you describe yourself as smart, a hard worker, or someone who gets things done, then you’re focusing on independent properties–the stuff that has to do with just you. With an “interdependent self-construal,” on the other hand, you define yourself according to the qualities that do refer to others. If your self-concept prominently includes your role as a parent, then you’re prioritizing your relationship with your kids. If you describe yourself as a mentor, then your sense of self arises from your experiences interacting with them.

If you look at many LinkedIn profiles (my own included), some will be heavier on independent self-construals than interdependent ones, and vice versa. One isn’t necessarily “better” than the other in every context; some cultures (both within a given organization and across entire societies) lean more individualist than collectivist, so what flies in one environment may weigh you down in another. And in a more in individualistic culture, researchers have found that people are more prone to independent self-construals. Generally speaking, though, if you describe yourself in more interdependent terms, then other people will likely feel more welcomed by you.

It’s pretty intuitive, really: If you include your reader in part of the self-construal you present on LinkedIn, they’ll have a better chance of seeing how they can relate to you.

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What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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REVERSE-ENGINEERING AN EMOTIONALLY INTELLIGENT LINKEDIN PROFILE

How do you actually put this into practice? Work backwards.

For decades, psychologists have used the so-called “Twenty Statements Test,” one of a few leading instruments to assessing people’s self-concepts. It’s extremely simple: The test requires you to come up with 20 different answers to the question, “Who am I?” Instead of answering this question generally, though, answer it for your work-self–that is, “Who am I at work?”

Chances are many of the descriptions you come up with for yourself are independent, but you’ll probably also hit upon a few that are interdependent as well. Now go back through your list and see if there are ways of turning some of the independent descriptors you used into interdependent ones: How does this skill or attribute you possess help or relate to that other person?

This exercise can leave you with a richer, more conversational means of describing yourself than just listing out the job skills associated with emotional intelligence. As you rewrite your headline, summary, and other sections on LinkedIn, hang onto that interdependent mind-set. It’ll make you seem more approachable and worth connecting with.

 

 

FastCompany.com | March 19, 2018 | BY ART MARKMAN 3 MINUTE READ

Your #Career : How To Update Your #LinkedIn Without Making Your Boss Suspicious…Updating your #LinkedInProfile is something you should be doing regularly. Here’s how you can do it without raising alarm bells at work.

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Updating your LinkedIn profile can be a major stress point if you feel like it could alarm your boss or cause tension at work. However, the truth of the matter is that you should never feel guilty about updating your professional profile.

It’s common to feel like your boss might know or think that you’re looking for a new job, but there are simple ways to get around that issue. Here are some tips to help you update your LinkedIn profile without alarming your boss or sending out the wrong message.

UPDATING YOUR PROFILE DOESN’T MEAN YOU’RE UNHAPPY AT YOUR JOB

The first thing to realize is that updating your LinkedIn profile or revamping your resume doesn’t automatically mean you’re unhappy in your current role. You might have recently taken on a big project that you want to acknowledge, or maybe it’s just been a while since you’ve freshened things up. Regardless of your reasoning, you have every right to update your professional documents and LinkedIn profile without feeling guilty or scared that a manager or boss might be unhappy.

If your boss gets that upset over a LinkedIn update (updating your LinkedIn can be considered professional development), you probably aren’t working for someone who wants to see you succeed. If anything, your manager or boss should be thrilled that you want to highlight all that you’ve accomplished while working for them. Your success can reflect well on them and their leadership techniques.

 

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What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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BE TRANSPARENT AND ACKNOWLEDGE THE UPDATE

If you’re concerned that a manager or boss might feel like you’re going behind their back, let them know that you’re updating your profile. By coming out and telling them that you’re planning on doing an update or revamp, there’s no way for them to feel like you were being dishonest or trying to hide it.

Swing by your boss’s desk or shoot them an email saying something along the lines of, “I was looking at my LinkedIn profile, and I noticed that there are a lot of projects and responsibilities that I haven’t included, so I’m going to be adding some additional information in the next few days. I wanted to let you know, because I don’t want any updates or changes to catch you by surprise.” This shows that you’re open and respecting your boss by giving them a head’s up for what they can expect.

You can even add something in about how they’ve made great opportunities available to you, and you want to reflect that on your LinkedIn profile.

Related: Your LinkedIn Profile Lists Too Many Skills 

IF ALL ELSE FAILS

If you still feel like the update might raise red flags to your boss, put it into perspective for them. A great way to phrase it is, “I always want our clients/candidates/partners to have the most updated information on their LinkedIn profiles so I can learn more about them, therefore I feel like I need to do the same in order to reflect that standard.”

Another great way to frame the LinkedIn update is this: “I’ve been afforded so many great opportunities in this role, and I want others to see that and be aware of the great opportunities that this company provides.”

Related: Exactly What To Put In Your LinkedIn Profile To Get A Promotion

Both of these statements articulate that you want to hold yourself to the same standard that you hold others to, and that you want to highlight the benefits of working for the company. This highlights how it will benefit you as well as benefit your clients/candidates/partners, which will in turn benefit your boss/company.

At the end of the day, you have control of the information you put out there, and you shouldn’t feel guilty or scared about updating your LinkedIn profile. If your superior is that upset about it, you may want to look into a new role where your boss/manager wants to actually see you succeed. If you are trying to update your LinkedIn profile without alarming your boss, be transparent about it, and frame it in a way that will benefit everyone. At that point you’ve made a conscious effort to be respectful of your peers and authority figures, and if they’re still upset, that’s on them.

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