What Social Network Do You Use For Your Job Search

What Social Network Do You Use For Your Job Search In  this weeks #UROpinion, we asked you:    What social network do you use for your job search? Most of the comments  all  focused on LinkedIn!  People generally use Linkedin as a  hub for connecting with relevant industry contacts and viewing vacancies posted to  the network. However, alternative platforms, such as job boards and other popular social networks may also possess  great ways of finding vacancies  you may of missed otherwise. You can read every response we received below.  Be sure to join us on LinkedIn next Monday when you can comment on our latest #UROpinion discussion! Whats your preferred network of choice for your job search? And what network is most effective for finding relevant vacancies? Let us know in the comments! QUESTION: Whats your network of choice for your job search? Let us know here! #UROpinion https://t.co/f4Zy8KKXjH pic.twitter.com/GtinEf1Ey4 â€" Undercover Recruiter (@UndercoverRec) January 12, 2015 On LinkedIn: Heres the conversation from our LinkedIn group. I began the discussion by revealing my own job search process: Robbie Palmer  Account Executive Duke of Buffalo Wings @LinkHumans Social Media Agency Twitter is a fantastic tool for becoming aware of job vacancies via tweets from your industry contacts. LinkedIn is also great for networking directly with various relevant professionals. I use both networks in conjunction  with job-focused search engines such as Indeed. Dave Palmer, MBA, SPHR  Business Driven Human Resources Leader I use both LinkedIn and Twitter Social Media tools for recruiting. Don Cross mentions how the classified advertisements websites like Craigslist are surprisingly effective for job listings. Sites such as  Gumtree and Craigslist are popular for job seekers looking for retail, freelance and media-related positions. Don Cross  Senior Employment Specialist at Best Temps I place a job offer on Craigslist and my phone starts ringing within 5 minutes. Cass Murray  Corporate Sales Recruiter Professional Brands/ Harrow Sports I like LinkedIn for getting the word out to my network. I can keep track of so much more than any other site. More features are offered here. I can even remind myself to touch base with my rock star sales people! Joya Mullen says that while LinkedIn is consistently good for jobs, Twitters usefulness is dependant on your chosen industry: Joya Mullen  Human Resources/Recruiting Professional LinkedIn is the go to social network for jobs. Using Twitter effectively for a job search often depends of the industry. But for me learning more about the career background as well as learning the faces of whose hiring helps in calming nerves and nailing interviews. Carly Alford  Sourcer at Axel Erickson Development LinkedIn makes it so easy to find and connect with potential candidates. Other job boards are great but LinkedIn is one my go to social network sites! Amanda J. Breitmaier says shes also using the popular combination of Twitter, LinkedIn and Indeed. Amanda  also says shes attempted to use Facebook, but with little success. With Facebook at Work slowly being rolled out, can we expect people to take vacancies on Facebook more seriously? Amanda J. Breitmaier  Experienced Program/Project Manager in the Educational Assessment Industry I also use Twitter, LinkedIn, and Indeed. Some of my contacts also use Facebook, but I havent had any luck with it. Kristi Moore talks about  her ongoing  job search process. Kristi says she makes sure her profile is on the major job boards and Indeed. She also mentions Craigslist as a great source for opportunities, as many companies avoid having to pay job board fees: Kristi Moore  Account Representative, Care Coordinator, Sales, Staffing, Office Healthcare Right now Im looking for a new position and I like casting a large net by making sure my profile is on the major job boards and Indeed (they pick up resumes from other job boards like Bright and Ziprecruiter). I always include my LinkedIn profile link even when I send a resume. I also have a lot of luck on Craigslist because you find opportunities from companies that dont want to pay to be on the major player job boards. I applied the same philosophy when I recruited- Large net. When I worked with ACAM I did a lot of posting on Twitter and Facebook. Twitter is my least favorite because I have to keep writing what I want to say over and over to make it fit into the allotted character count and Im forced to use text lingo (I hate text lingo). Even though I hate that about Twitter it really is more successful than Facebook so Twitter and I have a love/hate relationship. Over on our LinkedIn page, people also responded with various answers: Nader Mowlaee  Managing Director | Headhunter |  certainly not FB LinkedIn all the way..10 days ago Mac Smith mentions niche job boards for potentially discovering the best results. Techcrunch, for example, offers a job board specifically for  internet and tech jobs called Crunchboard: Mac Smith Digital Marketing Manager at 501 Niche job boards may yield the best results; and Indeed if you really need an aggregate sight.  10 days ago P Tyson Filmanski  Security Management | Corporate Security | Background Investigations |  LinkedIn and Twitter. Recently took a workshop on how to search for jobs on Twitter. It was very informative.10 days ago João Paulo Cruz Managing Partner at Kalculrecord, Lda.  LinkedIn10 days ago Jörgen Sundberg  Director Lord of the Dance @LinkHumans social media agency  Twitter is good if you work in media, recruiting, tech etc, Facebook can be good for some roles but LinkedIn is typically your best bet for most jobs On Google Plus: Sarah Manley  Works at UnitedHealth Group I think starting out with #linkedin  makes sense for anyone who is focusing on their #career from researching organizations to connecting with a network. What Social Network Do You Use For Your Job Search?  Let us know in the comments, or reply  in our discussion on LinkedIn! To conclude, LinkedIn is undeniably a great starting point for all professionals looking to focus their career. LinkedIn is great for showing employers youre a respected professional with a strong industry presence. However, combining your LinkedIn activity  with using networks like  Twitter and sites like Indeed appears to be  the best process of networking and discovering the best vacancies. Surprisingly, not one person mentioned even trying Google Plus whilst job hunting.

Personal Branding for Theatrical Actors - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Personal Branding for Theatrical Actors - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career The world of theatrical actors is a lot like the world of a job hunter. You have casting calls (job openings), auditions (interviews), you play your part (do your job), and then the show closes (you get laid off), and it starts all over again. But as much as weve talked about personal branding and job seeking in these pages, weve never talked about how actors can use some of the same techniques to find their own roles. Here are five basic tactics newer actors can try to build their reputation, and make it easier to find their next role. 1. Start a Blog I could tell you all sorts of things about sharing your knowledge, and demonstrating your expertise and your skills, having a central location for all your work history and information, and yada yada yada (it actually is important). But the biggest reason to blog is because you want to be found during Google searches. Blogging will boost your search engine efforts and make it easier for directors and producers to find you. Plus, if you talk about parts youve played, theaters youve played in, and shows youve been in or want to be in, your name will be associated with those shows, parts, and theaters, thanks to co-citation. In other words, talk about your part in Equus at the Indianapolis Fringe Festival, and if someone searches for those two things, your name could pop up. 2. Create a YouTube Channel Not only do you get a demo reel with a YouTube channel, but YouTube greatly boosts your search engine juice. If you want to win Google searches, dont spend a lot of your energy optimizing for Google. Try to win YouTube searches instead. Since Google owns YouTube, and they put the top-ranked YouTube videos on Google search pages, your video could easily show up in a search for Desdemona actress Portland or whatever a director may be looking for. 3. Get Your Own Name as Your Web Address Pick a domain name registrar â€" some people like GoDaddy because its cheap, some people hate them because of their business practices â€" and buy your name as a domain name. Either buy it for many years, or be sure to renew it year after year. For one thing, if you become famous, you want to own it now before it gets squatted. For another, it will tell people how to easily find you. Be sure to use your stage name, not your real name, and put it on your headshots, résumés, and business cards. 3a. Get Business Cards. Headshot on the back, contact info on the front. 4. Get Comfortable With Google+ If you use Facebook, you understand how to use Google+. But the biggest reason to use it is not to interact with your fellow theater people (although that certainly helps). The biggest reason is because Google assumes that if youre connected to people on Google+, and they search for something youve shared, written about, or have videos and photos for, that stuff should show it in your connections search results. For example, if were connected on Google+, and you do a Google search for Twelfth Night Indianapolis, Google may show you a recent review I wrote for the show. But if were not connected, you wont see it at all. 5. Network in Person Job hunting is about relationships. The same is true for the acting world. Eventually, youll reach a point where people want to work with you because they know you and like you. And the best way to get to know and like people is to spend time with them outside the theater. Oh sure, you need to be good, be professional, and not be a pain in the ass. But, just like everywhere else in the working world, people want to work with people they like. And if directors can get to know and like you in the off-season and during the times when youre not working together, yours could be the first name that pops into their head when theyre thinking about casting ideas for their next play. Some artists I speak to â€" writers, visual artists, and performers â€" dont like all this marketing. They think its beneath them, that their art should speak for itself, and they should be judged on their own merit. You only have to watch a few episodes of American Idol or listen to Top 40 radio to see how well that works. It would be awesome if we could live in a world where people are truly judged and rewarded based on the quality of work they do. But thats not the world we live in. The world we live in runs on relationships and self-promotion. So, you need to do this for a while, until you can get rich and famous and get someone to do it for you. Until then, fire up your laptop, warm up your fingers, and get to work. Author: Erik Deckers  is the owner of  Professional Blog Service, and the co-author of  Branding Yourself: How to Use Social Media to Invent or Reinvent Yourself  and  No Bullshit Social Media: The All-Business, No-Hype Guide to Social Media Marketing.

Are Your Selfies Affecting Your Chances of Getting Hired

Are Your Selfies Affecting Your Chances of Getting Hired This is  the 6th most popular blog post of 2014. See the rest of the top 15 here. Let’s say you’re applying for a job. You most likely have the foresight to remove any damaging photos from your social media profiles that would send the wrong message to prospective employers. Certainly any photos depicting drinking, drug use or nudity are off limits. But you already know this. How about selfies? I don’t mean the occasional photo you take of yourself to capture an accomplishment or special occasion. I’m referring to the dozens of bathroom mirror selfies on your profile, or the pics of you in every outfit you’ve tried on in the last two months, or the photos taken in inappropriate locations just for the shock value. You may feel these photos are all in fun and shouldn’t give an employer any reason to question your hirability. However, many employers would disagree. Selfies: Ever since the word “selfie” was added to the Oxford dictionary and declared the word of the year in 2013, they have been ubiquitous. Kim Kardashian recently announced her plans to release a 352-page hardcover book of nothing but selfies, showcasing but a few of the reportedly 1,200 selfies she took on a recent vacation. According to a Pew Research Center Survey, 55 percent of Millennials have posted a selfie on a social media site, and 26 percent of all Americans have done the same. The world has gone selfie-crazy. But the difference in Kim Kardashian and most people is that Kim will never have to look for a job. Is this really the image you want to be conveying to employers? Narcissism: According to Dr. Tracy Alloway of the University of North Florida: “Every narcissist needs a reflecting pool. Just as Narcissus gazed into the pool to admire his beauty, social networking sites, like Facebook, have become our modern-day pool.” Like it or not, posting multiple pictures of oneself for all to see in hopes of receiving positive feedback is typical narcissistic behavior. Psychiatrist Dr. Carole Lieberman describes the selfie epidemic as a desperate cry for help from those who didn’t get enough “mirroring” from parents while growing up. Without sufficient mirroring, people look for their reflections in other people’s eyes in order to get attention, validation and approval. Employment: Now let’s look at it from the point of view of an employer. Is this the type of insecurity you want on your workforce? Employers wanting to hire top candidates are looking for a number of qualities, among them confidence and self-assurance. Yet posting numerous selfies sends the opposite message. In an article for Psychology Today, Dr. Pamela Rutledge, Director of the Media Psychology Research Centre in Boston, Massachusetts, states, “Preoccupation with selfies can be a visible indicator of a young person with a lack of confidence or sense of self that might make him or her a victim of other problems as well.” She believes that excessive or provocative taking of selfies is a form of “acting out” in young people and can be a cry for help. If you’re a job seeker and a selfie poster, you’re associating yourself with personality traits that employers find less than desirable. Obviously, not everyone who posts selfies on their social media profiles suffers from narcissism and a lack of confidence. Right behind the narcissistic selfie on the chain of annoyance stands the disrespectful selfie. Funeral selfies are the new online rage, along with selfies showing an equal lack of respect at sacred places such as Auschwitz and the 9/11 Memorial. Popular as the trend may be, if you were an employer, how would you feel about such individuals representing your company? A recent survey by Eurocom Worldwide shows that nearly 40 percent of companies use social media to research job candidates, and one in five technology firms has rejected a candidate because of what they found on his or her social media profile. According to Mads Christensen, Network Director at Eurocom Worldwide, “The 21st-century human is learning that every action leaves an indelible digital trail. In the years ahead, many of us will be challenged by what we are making public in various social forums today. The fact that one in five applicants disqualify themselves from an interview because of content in the social media sphere is a warning to job seekers and a true indicator of the digital reality we now live in.” The world is constantly evolving, and many of the most unique and innovative introductions have come from recent technology. But others, such as selfies, run counterproductive to the goals of employers and hiring managers. The younger you are, the more difficult it is to see things through the eyes of someone older. But if you’re old enough to be seeking employment, try to ask yourself what your future employer would think before taking that next selfie.

10 Tips to Grow Your Employee Engagement

10 Tips to Grow Your Employee Engagement Employee engagement is a concept often ignored by organizations. After hiring a candidate, companies do not plan any strategies or policies which can keep the employee enthusiastic about work. This is an essential aspect of employee retention and promotes stability among employees for a more extended stay in the company. Before knowing why employee engagement is essential, you must understand different categories of employees: Engaged employees are those who treat their work as their second home. They take complete responsibility and ownership of their work and stay loyal to the organization. They are the upcoming leaders and remain with the company for long. Not engaged employees are those who are pretty happy with their job but only do what their job profile demands. They do not work for the mission, goals, and values of the company. However, with the right approach, you can convert them into engaged employees. Disengaged employees have no zeal to perform. They spread negativity in the organization by talking about how unhappy they are with their work and office culture. There is a rare chance that you can convert them into engaged employees. According to Mental Health America, disengaged workers cause massive losses in productivity â€" between $450 and $500 billion a year. Furthermore, the only ? of US employees are engaged in their workplace. This calls for a growing need to engage your employees at a high level to ensure more productivity and better results. Here is how HR managers can improve their employee engagement: 1. Give Right Tools to Work Job satisfaction depends a lot on company’s infrastructure. This means devising processes and providing tools to employees using which they can complete their job. You must find out tools which can enhance employees’ productivity. They can complete a job quickly with distinct processes and boost their efficiency. 2. Provide Training Employees look for a culture which offers continuous growth. They want to work in an organization where they can see a rising graph in their career. It is important to provide regular training to employees to help them gain more skills. Organize training and enroll your employees in the same. This will provide them a sense of belongingness with the organization, and they will feel motivated when they learn something new. 3. Recognition There is no doubt that appreciating employees for good work is the key to having an effective employee engagement. Giving them rewards in the form of gift coupons and monetary benefits is very encouraging. Conduct monthly meeting and recognize efforts of employees. 4. Introduce Open Communication A clear communication gives insights into what is going on in the mind of an employee. Know how your employees feel by conducting surveys, team meetings and using suggestion boxes. Be a good listener. Encourage them to speak up so that you can implement changes which you feel are right. 5. Share Numbers Your employees should know what is happening in the company. They must be aware of the numbers. Share every good and bad news with them so that they feel part of the organization. 6. Promote Company Culture Make your employees clear about company culture which includes goals, mission, and values. Encourage them to fit into the system by listing down the benefits. 7. Engage Right from the Start The best way to kill an employee’s enthusiasm is giving him the monotonous task of filling out forms on the day of his joining. You can change this concept by introducing employees straight to work. Attach a mentor or a work buddy with the new joiner to make him feel engaged and part of the company right from day one. 8. Regular Feedback Giving frequent feedback to employees is more encouraging than discussing it annually in a performance review. Timely review of their performance helps them in updating their skills and performing as per the company’s expectations. Use both formal as well as informal methods of communication to do the same. 9. It’s Time to Destress Them Working non-stop for long working hours under pressure and deadlines build stress among employees. Organizations should take the responsibility of making their employees stress-free and feel happy about working. Organize fun activities which are both fun to play and useful to learn. Take them out for outings or organize parties as an annual reward. 10. Offer Work-life Balance Work-from-home options and flexible timings provide freedom to employees to work from anywhere at any time. Providing these facilities will result in more engaged employees than unhappy employees working in cubicles from 9 to 5. There is no hidden secret for increasing employee engagement. These simple tips can make your workplace more meaningful for the employees. There is no need to invest a huge amount of money in engaging your employees. By following simple practices and with creative strategies, you can quickly promote a happy work culture in your organization. After all, employee engagement is the first step towards building a happy workforce. Author’s bio: Lovepreet Dhaliwal works with RChilli Inc, a leading resume parsing software provider which helps in speeding up your recruitment process. An MBA in HR and marketing, he has over six years of work experience in business development and strategic sales.

Becoming an Expat Has Dramatically Changed My Mindset - Career Pivot

Becoming an Expat Has Dramatically Changed My Mindset - Career Pivot Dramatically Changed My Mindset Copyright: rawpixel / 123RF Stock Photo We returned to Ajijic, Mexico last week after being back in Austin, Texas for 6 weeks. The trip to Austin and then returning to Mexico has gotten me to realize just how much my mindset has shifted in the last 18 months. I recently chronicledmy wife’s experience on theRepurpose Your Career podcastepisodeMarc’s Wife, Lotus, and Her Observations on Moving to Ajijic. [Podcast] I also suggest you listen to the podcast episodeThe Millers Move to Mexico [Podcast] In both of these episodes, you will hear my wife Lotus and me talk about how much this exploration has changed us. You can find all of the blog posts and podcast episodes where I am chronicling our journey and the decision-making process on theHow to Move Abroad and Take Your Job With You Series Page. Our Return to Austin and What We Noticed We returned to Austin in late October with the plan to stay for 6 weeks, clean out our condo and prepare it for rent. On arrival, my wife and I noticed a number of changes in how we viewed things. Noise The noise of Austin is constant. We live a quarter mile from the main stage of the Austin City Limits Festival. We are used to the noise, but what we both noticed was the constant white noise in the background. This includes road noise and air conditioning compressors that seemed to always be on. We live right in the center of Ajijic, a small city of 15,000 or so people on the north shore of Lake Chapala. It can be very noisy but it is a different kind of noisy. It is children in the streets playing, parades and other celebrations, or even the cohetes, which are the wonderful bottle rockets that are launched at just about every celebration. During the month of October, cohetesare launched at 6 AM to tell everyone to wake up and come to church. Cohetes are launched again at 7 AM to tell everyone that is time to come to church. These noises are different and come to be expected rather than the constant hum that occurs in most major American cities. My thoughts and mindset around what I want in an outside environmenthas surely changed in the last 18 months. Listen to the most recent episode Food and Health I had been stepping on the scale at the gym every few weeks while I was in Ajijic. It was not until I got on the scale back in Austin did I realize that I was down to 170 lbs. I had lost 12-15 lbs in the previous 4 months and I was not trying. I was back at the same weight that I was when I graduated from college. My wife experienced a more dramatic loss of weight. Both of us are in better shape and fewer food cravings than we have had for years. What I really noticed was the amount of salt and sugar that was in foods in the U.S. We ate very little packaged foods in Mexico and even when we ate out, which was usually once a day, it was very noticeable how the food was seasoned without salt and sugar. My blood pressureis the lowest it has been in years in part to the reduced salt intake. Lotus, my wife, immediately noticed how sugary foods were presented to her in just about every store she went into in Austin. This would trigger all of the bad behaviors and cravings that she had eliminated in Mexico. My mindset has shifted around how to live a healthy lifestyle. Fresh Local Foods I make yogurt smoothies every morning for breakfasts. I vary them during the year to keep it interesting. When pineapples are in season I add a healthy size slice of pineapple to the smoothie. I also use blueberries, blackberries or strawberries depending on what is in season. One morning I went to make my smoothie and I forgot to purchase a pineapple the day before. What did I do? I walked out my front door at 8 AM in the morning, walked 150 feet to a little grocery store which is about the size of your closet, picked out a large pineapple and paid the elderly woman who runs the store 30 pesos or about $1.50. That same pineapple would have cost $4 or more in the U.S. I walked back to my casita and made my smoothie. Total time to perform this task was about 3 minutes. I have fresh locally grown fruit and vegetables at my fingertips for the fraction of the cost of the same in the U.S. All of the berries I mentioned above are grown on the other side of Lake Chapala by major U.S. growers. I am eating better, for less money and am far more healthy after only 4-5 months in Mexico. I would not have believed this 18 months ago. My mindset has completely shifted as it relates to what I eat. Money, Health Insurance and Healthcare The last couple of years have been very stressed, mostly related to the cost of healthcare and health insurance. I wrote about this in the post The Looming Healthcare and Insurance Catastrophe for Baby Boomers. My wife and I spent $25K in 2017 on health insurance and healthcare and did not reach our deductible. After we arrived in Mexico earlier this year, we did an extensive investigation of healthcare availability and both my wife and I were astonished at the quality of healthcare and the affordability. My wife had appointments with an endocrinologist, hematologist, dermatologist, had lab work done and had her teeth cleaned and we spent around $150. I know, I know you are probably saying that the healthcare was sub-par for that price. I can tell you that my wife is a retired registered nurse, which means she is a pain in the butt patient. She was thrilled with the care. Theendocrinologist spent 2 hours with her on the initial visit and she learned so much on how to manage her condition. She received better and more compassionate care from these physicians than she ever received in the U.S. Health Insurance We have applied for a $5000 deductible policies for each of us, which will cover us everywhere in the world except the U.S. for about $1000 a year for each of us. This is basically catastrophic health insurance, and once my wife is eligible for Medicare in 2019, we’ll not renew for 2020. WHAT, Medicare does not cover you outside of the United States? Healthcare in Mexico is so affordable we will pay for it out of our pocket. Should some major medical event occur, my wife will return to the U.S. for treatment. Cost of Living We will live in Ajijic, Mexico on about 1/3 of what we lived on in Austin. This will only get worse as the cost of living in Austin rose 33% in 2018. I know, I know you are probably thinking we are living like paupers. I can tell you we have never lived an extravagant lifestyle but we are living well. My mindset has completely shifted around money and the cost of healthcare. Conclusions As I sit in the 2 bedrooms 2 bath casita on this Sunday morning, I have realized how much I have changed in the last 18 months. I am healthier than I have been in years Eating healthy has become easy Worry about money and healthcare are largely gone Stress has largely disappeared I am being challenged in learning a new language These last several months where we signed a lease and made a one-year commitment to live outside of the U.S. And then returning to our home of 40 years only to realize that living in the U.S. right now is unhealthy for us. My mindset and belief systems have been completely rocked by this realization. What do you think about this? Comment below with your thoughts. Marc Miller Like what you just read? Share it with your friends using the buttons above. Like What You Read? 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