The last three weeks I have done three different presentations and have inserted them below.
This morning I presented at the Social Media Breakfast – Twin Cities on “Using Social Media In Your Job Search.” Before going further I want to, need to say, in six or seven years of doing career related presentations I have NEVER had so much fun.
Thank you to those who attended and for participating in the conversation. Lots of really good questions were asked and this being my first time doing a presentation to this niche I learned quite a few things and will add a few slides in future similar presentations.
Announcements:
- Please pass on to friends, family, coworkers and anyone you know who is now or may in the future be doing a job search the following web site, Be Your Own Headhunter http://www.beyourownheadhunter.com
- As I type this (1-30-09) there is not much there but in the coming week it will be a good source of job search information. I will also be adding city pages that will have links of local information with Minneapolis and St. Paul being the first. (big shock, right?)
- In about two weeks I will be doing free job search webinars likely on a weekly basis.
- If you know of a group within short driving distance who would like to have a speaker on job search, networking, LinkedIn, etc please pass my name along. For local presentations I do not charge a fee.
- If you attended today’s event (or either of the previous two) and I missed a topic you had hoped would be covered please leave a comment below so I can see if/how to work it into a presentation.
That’s it for “announcements.”
OK, I lied...
NOTE: Today’s presentation was taken in part by the two below it as well as new content specific to today. You may/will want to look at the others to get more information on doing a job search and using LinkedIn as a tool.
The following was presented at the Savage Chamber of Commerce 1-20-09:
The following was presented at the StarTribune Career Fair 1-13-09 and is my standard job search presentation:
Paul and others,
I cannot agree more about the development of a personal network through social online networking. Paul and I have had discussions over the years about the dangers and worries associated with social networking (Facebook especially) but if you are smart about it, the tools are incredible.
I moved to Chicago five months ago without employment or a great deal of savings, and without any base of social networking in Chicago. I moved here to follow my passion and study at Second City.
As the market went down and unemployment grew, I was getting close to a possible really bad situation. I was working two part time jobs that were not getting the bills taken care of... and then I suffered a partial lay off at both jobs at the beginning of the year. I had to kick my job search ionto pretty high gear.
The things that Paul mentions here are what landed me a pretty great job using a lot of my skills as a relatively new member of the workforce (Three years out of college) and I was able to get a much better balance of work, personal life, and pay compared to my previous job in Minneapolis. Due to good contacts through Facebook I not only have a network here in Chicago, but also across the country that I have been developing. One of wich has also landed me an internship that will continue to diversify my interests and contacts while maintaining my full time and salaried position.
Was it easy? No. Was it fun? No. Does the market suck right now? Yeah. It took five months to find a job that nearly pays me what I am worth, and it is a job that will develop my talents.
And yes, as per Paul's advice, I am looking for my next job starting right away too. Not because I am unhappy-- but because you have always be ready for anything.
Dave Jennings
General Manager
Music Box Theatre-- Chicago
davejennings.net
Posted by: Dave Jennings | February 02, 2009 at 01:28 AM
Good insight on social media. There’s also some very useful job hunting and career advice on this site: http://www.spherion.com.
Posted by: C | February 05, 2009 at 05:46 PM