Career Planning

Develop a Social Media Plan for your Career, Part 2

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LinkedIn is the most important part of a social media strategy in terms of your career, but let’s look at the last part of a strong social media plan.

STEP FOUR: Update Your Other Social Media Profiles 
Take some time to make sure that your other non-LinkedIn social media platforms are up-to-date. Review your profile photos and background images. For consistency, consider changing your profile photos on all of your social media accounts to the same (professional) photo. This can help the person looking for you to identify that they have the right person — especially for social media accounts that you want them to be looking at.

Also review any photo galleries associated with your account (for example, on Twitter and Facebook). Delete any controversial or offensive photos. (Remember, they won’t be gone entirely from the Internet, but at least they won’t be as easy to find.) Do the same for any potentially offensive content you have posted.

STEP FIVE: Deliberately Cultivate Your Online Presence 
One of the best ways to boost your online profile is to curate your profiles. For the platforms you have decided to concentrate on, develop a schedule for adding new content that will enhance your social media presence.

For example, if you can commit to it, a personal blog is an excellent way to establish thought leadership and enhance your career prospects. However, you must be willing to post regularly — for example, once a week, or twice a month.

The first thing to do is to pick one platform to be your “home base.” This is where you will spend the majority of your time and effort. For many jobseekers, that’s LinkedIn, because it offers the best opportunity to connect with potential hiring managers and recruiters. Others may be more comfortable with Twitter, Facebook, or a blog. It doesn’t matter so much which platform you choose as that you choose a platform.

Set goals for yourself — what do you want to show up when you Google yourself? If you want your blog to rank higher in Google’s search results, you’ll need to spend some time developing and curating content, populating the profile, and engaging in activities that will increase the Search Engine Optimization (SEO) of the blog.

If you’re not engaging in a confidential job search, use your social media profiles to let people know you’re looking — and to ask for specific help in identifying your next opportunity or employer.

If you identified any “gaps” in your online presence as part of your social media audit, join those social media networks and set up your profile and begin adding content to your account.

Finally, make engaging on social media a daily habit. You don’t have to spend hours each day building your online presence. You can spend as little as 15 minutes a day — or an hour a week — on your social media.

Here are some daily activities to consider:

  • On LinkedIn: post a status update, check out the activities in your relevant Groups, make 1-2 new connections, “follow” a company you’d like to work for, and reach out to 1 existing connection (either by commenting on their status update, sending a message, or using LinkedIn’s “keep in touch” reminders to “like” or “comment” on your connections’ activities.
  • On Facebook: post a status update, “like” the page of a company that you’d like to work for, and friend someone you used to work with (or send a message to someone you’re already friends with who might be able to help you with your job search).
  • On Twitter: follow a company you’re interested in working for, tweet something job-related (make sure it’s positive in tone, not negative!), and retweet something interesting.
  • On Pinterest: see if there are any boards related to your industry and follow one or more of them; research to see if a company you’d like to work for has a board, pin something career-related to one of your own boards, and connect with two new people.
  • On your blog: Write a blog post, respond to comments, add a resource, or find a previous blog post that you can share to one of your other social media platforms. Research relevant blogs in your industry and sign up for email or RSS notifications for new posts. Comment on a blog post.

These are just a few of the possible activities you can consider each day. Another thing to consider is pre-scheduling content. You might write your blog post for the week on a Saturday, but schedule the post to publish on the following Tuesday morning at 10 a.m.

Remember this advice: “It doesn’t matter so much what you do, as that you do.” Don’t substitute social media activity for other actions related to your job search, but recognize that social media can help you build your network and keep yourself “top of mind” with people who are in a position to hire you, or help you identify possible job opportunities.

Develop a Social Media Plan for your Career, Part 1

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Our last two articles were about auditing your existing social media.

This article is focused on developing your online presence and social media plan so that it helps your chances of employment. This includes online reputation management, privacy settings, and using your social media accounts (LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter) to assist in your job search.

STEP ONE: Delete any accounts you’ve not going to commit to keeping up.

This might be a hard one for you! What? Delete a social media account? (Or more than one?) Yes. Is your blog a ghost town, populated with intermittent posts from a year ago? Do you have 10 Twitter followers and 15 tweets? (Did you only set up your Twitter account because someone told you that you need one?) Do you still have a Myspace account, but the last time you were on it, NSYNC was still together?

When it comes to your job search, it’s better not to have dormant accounts. Cast-off accounts make it look like you’re not committed. It’s better to have one or two active platforms you’re involved with than 5-6 platforms with content you don’t keep up with regularly.

Can’t bear the thought of permanently deleting your stuff? Check and see if you can temporarily deactivate your account. If that’s an option, you can do that instead of deleting the account entirely, at least while you’re searching for a new job.

Also, make sure you’ve deleted any inappropriate content, if you haven’t already. Remember, once something is posted on the Internet, it can potentially exist forever. However, deleting the content does make it harder for a prospective employer to find.

STEP TWO: Check your privacy settings on any accounts you’re keeping. Be mindful about what you’re doing.

First, make a list of the social media platforms you’re involved in. (There should be fewer of them, now that you’ve completed Step One!) Next, review the privacy settings for each platform. Not sure how to check the privacy settings? The easiest way is to Google “privacy settings + (social media platform).” For example, a search for Facebook privacy settings will take you to this help page: https://www.facebook.com/help/325807937506242/

You can also use Facebook’s “View As” feature to see how your profile appears to others. To use this feature, make sure you’re logged into your Facebook account. Then go to your profile and click .

Click “View as” in the dropdown menu. You’ll be able to see what your profile looks like to the general public. At the top of the page, just under the Facebook search box, if you choose “View as Specific Person,” you can enter an individual’s name, and Facebook will show you what your profile looks like to that person, based on your privacy settings. (You must be friends with the person to use this feature.)

Check the privacy settings for each of the social media platforms you’re using.

STEP THREE: Make sure your LinkedIn profile is complete.

LinkedIn is likely your most visible employment-related social media profile, so spend some time working to make sure it is up-to-date. The first thing to do is to make sure your LinkedIn profile is “complete” by LinkedIn’s standards.

To be considered “complete” by LinkedIn’s standards, you need these items in your LinkedIn profile:
-Your industry and location
-An up-to-date current position (with a description)
-Two past positions
-Your education
-At least three skills
-A profile photo
-At least 50 connections

Profiles that meet all of these criteria are 40 times more likely to “receive opportunities,” according to LinkedIn.

Once your profile is “complete,” there are still several other tasks to complete on LinkedIn to make yourself more “findable” by prospective employers and recruiters.

Review the content of your LinkedIn profile. Make sure the content of your LinkedIn profile matches up with the information on your résumé. However, there is one important distinction between your résumé and LinkedIn profile: You can create multiple, customized versions of your résumé to target different types of positions. However, you can only have one LinkedIn profile. So make sure your Headline and Summary represent you for the type of position you’re seeking.

If you haven’t already, set up your personalized URL for your LinkedIn profile.

By default, LinkedIn assigns you a URL with random numbers and letters. For branding purposes, you will want to customize the link.

You should always create a unique URL. An easy-to-read website address increases the chance of people being able to remember and find you on LinkedIn. You can also promote your custom signature link on your blog, Facebook page, and through email signatures.

You can use between 5-30 letters or numbers to build your custom URL. (You cannot use spaces, symbols, or special characters in your profile URL.) It may seem obvious, but make sure you use your name in your profile URL. If you have a common name, you may not be able to use just your name, so consider including a keyword related to your job or industry — for example, “BobSmithAccounting.”

Customize your URL on the “Edit Your Public Profile” page, underneath the “Customize Your Public Profile” section.

Click the “Create your custom URL” link.

All LinkedIn website addresses begin with http://www.linkedin.com/in

*Choose a professional photo for your LinkedIn profile. LinkedIn profiles with pictures attract 50-70 percent more inquires than profiles without a photo.

Here are some tips for your profile photo:
• Choose an up-to-date photo. Your profile photo should be a recent photo of you — within the last 12-18 months.
• At a minimum, your photo should include your head and shoulders, not just a close-up of your face. You may also consider using a full body shot of you sitting or standing.
• Make sure you are the only person in your photo. Don’t crop other people out of your photo.
• Be sure to look at the background in the photo to make sure there is nothing distracting in it.
• If you have multiple photos to choose from, you can use the PhotoFeeler website (https://www.photofeeler.com/) to find the most effective profile photo.

Ensure your contact information is available on the profile.

Make it easy for a prospective employer to connect with you. Include your phone number(s), email addresses, and other contact information in the “Advice for Contacting” section.

Click “Edit Profile” from the “Profile” menu, and it’s one of the sections you can add.

Depending on your privacy settings, this information can be visible to the public, so adjust your settings accordingly.

Remember, people who aren’t connected to you can’t email you, so including your contact information here can help your job search by giving them a way to reach you outside of LinkedIn. (You should also consider including a home or cell number in this section.)

Other things to include on your LinkedIn profile:
-Make sure you’ve included all the languages you speak.
-Include all the courses you’ve taken.
-Detail the key projects you’ve worked on (using the Project section).

Also, build up the number of Recommendations you have on your profile. Ideally, you want 1-2 Recommendations for every 100 contacts. Because the date the Recommendation was received will show up on your profile, aim to build your Recommendations slowly, over time. The best way to receive Recommendations is to give them. Commit to writing one Recommendation for people you’re connected to at least once a month.

Finally, one of the most important things you can do is to continue to build your network of connections. While LinkedIn only requires 50 connections for your profile to be “complete,” you need to grow your network beyond this. You should have a minimum of 100 connections. If you’re in an active job search, aim for making 10-25 new connections each month. The more connections you have, the better LinkedIn will work for you.

Pro tip: Maintain an updated resume

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There are several good reasons to keep an updated resume handy even if you’re not actively seeking new employment.

Make it easy on yourself by using a performance review an an opportunity to update your resume, and email yourself resume “notes” and accomplishments from time to time with a subject line you can easily search for later.

For one thing, you employment situation can change in a heartbeat — for example, you get a new supervisor or your mission has changed significantly. A great boss may leave for a new position — and maybe she wants you to come with he. Or maybe her replacement wants to bring in his own people.

Even if you don’t need a resume to apply for a position, it is useful to have a well-organized, neatly formatted document to hand to the hiring manager at the beginning of an interview. The resume can also serve as “talking points” to guide the content of an interview. The time invested in compiling information on your credentials, skills, and accomplishments can also help prepare you for the job interview itself.

Your current employer may even request a resume from you — for example, to brief incoming personnel. Or perhaps a new division is being stood-up and the leader of the new organization is looking to fill positions.

If you want to apply for an internal promotion or transfer, you may not think a resume would be required, but often, it is. A hiring manager in a different part of a big organization isn’t going to be familiar with all the aspects of what you do — and even if they have access to the job description for your position, that won’t tell them about the specific contributions that you’ve made in your current role. It’s your job to quantify and document your achievements — and a resume is a good way to do that, even for an internal position.

A good time to create — or update — your resume is when you are preparing for an annual performance review.

Documenting your accomplishments can help you prepare to show your manager how you’ve added value to your position — and department — since your last review. The resume development process is also a good time for self-assessment. A well-written resume tells the “story” of your career — demonstrating consistent themes and supporting information that highlights your qualifications for the job target you’re seeking, while omitting irrelevant information and positions.

Outside of an employment context, you may also be asked for a resume if you’re going to be a speaker for an organization or an event, so they can use the resume to create your bio and speaker’s introduction.

You may also be asked for a resume if you are being considered for an award — or being given an award in recognition of your work or volunteer efforts.

Resumes are also a tool for networking. Someone you just met who is interested in learning more about you may ask for your resume. This contact may help lead you to unadvertised job openings. In the same way, getting your resume in the hands of someone who knows you well can also lead to new opportunities. They can use the resume to pass along to other people who might be in a position to hire you, or to use as a “door opener” to introduce you to other people who might be useful in your job search.

It’s also important to note that a LinkedIn profile is not a substitute for a resume. Because a LinkedIn profile is public (even if you have your privacy settings locked down on LinkedIn, someone can still take a screenshot of your profile or create a PDF of it), there may be information that you do not want to include on your LinkedIn profile that can help demonstrate your accomplishments to a prospective employer. In addition, a resume can be customized to target a specific position, while you can only have one LinkedIn profile.

Furthermore, a well-written resume can actually help you populate your LinkedIn profile, making it easy to complete the “Work Experience” and “Education” sections.

Why To Update Your Resume Now

One of the most common reasons to update your resume when you’re not actively looking for a job is because you don’t have a good feeling about your current situation. Is there a lot of turnover in your current job or the organization overall? Have there been rumors of layoffs, or did the organization just get a significant budget cut? Both of these can signal a need for a resume update.

On the other hand, what if your department — or your organization — is doing very well? In that case, you may be contacted by other organizations looking to hire you away from your current job.

Putting together your resume can also help you determine where you want to go next in your career. Sometimes, looking at your work history can help you identify a pattern in your employment history that will help you determine where you want to go next in your career. An effective resume communicates both your current skills and qualifications and your future potential. Identifying a common thread in your experience and accomplishments can help you decide the next step in your career.

The same exercise can also help you identify where you may need to enhance your current skills or education. If you’re putting together your resume and you realize your last certification or in-depth training was more than 10 years ago, it may prompt you to look at how you can bring your skills up-to-date in a key area.

A resume can also help you if you’re considering a career change. Your resume can highlight transferable skills targeted towards a new career goal. The new document can also help you identify any deficiencies that you may need to work on strengthening as you pursue a different type of job or career path.

Having your resume prepared by a professional resume writer can also provide you with a sense of how you are seen by others. A third-party validation of your accomplishments — put together in an attractive, easy-to-read, modern format — can give you confidence. It can also provide reassurance that you have marketable skills — and that you would likely land on your feet should your current position be eliminated.

Why To Keep Your Resume Updated

The main reason to create — and maintain — an updated resume is that it takes time to put a good resume together — whether you’re writing it yourself, or having a professional prepare it for you. A resume is not just an “obituary” of your work history — it’s not a summary of everything you’ve done — it’s a strategic marketing document that showcases your value to a prospective employer.

It’s easier to maintain a resume than to scramble to put one together, especially when a new opportunity arises and you need to give someone your resume on short notice. Even if you don’t keep your resume fully updated, keep track of your accomplishments. Use a work journal to track your accomplishments (including a file folder to keep copies of emails or letters of appreciation from customers, co-workers, or your boss).

Make it easy on yourself to piece together later

You can also maintain an electronic record: forward emails to your personal email address (change the subject line so it’s easy for you to find these later) with notes about project specifics — especially scope-and-scale information like percentages, numbers, and dollar figures, etc., and jot down your accomplishments.

How often should you update your accomplishments? As often as necessary. For some, that may mean weekly updates (for example, if you’re working on a series of projects); for others, that could mean a quarterly assessment. The most important thing is to take the time to do this on an ongoing basis. Put an alarm or task reminder on your calendar so you remember to set aside the time to track your accomplishments regularly. This will make it much easier to update your resume.

Coming up with accomplishments will also help you prepare for a job interview. Anytime you are asked to “describe a time when you…” or “give me an example of when you…” that is an opportunity to share a story in C-CAR format: Context-Challenge-Action-Result.

First, describe the Context—what was your job or assignment? What was your role? Next think about the Challenge — or situation — that you faced. Next, identify and articulate the specific Actions you took to resolve the situation. Finally, outline the Results your actions brought about — specifically quantifying them in terms of measurable numbers, percentages, or dollars, when possible. Including CCAR statements on your resume — and preparing them to discuss in an interview — is a valuable exercise.

Even if you keep your resume updated, you may still need to re-target it for different kind of opportunities that may arise, but it’s easier to re-work an existing resume than to start from scratch. You may decide to keep a “master” resume document that contains all of your credentials (including a full list of your continuing education classes and workshops, for example), but editing the list down to meet the needs of a specific position.

If you don’t have a resume, it’s time to get one; and if you have one, but it hasn’t been updated in a while, now is the time to bring it up to date. You never know when you might need your resume, and you want it ready when you do.

7 Steps to Prepare Yourself for New Administration

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Nancy Segal is now the weekly career columnist for FEDWeek. This article was originally posted in the FEDWeek Career Forum.

January always brings new beginnings—a new year, resolutions, and promises to ourselves and others. This January brings a Presidential transition; if nothing else, 2017 promises change for the federal employee. There will be new agency heads, new policies, and new thinking.

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Make New Years Resolutions for your Career that Stick

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Tis the season for resolutions.

While you have likely made your personal resolutions by now, the New Year is also the perfect time to make your career resolutions. Most resolutions fall by the wayside before the end of January—primarily because our resolutions were unrealistic, ill-defined, or taken over by “life.”

One way to make your resolutions stick is to write them down, break them into achievable steps, and track you progress.

Here are easy resolutions to make 2017 your best career year ever!

1. Track your achievements. Get into the habit of writing down your achievements monthly. Not only can these achievements be used for your resume, they can also be used to provide input to your annual performance evaluation. All of your achievements should answer the question “so what” and demonstrate how you added value to your organization.

2. Identify your career goal, and create a personal plan for getting there. Do you have a specific job you want to move to? Or, are you simply interested in moving from the job you now have? The more focused you are on where you want to go; the easier it will be for you to get there. Investigate opportunities within your organization, focusing on the skills required, the working conditions and the satisfaction you will receive. Sometimes the best move is a lateral one; not all development comes from moving upward.

3. Improve your qualifications. Assess the qualifications needed to meet your short- and long-term career goals. Do you need to refresh your skills? Upgrade your knowledge? Obtain a certification or degree? Improve your currency by reading articles and books in your field? Not only do you need to identify what you need, you need to be willing to commit the personal resources (both time and financial) to achieve the qualifications you desire.

4. Update your resume. You should always keep your resume updated—you never know when opportunity might come knocking. Your resume should be focused on the past 10 years or so, include metrics to give your work context and accomplishments to demonstrate you can achieve results. Remove outdated information and information that does not support your career goals.

5. Broaden your brand. All of us have a brand, whether we think so or not. You can broaden your brand by establishing a more active presence on LinkedIn, publishing a professional article or two, or speaking at a professional conference. All of these things provide wider exposure for you and your expertise.

6. Maintain a positive attitude. Change is ongoing and ever-present. Greet change with a positive attitude. If you visualize your success, you will be more likely to achieve it than if you don’t.

Make the above your career resolutions and follow through. If you do so, you’ll be setting yourself up for a great 2017!

Quantifying Accomplishments

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Accomplishments demonstrate your skills and experience. It’s one thing to claim you can do something — it’s another to prove you’ve done it.

When collecting accomplishments for a job search, consider the key areas of competency required for success in the position you are seeking. What are the key components of your job? You should be able to identify accomplishments directly related to this expertise.

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