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After putting up these two posts today What Price Would You Pay For Your Dream Job? and Theme for 2010: Don’t Look Back I think I have said enough for one day :)

Instead I will leave you with some highlights from my Twitter stream going back the past 10 days or so. Most of them are not from me and if you are using Twitter I would recommend giving these folks a follow.

Oh, there is no rhyme or reason to these. Some are work, sports, life related or funny, thoughtful things (I have added some links to names and articles) and are in reverse chronological order (in other words start at the bottom):

Theme for 2010: Don’t Look Back

This is my theme for 2010 complete with a 1970’s rock video from the group Boston (a short live version):

Last year at this time I remember saying I wish that we could go back to a time when as kids there were “do overs”. Those were the best. You could call “do over” whenever you wanted.

I still wish we could go back to those days. I suppose in some ways we can. We can try something again. We can try things a different way. We can say we are sorry.

What Price Would You Pay For Your Dream Job?

Last week I was working with a client on their job descriptions. What I mean is, we were rewriting them because the descriptions sucked. Sucked bad, like all job descriptions do. Fortunately they knew it so the process was easy.

I was working with their VP and during this writing process she said, “What’s your dream job?” A really neat conversation to have and we decided to write what that job description would like.

Things I included were:

- Being a Recruiter (nit not the account management side)

- Creating relationships, being an evangelist

- Involved in the local business community and groups

- Helping job seekers

- Doing some training, teaching

- Being able to try and experiment with new things and ideas

- Be on a team that is more like a family

Yesterday I received a call from her that I should expect an email while we were talking. Sure enough I here the chime and open it up.

Increase Your Odds. Candidate Job Board Tricks

The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap:

From: Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR

Major job boards like CareerBuilder and Monster are one of the most popular ways for companies to develop a candidate pool when looking to fill an open position. CareerBuilder alone boasts 2 million unique users per month according to a report by Cnet News last year. With unemployment at its highest since 1982 and candidate competition increasing, how does a candidate stand out from the virtual pack when posting a resume on a major job board?

Minnesota Morning

I have been told by numerous people that my blog has become lame. Since these are friends of mine who have my interests in mind I am going to listen to them.

And it starts today. I don’t know how long it will last but I am going to give it a shot anyway.

Other friends are saying that I am putting my best thoughts on Twitter and Facebook. I think they too are correct. I think I do much better, am far more interesting and funny in 140 characters or less.

But one thing for sure is that I have a lot on my mind. I have a Word document that is open all the time and it is now 104 pages in length of links, articles and thoughts of all varieties that I never get to share and I think it is time to clean out the closet so to speak....

Christmas 2009 Winter Storm | Snowmaggedon | Birth Of Frosty The Snowman

Happy Holidays to everyone. Looks like the professional weather predictors got this one right or, Mother Nature was predictable for a change. I mean, how many of these storms over the past couple of years have been duds?

These types of storms are called a Panhandle Hook or Texas Hooker. Seriously, not making that up.

The folks online are using words like snowmageddon, snowpocalypse, snownami, hohosnow, and what I think will be my favorite (even though it is not used much) snowlyshit.

Company Career Sites Revisited Vol I

"By working faithfully eight hours a day you may eventually get to be boss and work twelve hours a day." - Robert Frost

Why company career sites? Well for one, most jobs are with companies and what better place to get your job than from the source. All other jobs are generally through recruiters, job boards and friends. Speaking of which, if you find a job on a company career site, you should leverage your network. Does anyone you know work there? If yes, see if they can submit your application for you.

Minnesota Business, Technology, Sports, Politics And HR Blogs Updated

What follows is a major update (40 blogs) to my blog roll. These blogs are also added to my TwinCitiesBlogs.com project.

Minnesota Recruiter and HR Blogs:

• simply-hr
• Hockenberg Search
• Passion on Purpose
• Freelance Staffing

Minnesota Technology Blogs:

• But You’re A Girl
• this.Reflect();
• WhoisHenry.com
• Dahlin Development

Two Ways to Convince Employers to Hire You

The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap:

From: Kevin Donlin

I got a considerable amount of feedback on last week's article, which exhorted job seekers to ask the following question every time they learn of someone who got hired: How can I adapt what they did to my situation?

The example I used was this: If a sales rep got hired after bringing sales leads to a job interview, what could you bring to an interview to convince employers to hire you?

Coworking Opportunities And Locations In Minneapolis And St. Paul

There is a really interesting movement going on around the country that has found its way to the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul and it is called Coworking.

Coworking as a concept is a bit new to me. For all but the last two of my twelve years I have had office space. I am one of those people who know he does not get more done at home and that it can be HIGHLY overrated. It is cool in the beginning or now and again but full time from home, not for this guy.

But when the recession started knocking on the door I dumped my office space to work from home. I had to, it was a business call.

I miss not seeing people and the interaction of office neighbors. Or showering every day. Yeah I said it. There have been 3 day stretches when I have not ventured out of my place. Not that I go 3 days without a shower, anyway, I got off track (again)...

12 Days Of Christmas In Minnesota

I have been looking for some sort of holiday video or picture to post and stumbled across this one that Target Corporation put together and since it has a Minnesota vibe to it, this is the one.

Happy Holidays and Best Wishes in the New Year.

The Fastest Growing Companies - Who's Hiring Vol VI

The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap:

From: CareerAlley

So where are we in the recession life-cycle? Not sure that anyone really knows the answer yet, but we are all hoping that we are about at bottom and this recent quiet period is not just a temporary lull in the downward spiral. That being said, jobs will still be lost - especially in the automotive related industries. So hopefully the fastest growing companies are the fastest at job creation too. Picking up where we left off on the last volume in this series.

What Is The Definition Of Unemployed?

In good times and bad times and regardless of political party I have said that the way the United States government, specifically the Bureau of Labor Statistics, states unemployment statistics is B*** S***. CRAP I say!!!

In the coming days I am going to be doing a bunch of posts about recent labor statistics including what many consider “real unemployment” numbers by age, race, location, etc.

How is it that the media folks do not pick up in this? My guess is they do not get it and do not see the need to educate themselves.

For now I leave you with what I think is the best way to understand the different definitions of unemployed in the United States (hat tip to Toby Dayton of Diggings for the video):

2 Minnesota Recruiter Events December 11, 2009

We are very fortunate to have three recruiter related groups in Minneapolis and St. Paul including my Minnesota Recruiters group. Some wonder why so many and I ask a different question, since all three groups “sell out” their events do we need to create a fourth?

OK, maybe not but you get the point. We have a strong community of HR and Recruiter professionals and I put them up against any other city.

We are all very supportive of each other and in that spirit here is info on both events this Friday, December 11th (I will be attending the MNTRN event):

Minnesota Technical Recruiters Network (MNTRN)

• 7:30 – 9:30 AM
• Jason DeRusha of WCCO TV will talk about
• "How should we brand ourselves as recruiters?"
• For more info www.mntrn.org

Leading Edge HR Network (LERHN formerly TERBN)

• 8 AM – Noon
• “Emerging and Maturing Trends in Social Media”
• For more info www.lehrn.org

Minnesota Jobs Summit

Last week the Obama Administration held a “Jobs and Economic Growth Forum” and while I think their attention on jobs is one year too late (this is not political, the Bush Administration had their head in the sand) at least they are getting to it.

And while I have little faith that much can be done at the Federal level (did you see all the politicians taking credit for creating jobs?) there is a cool idea that came from this and an event that is being organized locally to talk and get into it.

The following information is taken from the Minnesota Jobs Summit registration page for an event that will be held January 6, 2010 in Minneapolis.

Rant: Twitter And TweetDeck Become Less User Friendly

I am a HUGE fan of Twitter and I am a huge fan of TweetDeck. I am a big fan of the new Twitter Lists and have started putting together some really good lists like Minnesota News, Career and All Stars. I did this post a few weeks ago Twitter Lists As A Networking Tool.

But there is a huge flaw in this and if by chance someone from Twitter or TweetDeck is catching this please help me out. And by the way, I have tried other ways of getting their attention but now I am frustrated so this blog post is what they get.

Minnesota Recruiters Conference #8 | Summer 2009 | Repost

I am going to be doing a repost with information from our July 17th (July 2009) event at Best Buy but I need to post this now to keep the chronology correct in the archive.

Bookmark this link and come back in a couple of days.

Future Of Talent Institute Minneapolis Edition | Repost

I am going to be doing a repost with information from the July 16, 2009 Future of Talent Institute event at Best Buy but I need to post this now to keep the chronology correct in the archive.

Bookmark this link and come back in a couple of days.

Minnesota Recruiters Conference #7 | Winter 2009 | Repost

I am going to be doing a repost with information from our March 27th (Winter 2009) event at Best Buy but I need to post this now to keep the chronology correct in the archive.

Bookmark this link and come back in a couple of days.

How To Find a 'Best' Company to Work For

The following post is courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap:

From: Lorraine Russo

What type of company are you targeting in your job search? Do you prefer large organizations, start-ups, or something in between?

What characteristics do you look for in a company, such as its reputation for family-friendliness, eco-friendliness, a progressive culture, or health & wellness benefits? And how do you determine the true character of a company? In the old days, we relied on the "good word" of HR or the hiring manager that a company was a great place to work—only to find that it was, in reality, a nightmare. (How many times have you said after leaving one job and starting another: “Yikes…what have I done?” )

If you know the type of company you prefer—or if you’re still searching for that elusive 'best' employer—give this site a look. Start making a list of what I call the LTCs – Leading Traits and Characteristics – of the companies you would like to work for. Then do your research.

Questions to consider: What is a company’s reputation in the marketplace and with its customers? Are they involved in any lawsuits ? What is the nature of their business? What are the bloggers and networking sites saying about a company?