LinkedIn is an amazingly valuable resource for anyone's career, and essentially important for the success of a job search. A great profile that shows you off at your professional best is the first step, but many job seekers want to know just how valuable LinkedIn recommendations are, too.
The video below will tell you
why recommendations matter to viewers of your profile
how many recommendations you really need to be effective
Recently, someone who saw my presentation on the importance of LinkedIn for the job search asked me this: “If it’s not a good idea to include a photo on your resume, why is it a good idea to include it on LinkedIn? Doesn’t the photo on LinkedIn invite the same potential discrimination issues as including it on the resume does?”
This is a tricky issue. We’ve all been told over and over again never to use a photo on the resume, and there are good reasons for that. Anti-discrimination laws in our country have resulted in many Human Resources departments throwing out otherwise great resumes if they include a picture. Companies are so afraid of being sued that they avoid the slightest appearance of bias by eliminating any resume with a photo right off the bat. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing—your skills and accomplishments should be what gets you the interview, not your looks.
On the other hand, what’s the first thing a hiring manager will do after receiving your resume? See if he can find out more about you on LinkedIn. What’s on LinkedIn? Your picture.
You could easily argue exactly that line of reasoning for eliminating your photo from LinkedIn, also. Just like on your resume, you want the focus to be on your accomplishments, not your physical appearance. A LinkedIn profile photo seems questionable.
Here’s where I think the difference lies: Read more...
A 30-60-90-day plan is an outline of what you intend to do in your first 3 months on the job. It’s a goal-setting document that shows you understand the job and you know what it takes to be successful at it. It covers everything from your training to your initial efforts to grow the business. It’s impressive to hiring managers because it shows that you’ve put a lot of thought into what you can do for the company, and it takes a lot of the “risk” out of hiring you. It can be overwhelming to create a plan, since it must be specific to the company to be the most effective. Where do you find the information you need to write a great plan?
You’ve always known that networking is a necessary part of any career path, and it’s even more important when you’re searching for a job. Today’s video will let you in on a conversation between two experienced recruiters (Peggy McKee of PHC Consulting and Craig Fisher of A-List Solutions) who can tell you how to focus those networking efforts for maximum effect in the job search:
How to find the best people to contact
How to communicate so that you steer your networking efforts in the right direction
How focused networking can penetrate the hidden job market and get you referred into your next job
Over 70 million professionals are on LinkedIn today. So, millions of the career leaders you need to know are part of this fast-growing online professional network. What's more, LinkedIn is clearly responsible for placing tens of thousands of professionals in their current position, and will lead to placement of many more in the near future. With that kind of effectiveness, there is no question that you should be using this tool to identify the manager you need to find to land the job you desire.
So... Now that we've underscored the need for you to use LinkedIn, just how do you identify the manager you need to contact for the job you want? Read more...
If you're in the job search, you need a LinkedIn profile, even if you're trying to keep everything on the down low. You won't be able to manage a high-quality job search without being on LinkedIn. But what happens when your boss sees it and wants to know what's up? That can be a tricky situation, and it's important that you handle it well. What do you say?
LinkedIn is an amazing professional career tool and perhaps an even more amazing job search and prospecting tool. With over 70,000,000 members (and adding thousands of new members daily), this social networking service is your ticket to a world of career connections that would have been possible to achieve in years past. LinkedIn sets you up to unbelievably leverage your experience, your skills, and your time during the job search.
Are you aware of LinkedIn has to offer? Are you a member?
If not, sign up for LinkedIn now! That's right. Open a spare window while you are reading this article. Go to the LinkedIn site - www.LinkedIn.com. You'll see the box to sign up now. You don't need much. Have your name, email, title, and company ready to go. Submit your new membership. Confirm from your email inbox. There--you are a member.
But don't stop there. Your LinkedIn profile is a critical component of your job search. It's going to be the first impression that your new contacts will have of you. After your membership is confirmed, begin building a complete profile, with a professional picture, that showcases your experience and includes a fantastic summary that will compel readers to find out more about you. Much more than a resume, you should build a very complete profile. Professional information, interests, books you find most useful, your website, your blog, recommendations from key contacts and much more can all be added here. If you're not sure that your profile will attract the hiring managers and recruiters you need, invest in the Career Confidential LinkedIn Profile Tutorial. It will walk you through, step-by-step, how to create a profile that rocks.
Once you've gotten your profile set, LinkedIn offers a number of good tools for getting your job search kicked to a higher gear including:
Times are tough for job seekers, and it doesn’t make much of a difference what your career is—it’s an employer’s market. When there are thousands of applicants for jobs posted online, it’s virtually impossible to get noticed. But there are proven strategies you can use to take control and land the job. We started with Tip #1, Rethink Your Job Search, and today's tip is:
There are many, many social networks available online: Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn, niche networks, and many more. Are some better than others? Do they have different purposes? Which ones are worth your time? Watch the video to see what an expert in the job search thinks about the different social networks, and which one is critical for you to be in:
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