9 Ways to Build a Talent Community

9 Ways to Build a Talent Community I ran a webinar recently about searching for and advertising jobs using social media. Lots of lovely recruiters turned up to listen to me be evangelical about creating search watch dogs, getting the format right, giving candidates the opportunity to deselect themselves and not waste your precious time.  We also reviewed how to capitalise on your LinkedIn Company Page. Lots of blogs about this on the fab Undercover Recruiter blog, but, in short, just think of all of those lovely followers (71% in fact) who want to see jobs on your LinkedIn Company Page. A couple of days later I received a direct message (DM to the homies) through Twitter from a recruiter on the webinar asking the following:  How do we get candidates to follow us? Oh, such a sweet an innocent (and short) question â€" and could I answer it in less than 140 characters? HELL NO! So, off to my trusty keyboard and I went and penned my first blog of the year: You get a prize if you can spot some obvious / crass statements below: 1) Get your own team following you: Please tick this off and quick!   This will encourage other followers. 2) Make profiles and companies worth following: I get really sick of stupid blogs pointing out the obvious and it riles me to type this line, but the fact is that the average recruiter is still #job‘ing the hell out of their profiles. They offer those lovely (80%) passive candidates nothing of value. Why the hell should I waste time following someone who just talks about themselves or something as uninteresting as jobs all day long? Do you even know what turns me on? I have a saying, and I promise that I don’t mean ill from it, but I see humans as “sheep with mice” â€" meaning that we seemed to have developed the “skill” for doing as we’re told online â€" so I ask my recruiters to capitalise on this and give their ideal followers instructions.  Ask them to follow you!  Think about how and where you can ask them to do this and get on it. (In short a “CTA” â€" call to action is what you need.) 3) Join up your platforms: Your website, Twitter, LinkedIn profiles / pages / jobs / groups, Facebook page, YouTube channel etc they all form part of your online estate. There are semi-obvious ways to link them (icons) and really obvious ways such as “Follow us on LinkedIn too [link]”. Your audience don’t see your website and Twitter presence as 2 separate areas â€" they are, simply put, it “you”. 4) Make it clear what I’ll get if I follow you: Give me a reason to love youuuuu…. (know the song?) 5) Lighten up occasionally: Please have a little fun with your content. It’s a fact that funny stuff gets more likes and shares â€" capitalise on this and prove to your audience that you are human (if only on a Friday!) 6) Email signature: Does your email signature (your most popular form of comms) help to follow you (including the shorter reply signature??) READ MORE:  How to Create an Impressive  E-mail Signature 7) Contact us page: Is your website’s contact us page really designed to help people contact you, or does it simply have your address and phone number? Do you want to be contactable? Try adding your social buttons to these pages â€" social media is a form of contact point (as well as a sales tool). 8) Offline: Review all of your offline materials  (including business cards and flyers). Do you point to your social platforms? 9) Give a damn: Look like someone who gives a damn.  Are you simply bleating all day, or do you take the time to listen and reply to people? Sending a tweet is not engagement. Liking, responding, commenting, sharing is engagement. Set yourself a target of one per day then increase! Conclusion: What can you take from this? Any areas that you need to deal with? Let us know in the comments below.  What can you add to this?   What success have you had building your community? (Don’t get me started on maintaining it and getting ROI from it… that’s for the next blog.)

How to Use the Writing Center for Your Resume

How to Use the Writing Center for Your ResumeThe Texas A&M Writing Center will be one of the best places to look for resume writing. If you have some talent and a love for writing, the writing center offers many creative opportunities that can help you land a job.Laura MacMillan, an experienced career coach and the Writing Center's director, often collaborates with other career counselors on training sessions. This means she is available to talk about the best ways to create a well-written resume. Other times, she is available to provide coaching about a specific career area.It is always helpful to meet with a Writing Center counselor to discuss the things you hope to include in your resume. It is not a substitute for a job interview, but it can give you an idea of how much to include. So ask questions about this. If you are unsure of your particular skills, she can point you in the right direction.When you are working with the Writing Center, they will help you craft your resume. Th ey can teach you how to present yourself in a manner that makes you seem more attractive. They can also give you advice on how to effectively format a resume that is appealing to the recruiters.You can ask for tips about what type of resume to include. There are different types of resumes to consider, including the employment type, the field, and the experience. You can find this information in Career Connection's Information Center.There are also many workshops held by the Writing Center that you can attend to learn how to write a resume. These are called Writing Centers Retreats. Students get advice on how to construct a resume, which they can take back to their job as new employees.Another way to find out about the career center is to ask questions at the human resources department. Remember, it is not illegal to apply for jobs at the Writing Center, but it may be frowned upon if you make an inappropriate request. So be polite when you request information.The College Station camp us of Texas A&M is located in College Station, Texas. You can find more information at the official site. You can also find out what this location offers online.

This advice applies to you

This advice applies to you My brother Erik told me, When I read one of your headlines that isnt about me, I dont read the column. I usually think of Erik as a good example of my target audience: He loves the details of business, hes excited about his career, and he wants to be a billionaire. So for one, stupidity-filled moment, I thought of following my brothers advice. But you know what? I believe that every column applies to everyone who aspires to be a respected manager and effective leader. Effective leaders need to understand what life is like for the people around them. And since you cant live through everyones problems, reading about them is your best bet for gaining a broad understanding. To be honest, I recommend you stop reading this column right now, and start reading the literary canon: Thackery, Hawthorne, Maugham; and throw in some women like Zora Neale Hurston and Virginia Woolf; fiction is the best way to understand human nature. But most people dont have time to work, do their daily life, and read 1000-page novels. On top of that, while you can read this column online, at work, Thackery would be more difficult in your cube. So, since you depend on furtive, business reading in order to make yourself a better manager, you need to read broadly. That is, read about many different types of career problems in order to understand what your employees and co-workers face. The best way to motivate people to do what you need them to do is to understand what they want, and approach the task from their perspective. Someone who only reads about their own issues will approach employees from a self-centered, and therefore ineffective perspective. And dont decide you can fake it because the only person youll be faking out is yourself: You cannot hide disinterest in other people. It shows because you are a bad listener, you have a narrow perspective, and you dont engage people with your questions. For those of you who are unemployed, this column applies to you as much as anyone else. You are not going to get your next job out of the want ads because, for the most part, there arent any. You are going to get a job from networking. And the best way to network is to learn how to understand people who are different than you so you can make small talk with them: Read broadly about business issues. For those of you who see yourselves as corporate activists, (and are repulsed at all my advice about fitting in and sucking up,) the first step toward making the corporate world a better place is to understand the varied interests within the system. So read as carefully about the small business owner as you do about the oppressed worker. If you think fitting in and sucking up are the core of the problem, you need to have a very good understanding of the roots of that behavior. (So maybe you should cut out the columns you like the least and study them the most.) For those of you who are like my brother Erik, congratulations on getting to the bottom of this column. Its the first step toward a life of broad reading and broad knowledge, which will enable you to be the kind of leader who changes peoples lives.

Ways to Make Money on the Side

Ways to Make Money on the Side These days, it feels like it’s harder than ever to make money. Unless you have a posse of roommates, or a spouse who makes a ton of money, you feel like you’re constantly trying to make ends meet. One person’s salary just doesn’t cut it, unless you’re in a great job with even better pay. If you’re struggling to make the money you need each month (let alone start saving) then you’re probably interested in ways to make some more. You’re already working full time, so none of these side jobs should take up much of your time. For help with your financial conundrums, take a look at the following list of suggestions. Become a Landlord One of the best ways to make money on the side is to purchase a rental property. While you will need to be there for your tenants, with only one rental you won’t be swamped with problems and tenant requests. A rental property is a solid, guaranteed method of income, and that extra rent could be a financial blessing each month. Plus, you can advertise rental property for free, making it even easier to turn a profit. Become a Freelancer Not everyone can make it as a freelancer, but if you already have a skill, like tutoring, teaching, writing, graphic design, IT, or more, you might be able to make some money on the side freelancing. There are plenty of sites, like Upwork and Guru, where you can start applying for jobs. If you work a little in the evenings and on weekends, you might be able to earn an extra grand or two each month, once you climb the ladder to better jobs. Start an Online Store A great way to make money online is to start an online store. If you can get customers shopping for products on your website, you can make a cut every time they purchase a product. You’ll have to decide on an angle, purchase a domain name, design your site, set up a merchant account, and morebut if you start getting some traffic on your site, it can be a great way to make a nearly-passive income. Open an Online Video Course If you’re skilled in a certain area (master’s in child psychology? A chef? A mechanic?) then you probably have a talent you could share with other people. Consider starting an online video course, where people can pay to watch tutorial videos of your specific skill. You’ll want to have credentials and professional-level videos created, but your course could start earning you some passive income. Start Youtubing Not everyone can make it as a youtuber, especially because it’s so packed with competition. If you want to make it as the next big makeup tutorial girl, you might have some trouble wading through the thousands (probably millions) of others who are trying to do the same thing. You might, however, have a talent, a skill, or a passion that’s unique in some way. Start out just for fun, and you might find that eventually, your YouTube channel brings in some spare cash.

How to Write a Resume and Make it Stand Out

How to Write a Resume and Make it Stand OutA lot of students who take courses on how to write a resume are told that the best way to write a resume is by following the advice in 8.2c. The advice states that every word in a resume should be able to serve as a pointer towards an employer. This is also true for personal statements and what the student should write in it.The first part of writing a resume is generally the outline or summary of your career, followed by your education and experiences in the next section, which includes your awards and other accomplishments. At the end of this is where the summary of your qualifications is placed. The order of these sections is therefore important.In many cases a student might just show up to a job interview and can't remember anything, which makes it hard to write a resume. This can be due to the lack of preparation or just a random lack of details. Many students actually give up the idea of writing a resume when the opportunity to apply t o a job arrives. However, they should not allow this to happen because this can also have a detrimental effect on their future career opportunities.The first step in writing a resume is to define and prioritize all of your career goals. You can do this by brainstorming and coming up with different examples from the relevant work you have done to get ideas on the kind of work you would like to do. Since your previous work experience and education are probably the most important parts of your resume, you will need to choose your field wisely.You can use the examples of previous graduates to help you make the transition to the personal statement. This will help you get an idea on how to format your personal statement. Also, your education should focus on the skills and talents you have that would make you stand out from the crowd. The words you use for personal statements should support your personal goals, whether it's for a particular job or for another reason altogether.The personal statement should not contain your personality or who you are as a person. Instead, it should focus on all of the benefits and achievements you have achieved throughout your life. This means your personal statement should always tell something about you, while including personal stories about you.Employers do not want applicants who only show interest in themselves. They want to see someone who can contribute actively, which is why students should use their personal statements to highlight their abilities and talents that could make them better suited for the position. Many students are surprised to find out that the information they include in their personal statements are often more useful than what they think they will get from their educational background.Students are usually the first ones who are recommended to get a resume written, especially for an entry-level job. Although this is true, it's important to remember that employers are also looking for people who can contribute to the company, so it's important to spend as much time as possible preparing a resume. When you prepare a resume, remember to follow the advice in the guidebook and create a strong outline of your career goals.

How I went cash only for a week and saved money

How I went cash only for a week and saved money The only time I ever have cash is when I know I’m going somewhere that doesn’t accept card; seeing the dreaded sign ‘cash only’ is burden for many Londoners! Having cash, especially change, is not only a nightmare as I’m in fear of losing it in the depths of my handbag or in the hole in my jeans pocket, but it also seems slow and messy. Why would I pay with cash and then wait for my change, when I can tap my card, and be done? Although there are obvious pros to being cash-less, don’t let me fool you, there are cons too. We are all guilty of buying that extra drink at the bar simply because we can or popping into the shop on the way home to get pasta sauce and coming out with the entire store because it is now easy and pain-free to do so. You don’t have to face the reality of what you’ve spent until you check your bank statement later (if you check it at all)! This constant exchange led me to spend way over my budget, so I decided I would use only cash for a week to see how my spending habits would change. I put my card away and started fresh Monday morning with £50 to last me the week. Monday: £50 During the average day, I would buy at least two cups of coffee whilst out-and-about, but not today!   Instead, I did the obvious and had my caffeine fix before I left the house and that was it for the day. You’ll be pleased to learn that I coped, and it was easy! Having to break into a £10 just for a cup of coffee didn’t seem worth it; I became much more aware of spending on the first day just by carrying cash. Monday’s are the busiest day of the week for me, however, so I did buy lunch which cost a fiver. Tuesday, money left: £45 One annoying factor I encountered with going cash-only was when going to pay in a restaurant, it makes everything easier if you can tell your server how much you want to pay on your card and then simply tap. But no, here I am counting my pennies trying to find the exact amount rather than having to wait longer for my change to be given. Admittingly, it made me think about what I was going to eat as again I only had a certain amount of money on me. I, therefore, shared a pizza with my friend and had a coke, spending £10. Wednesday, money left: £35 It is the middle of the week and I had a mid-week slump. It’s rare that I don’t pop into the local shop on my way home to pick up something I probably shouldn’t, the thing I find, though, is that I never leave with one thing. As in most stores, they have the ‘great value’ section, so I went in with simply £1 and that was enough to hinder my craving. Rather than spending the £5+ I usually would, giving myself a small amount of change was the best way to save money! Thursday, money left: £34 Like most of us, the constant temptation of online shopping is always looming when you have a debit card. Making the process easier, online stores now remember your details and all it takes is one click to buy something. Going cash-only, however, stopped me from doing any online-shopping. Although to a certain extent it’s inconvenient if you desperately need an item of clothing, but if you are simply browsing and drawn into sales, then to only have cash is a godsend. I didn’t need to buy anything, and as I couldn’t, I saved a lot! Friday, money left: £34 Friday is probably the most difficult day to only have cash, as Friday night is inevitably pub night! On a typical Friday, the merrier I get, the happier I am with tapping my card (and I never forget bags of Mini Cheddars for the table) and would therefore easily spend £20+. This week, however, I only took £10 cash, which I knew would get me two glasses of house white wine. It is so easy to overspend, especially if you have an overdraft, but going cash-only means you can only spend what you physically have, rather than borrowing from the bank and getting in debt. Saturday, money left: £24 Ok imagine, it’s 11 pm, it’s freezing, and I need to get an Uber home… but no card means no Uber! Although there is the option of a Black Cab, I didn’t have enough in my budget to be spending £20 on travel when I could top-up my oyster with a fiver and still get home safely. Apart from this, I spent £10 in Asda buying food for dinner. Sunday, money left: £9 It’s the end of the week and I have £9 left. Not only have I saved so much that I wouldn’t have if I had been using my card, but I have money remaining! On Sunday I spent nothing as I laid in bed all day watching Friends. Altogether this experience was an awakening to how not only having cash is useful in certain situations, but also it has made me aware how easy it is to waste money now that cards are contactless. Learning to set yourself budgets and making sure that you stick to them is crucial and checking your account balance really makes reality hit. Download Debut  and connect with us  on  Facebook,  Twitter,  and  LinkedIn  for more careers insights.

Whats your ideal career Lets find out! - Margaret Buj - Interview Coach

Whats your ideal career Lets find out! If you’re looking for a new career path this year, you might be wondering what job you are ideally suited for. We’re human, and that means that we’re all different. A job that suits you might not be ideal for someone who hates working in confined spaces. That’s why not everyone is suited to work in an office. So, how do you know which career would suit you the most? Well, you need to look at some of your likes and interests as well as aspects of your personality. Love Interactions? If you love interacting with different people, the ideal career for you is going to be something in customer service. The good news here is that almost every industry that you can think of has some form of customer service built into the model. This gives you a wide variety of different options to choose from? Competitive? There are plenty of jobs where you can stretch your competitive muscle. You don’t have to become an Olympic athlete running around a track. Instead, you can enter the wonderful, high-stress world of sales. Here, you’ll be competing every day against your business colleagues to win the most customers. This isn’t the right job for someone who wants an easy ride. Love Freedom? Or finally, you might just love the idea of having a sense of freedom at work. If that’s the case, the best option would be to take a job on the road. The most obvious answer here is deliveries. By working in deliveries, you can travel to lots of different places. You just need your CDL, and you’ll find everything you need to know about this in the infographic below. Infographic Created By Express CDL Tests

The Importance of a Conducive Environment - Hallie Crawford

The Importance of a Conducive Environment My husband and I went on the Modern Home Tour in Atlanta this weekend. We had a ball. Modern design is right up our alley. We were drooling over these contemporary houses. Right after we came home from the tour, we started talking about how we can change our plans to renovate our attic to reflect a more modern sentiment. Our current house is contemporary inside and reflects our taste, but the homes on the tour were our dream houses-sleek and open, with huge windows that let in a ton of light. I felt right at home in these spaces, like I was outside and very close to nature. The windows were huge! I miss the floor to ceiling windows of our old Chicago condo. From this experience, I remembered how much your home is a reflection of who you are, or should be. I never realized how important space is to our well-being until I married my husband (interior architect), and worked for my dear friend Jane Tompkins on space planning at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Being in the homes this weekend reminded me of how important our home and work space is to our health in every way. Is your home a true reflection of who you are, or evenwho you want to be? And if not, what changes do you want to make? This goes for your job too. Do you work in an environment thats conducive to your personality and physical desires/needs? One of the components of the satisfying career model I use with clients and in my Career Seekers Teleclass is a Conducive Environment. Here are some questions to help you define your ideal work environment: What types of people do you want to work with? What kind of management style do you prefer? Consider your personality and what kind of environment is conducive to your personality. Do you need a lot of structure, just a little, or none at all? For example, if you are a person who likes things to be organized and have a process to them, you may need to have a more structured environment. Where do you want your office to be located? Do you want to work from home, from an office, or have a mobile situation where you can work from a variety of places? What size organization do you want to work in? Large, small, medium? What do you want the company culture to be like? Atlanta Career Coach