Imagine you are a busy hiring manager. Your recruiter staff doesn’t seem to give you any good candidates. So, you go off on your own to do some research. Because you have no budget, you’ll probably end up on a social media site such as LinkedIn, Facebook, or Twitter. You’ll stumble around for a little while until you find a profile that catches your eye. At this point, you’ll probably decide to reach out, test the waters, and see whether this candidate is interested in your open position. If you are looking for a job in the small and medium size business market, this scenario probably happens more times than you think. Essentially, you are the fisherman, and the hiring people are the fish. So how do you catch a big fish? That is, how do you get an interested hiring manager to choose yours over all the other profiles? Yep, ergo the title of this post: a better hook. Look at the roots of where social media comes from. Social media functions just like traditional media, by providing a publisher with channels to distribute a message. The difference is that in traditional media, if your message doesn’t have a compelling hook, no one would distribute it for you. In social media, we are our own distribution, and this means most people are lazy when it comes to the formulation of their hook. They just blah blah blah all day long on their profiles and status updates without realizing that their message is having an impact. Every off-message post dilutes your personal brand. Someone asked me today, “If you, the author of Job Searching With Social Media For Dummies, were looking for a job right now, what would you do?” First, I need a hook. For me, I’m really good at generating buzz. I get people to talk – about any product or service. In my case, it was my book. For clients, it was their dog food and their kettlebells. What is your hook? What is that one thing you are the best at, that people will want to hire you for? If you can’t tell me that instantly, then you have some work to do. And I don’t want you to touch social media until that work is done. Next, I need to translate that hook into a compelling brand experience. Put a worm on the hook so that fish will want to bite. This means my picture should reflect my message. For me, if I’m good at buzz, then perhaps I’d lean forward in my picture, have my hands gesturing, or be in the middle of a sentence. Then there’s the headline or bio. No, it’s not “I’m good at generating buzz.” The headline is not about you. It’s about them. When writing a For Dummies book, one editorial trick we used for all of the section titles was the gerundive form – a verbal adjective. This means using the –ing form of the verb, for example, “Getting customers to talk about your brand” or “Creating an unstoppable surge of buzz about your company.” What is your headline or bio going to sound like? What are the elements you need your online images to have? Finally, I would start engagement. Social media is all about relationship building. Cast your hook out there by starting conversations with companies that interest you. If I were a job seeker, the most important step would be following all of my target companies on all big three networks – Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. Each of these networks offers a unique way to engage. On Facebook, that’s probably going to look like commenting on on a company’s posts. For LinkedIn, that could be inMails or asking for introductions. On Twitter, that might look like retweeting, replying, and Direct Messaging. The key to engagement is to be interesting by being interested. Show that you are listening to what your target companies are saying. After a short while, you’ll find your chance to interject, interrupt, or contribute. So to beat my fishing metaphor to death: Get a hook: Know what makes you different and memorable. Put a worm on it: Communicate a strong and compelling message online. Cast it into the water: Reach out to the companies you want to work for. Want job hook image from Shutterstock
Everyone has heard of New Year's resolutions. You know, those promises we make to ourselves about things we'll do better in the year ahead. Sometimes these resolutions work, while other times we end up with gym memberships we never use! But have you ever heard of a career resolution? It's actually the same thing as a New Year's resolution, only career-focused.
However, with something as important as a career, you don't want to break these resolutions. That's why it's important to keep these goals manageable.
Here are four simple career resolutions that are easy to stick to and achieve.
Be Self-Aware Of Where You Stand In Your Career
BigstockBeing honest and self-aware of where you are in your career is the most important step in making strong career resolutions. If your career is going nowhere and you're unhappy, then it may be time to consider a career change, which will take you down a different path entirely.
But if you're happy and in good standing with your career, it's a lot easier to set goals for the year and build out a long-term career plan.
Find A Way To Grow Your Career
BigstockCareer growth is a very broad spectrum that means something different to everyone. It could be something as simple as improving on a weakness or building on a strength. It could also be learning a new skill or taking on additional responsibilities at work.
On a larger level, it could be seeking a promotion or moving into a leadership role.
Whatever the goal is, make sure it includes growing professionally. The worst thing you can do is stay the same! If you're not growing your career, you're dying—and becoming a lot less valuable to your employer. There are always ways to upskill!
Better Serve Your Professional Network
With current colleagues, former colleagues, and other professional acquaintances, you've probably built a solid professional network through the years. A strong professional network can come in handy if you lose your job or are looking to make a career change. However, you shouldn't just rely on your network when you're in need!
It's important to find ways to offer value to your network. This could include checking in with members of your network from time to time. Exchange messages on LinkedIn to see how they're doing or share relevant content of interest. If you can help someone in your network going through a career challenge, you should!
Maintaining a strong professional network is like an investment. If you want it to pay off, you have to put some time into it and be consistent.
Take Care Of Yourself
Bigstock
Working on your career is hard work! It's okay to be selfish sometimes. Whether you're working to grow your career or looking for a new job, it's important to find balance.
Your family and health always come first, so make sure your career goals don't interfere with that. If you want to set aside time during the week to work on your career that's fine, but don't miss important family events or milestones.
Don't let your career goals get in the way of your health goals. Go to the gym, take a walk, or go for a jog. Balance is key to maintaining healthy career and life goals. Sometimes you just need to adjust that balance as you go.
Need help sticking to your career resolutions?
Become a member to learn how to UNLEASH your true potential to get what you want from work!
This article was originally published at an earlier date.