The Boston Globe has a profile today of some job seekers who are going to extraordinary measures to market themselves for work...
http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2009/07/07/tight_market_makes_job_seekers_ever_more_creative/
I've seen and heard about some pretty crazy antics...
In my recruiter days, I had people drop off resumes with an 8x10 photo of themselves... unfortunately, many of them were the equivalent of "Glamour Shots" and not appropriate for the workplace.
One other story was my friend's former coworker, a marketing person, who sent a folding chair to a company with a note that said, "I hope there's a seat for me there."
I also had a career coaching client who offered Red Sox tickets to the hiring manager for a particular role, hoping they could go together and get some face time. (He was told by another person at that firm, "forget the Red Sox tickets, send him a bottle of whiskey.") The manager didn't take him up on the tickets.
Here's my take on this tactic- the reporter/writer Robin Hamilton interviewed me about the Hire Pasha billboard last month: http://www.baystatebanner.com/local15-2009-06-25
Any other stories you've heard? And has ANYONE heard a story where something like this worked?
Kathy
Career Coach
TurningPoint
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Monday, July 6, 2009
Question: How do you mitigate false information about you online?
I just got a call from a career coaching client who found out that he was listed online as having a professional certification that he does not, in fact, have. He was concerned that an employer would wonder if he was falsifying his credentials, and he'd lose out on job opportunities. In his case, someone else had posted the information and it ended up on a site he couldn't edit.
What would you do in that situation?
Here was my advice to him:
1) Walk, don't run, to see if you can get your name listed in your LinkedIn public profile. (example: my profile is http://www.linkedin.com/in/kathyrobinson). If your name is taken, try variations, for example: robinson-kathy, kathy_robinson_career_coach, etc. If you can get some variation of your name, it might show up higher in search results than the website with incorrect (or embarrassing) information.
2) Since you can control all of the information about you on LinkedIn, you'll want to make sure that this site is up to date and searchable. If a recruiter, friend or client asks you about incorrect information they found on another site, you can say that your LinkedIn profile is the "official" record.
3) Check out your profile on ZoomInfo. This is a site that crawls the web to look for articles, mentions, links, etc. about you. If you have a common name like I do, chances are that there's more than one profile out there for you, and the good thing about ZoomInfo is it lets you request to combine the profiles. They'll also let you add and edit, and are more willing to help you correct something that's not accurate.
4) You could always start a blog (using free blogging software) and post your true credentials online that way. (Just be careful about posting your email and phone number so that you don't get a lot of spam.)
5) Once a month, you should be in the habit of taking a moment to search for yourself on Google. Use quotes around your name - example: "Kathy Robinson". Once you figure out the search terms that work, you can also set up Google alerts (http://www.google.com/alerts), which can email you on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis to let you know if anything new has been posted about you online.
That's MY two cents... anyone else have any good tips to help people out who might be in the same boat?
Kathy Robinson
Career Coach
TurningPoint
What would you do in that situation?
Here was my advice to him:
1) Walk, don't run, to see if you can get your name listed in your LinkedIn public profile. (example: my profile is http://www.linkedin.com/in/kathyrobinson). If your name is taken, try variations, for example: robinson-kathy, kathy_robinson_career_coach, etc. If you can get some variation of your name, it might show up higher in search results than the website with incorrect (or embarrassing) information.
2) Since you can control all of the information about you on LinkedIn, you'll want to make sure that this site is up to date and searchable. If a recruiter, friend or client asks you about incorrect information they found on another site, you can say that your LinkedIn profile is the "official" record.
3) Check out your profile on ZoomInfo. This is a site that crawls the web to look for articles, mentions, links, etc. about you. If you have a common name like I do, chances are that there's more than one profile out there for you, and the good thing about ZoomInfo is it lets you request to combine the profiles. They'll also let you add and edit, and are more willing to help you correct something that's not accurate.
4) You could always start a blog (using free blogging software) and post your true credentials online that way. (Just be careful about posting your email and phone number so that you don't get a lot of spam.)
5) Once a month, you should be in the habit of taking a moment to search for yourself on Google. Use quotes around your name - example: "Kathy Robinson". Once you figure out the search terms that work, you can also set up Google alerts (http://www.google.com/alerts), which can email you on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis to let you know if anything new has been posted about you online.
That's MY two cents... anyone else have any good tips to help people out who might be in the same boat?
Kathy Robinson
Career Coach
TurningPoint
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Job Seekers: Using a Holiday Slowdown to Your Advantage
It's a holiday week (4th of July), which means that employers will start slooowwwing down the hiring process while managers are on vacation.
Ay-yay-ay... not so good news for job seekers. Or is it? What if there are some 4th of July lemons we can turn into lemonade?
Here are some thoughts about using the downtime to your advantage:
1) Hiring Managers or your networking contacts may, in fact, be more available for informational interviewing or outreach. If they're not on vacation, they're in an office in slowdown mode with many people out, so they have time to return emails and phone calls. Reach out... even if you've already applied or reached out before. They just might pick up the phone or email you back.
2) People are in a good mood during holiday weeks, and more willing to chat, so be on the lookout for new connections - neighbors you haven't talked to recently, friends of friends at a barbeque, people next to you on the plane if you're traveling, etc. Make sure to ask what the person does for work, so you get to tell them you're looking for work and what you're looking for. (They'll offer to help if they can.)
3) A job search is pretty tough, emotionally. You're in your house, or at Panera, mostly alone and not getting a lot of feedback or positive support. Use family and friend time to make sure you're having some laughs and getting your mind off the search for a while. If you don't already have plans to see people this weekend, make some. Try to see as many people as possible, actually.
4) Don't automatically assume that since it's a slower week that nothing will happen in your search. That's a good expectation, but there are exceptions to the rule; when I was a recruiter, I made job offers on July 3rd, December 24th, the Friday after Thanksgiving, etc. So make sure you continue to answer your phone professionally, but at the same time give yourself a break from looking at new postings until next week.
5) Use the down time to do some industry education. Look at books, blogs, online seminars, trade magazines, etc. Think of it as summer school for your job; what else can you learn about your field, and better yet, is there an industry-related book you can take outside to read if the weather's nice?
6) Let go of guilt. You're probably being a little hard on yourself, feeling that you're not working as hard as you can on your job search. You may also be asked by well-meaning but obtuse friends, "you don't have a job yet?" Remember there are a LOT of people in your same boat these days, and find a funny answer. (one example, "no, except being the CEO of my job search.)
Try to relax, enjoy, connect, and learn. There are better times coming, and it would be a real bummer to let stress ruin a perfectly good holiday.
What about you? Any thoughts on using the holidays effectively to bolster your spirits or your search?
Cheers-
Kathy Robinson
TurningPoint
http://www.turningpointboston.com/
Ay-yay-ay... not so good news for job seekers. Or is it? What if there are some 4th of July lemons we can turn into lemonade?
Here are some thoughts about using the downtime to your advantage:
1) Hiring Managers or your networking contacts may, in fact, be more available for informational interviewing or outreach. If they're not on vacation, they're in an office in slowdown mode with many people out, so they have time to return emails and phone calls. Reach out... even if you've already applied or reached out before. They just might pick up the phone or email you back.
2) People are in a good mood during holiday weeks, and more willing to chat, so be on the lookout for new connections - neighbors you haven't talked to recently, friends of friends at a barbeque, people next to you on the plane if you're traveling, etc. Make sure to ask what the person does for work, so you get to tell them you're looking for work and what you're looking for. (They'll offer to help if they can.)
3) A job search is pretty tough, emotionally. You're in your house, or at Panera, mostly alone and not getting a lot of feedback or positive support. Use family and friend time to make sure you're having some laughs and getting your mind off the search for a while. If you don't already have plans to see people this weekend, make some. Try to see as many people as possible, actually.
4) Don't automatically assume that since it's a slower week that nothing will happen in your search. That's a good expectation, but there are exceptions to the rule; when I was a recruiter, I made job offers on July 3rd, December 24th, the Friday after Thanksgiving, etc. So make sure you continue to answer your phone professionally, but at the same time give yourself a break from looking at new postings until next week.
5) Use the down time to do some industry education. Look at books, blogs, online seminars, trade magazines, etc. Think of it as summer school for your job; what else can you learn about your field, and better yet, is there an industry-related book you can take outside to read if the weather's nice?
6) Let go of guilt. You're probably being a little hard on yourself, feeling that you're not working as hard as you can on your job search. You may also be asked by well-meaning but obtuse friends, "you don't have a job yet?" Remember there are a LOT of people in your same boat these days, and find a funny answer. (one example, "no, except being the CEO of my job search.)
Try to relax, enjoy, connect, and learn. There are better times coming, and it would be a real bummer to let stress ruin a perfectly good holiday.
What about you? Any thoughts on using the holidays effectively to bolster your spirits or your search?
Cheers-
Kathy Robinson
TurningPoint
http://www.turningpointboston.com/
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