Isn’t the Job Search depressing? May 7, 2009

If you’re looking for a new job in 2009 it probably means you were a victim of the economy (or might have just picked a recession year to move to a new city…like me). With the recession lingering on and nothing but pessimism from the media, searching for your next career move is a hard and depressing thing to do…especially when you are your own cheerleader. Below are some tips I have used to stay positive, hope they help you.

1. Get out of bed – Don’t just set your alarm clock and wake up, get out of bed, shower and get dressed. Don’t stay in your PJs, sit on the couch and watch TV all day. Can’t wake up because the daunting task of applying for jobs is in front of you? Try coffee. Want to be healthier? Go to the gym! Exercising in the morning gives you energy and releases endorphins. Now you are ready to take on another day!
2. Be organized – Beyond organizing your electronic applications, organize your life. Make a daily schedule for yourself…this doesn’t have to be the same everyday…set aside 3-5 hours everyday for you to search for jobs, find networking events in your area, online networking activities, following up with contacts, and other very important job searching activities.
3. Stay current in your industry – Find relevant publications (print, online, video, podcasts, etc.) that report trends and current news about your industry. Read them! It is so important to stay current on your industry while you are out of the scene. When you are on an interview, talking with your possible future boss, what if they ask you about a new emerging trend…and you have no idea what they’re talking about?? You just lost your opportunity!
4. Network - This will get you out of the house for a bit, keep up your conversation and people skills, and introduce you to people in your industry who might just hire you or find you your next job. Read my previous posts about networking for the “How To.”
5. Volunteer - Want to get out of the house more? Devote some of your time and talents to a non-profit organization. This will help you keep up your skills, network more and feel great while doing it because you’re helping out a worthy and appreciative organization. (This is becoming a huge trend in the 2009 recession period, many trend and news articles can be found on any traditional news site.)
6. Get a Hobby – After searching for a job, exercising, volunteering and sleeping you still have a few hours in the day available. So, why not start a hobby? A busy professional always wishes there were more hours in the day for their personal goals, so now that you have that time take advantage of it! Learn a language, take dance or cooking classes, learn how to paint or upholster furniture, whatever you’ve always wanted to learn, now is the time!

Good luck! If you find these tips helpful and you put them to work, please send me your story. I would love to post them as inspiration to others.

Resume Writing 101 February 28, 2009

I went to school for Advertising and Public Relations at the University of Central Florida’s Nicholson School of Communication. My professors were amazing industry veterans who taught us as much as they could to get us ready for the ‘real world.’ As our first assignment in one of our classes we were to develop our resume. Later, when it came time for us to apply for internships, they brought in the HR director from the Orlando Sentinel to give us tips and some constructive criticism on our resumes. So, out of college I had a great resume (according to those who saw it).

Now that it is time for me to start applying for positions that are no longer entry level I thought a quick revision was needed. WRONG! Complete overhaul time!

After consulting with some other industry professionals, here are some of the updates I made to my resume along with tips and some of my own observations:

1. Add links to your social networking sites (LinkedIn, Twitter, your Web site). Try under your contact info.
2. I like using a summary instead of an objective to start off my resume. In my opinion, your objective is laid out more clearly in your cover letter. And a summary of your strongest characteristics is a strong way to begin your professional profile (what a resume is).
3. Next I move to career experience, because that’s the most important thing employers want to know about you. Remember to use past tense action words and do not use “I” it should be understood. Other than the obvious company name (which I started linking to the company’s Web site), position and dates employed, how do you lay out the rest?
   1. Since I am from out of state most of my experience, professional and volunteer, are with unfamiliar places. Therefore I have added a one-line description under the first line (who, what and when). Example: “Small public relations and political communication firm with strong crisis communication specialty; rated #1 PR firm in Orlando.”
   2. Next, I realized that simply listing responsibilities and only hinting at the fact that I was successful in these responsibilities was not what employers were looking for. Therefore I separated my experience at a specific place into responsibilities and achievements. Don’t just tell a prospective employer that you were in charge of a project, tell them how awesome you were at it by giving them as specific as possible results you achieved. For example, you planned an event and pitched media? OK, how many media pick-ups did you get? Did any come to cover the event live? Etc. Remember it is best to bullet point these points, for responsibility and achievement sections.
4. What are your skills? Only those that are applicable to the job you are applying for. Computer programs, online skills, writing and communication skills, etc. Again, bullet point this list. Use synonyms to describe how skilled your are: familiar, savvy, proficient, skilled.
5. Education is always important. Depending how long ago you graduated makes how you list your schooling. Never list anything before college. If you graduated many years ago a simple college, degree and year of graduation is all that is needed. However, since I graduated more recently, I still list my involvement and awards. Personally I do this because I like to show how invested and involved I’ve been with my industry from the beginning.
6. My last resume section is my professional activities. Here I also had to add a one-line explanation of the organization. I also bullet pointed my experience due to board positions I held and the events I planned (of course including results).

Now I’ve always heard that unless you have 10+ years experience, your resume should not be over one page. Well, if you can’t get your expertise across for your 5-10 years of experience then it may be necessary for you to break this rule, which is what I’ve had to do. However, I would caution you to not exceed two pages if you have less than 10 years of experience. If you do, prospective employers are going to get lost in your extra long explanations.

Other things to do: ensure styling is the same throughout (bullet style and alignment, font size, etc.), spell check, and have 2-3 other people proof it for you.

Last step: Adding your personal brand. You need to make sure your resume is scannable, since so many large company scan resumes into HR databases to be able to find qualified applicants, but try to add your own version of branding. There are many ways to do this so I’d rather not give advice. Just remember to not over do it, don’t get to the tacky/unnecessary point, or make your resume unreadable to employers.

Good luck!

If you’d like to see my resume send me an email.

LinkedIn – Use it or lose it February 20, 2009

LinkedIn has been the common conversation with so many unrelated people this week, so I had make this my next blog post/step in the career search.

LinkedIn, for those who haven’t heard of it (have you been under a rock the past year?), is an online professional networking site. It is much different from the social networking sites like Myspace and Facebook. LinkedIn is for professionals, companies and professional groups. These are the three main categories who interact on LinkedIn.  Another huge plus for LinkedIn is their Job section! There they offer a job search, with some jobs exclusively posted on LinkedIn. And for those who need a few tips, they offer tips and personal stats on what to do to make your profile tip-top shape for your job search.

To offer some of my own tips I need to start with a LinkedIn pro and employee, Mario Sundar. You should be following him on Twitter and reading his blog, where he shares updates and tips for LinkedIn along with other great marketing articles.

OK so basics on LinkedIn. It is very user friendly! Once you sign up it gives you a rating on how close you are to ‘completing’ your profile.  Basics:

• Use your resume to upload your experience, skills and education sections.
• Do you have a blog, a Web site, a Facebook, etc? Link it!
• Upload a professional picture of yourself
• Give yourself a general title to describe your profession
• Fill in the ‘addiontional info’ section to give people a closer look at you from your personal to professional interests and professional, community and personal groups and organizations you are part of
• And don’t be shy, put any awards or honors who’ve received to show yourself off a bit!
• Contact info- I have some special notes on this, see below.

Now that you are on your way to having an almost complete profile who need to build your network. How to find people who know and “Add to your network:”

• Search companies you’ve worked at
• Search groups you are involved with (join and add members you know)
  • Professional associations
  • Community orgs
  • Alumni associations
  • Regional groups that are solely online/LinkedIn
• Remember those business cards from the networking events you picked up? Search those people
• Search other contacts

Once you have many of the people you know in your network, start going through their connections and you’ll find more people who know…add them! Also go through others’ profiles to see what groups they are part of, if they seem interesting and are applicable to you join them! It’s all about getting your name out there.

You are on your way to having an A-rated profile! Now you need recommendations. If your current and past bosses are on LinkedIn send them a recommendation request. Another way to get these necessary rec’s is to recommend others and they will usually reciprocate. So recommend your manager, your employees, your intern, anyone you worked with whether at a company or volunteering.

My last note. About the contact info and accepting invitations to join others’ networks. You need to make a choice of how to manage your network. Is it everyone and anyone? Only people you know? Only people in your industry? Only people regionally near you? Depending on who you want to be in your network should depend on what you include in your contact info.

Take a look at my profile for some tips (my profile is not perfect, but it’s a start).

This will take you some time, I’ll have more on LinkedIn later. Good luck!

Informational Interviews February 16, 2009

Whether you already know your market or it’s all new to you, once you start researching the companies out there you will probably find a few that will become your Goal Companies. These companies are in the industry you want to work in, whose goals and ethics align with yours, whose goals are aligned with yours or whose political view align with yours. They may not be hiring, so here is where our new networking skills meets the ‘informational interview.’

The informational interview is another tool in your networking tool box. When you have a company, industry or sector that you want to work in, then that is where you are going to focus all your energy in your job search.

Steps Before the ‘Interview’

Research. Research the company/industry/sector front and back, know your stuff! Then, use your networks (professional and online) to get an introduction to the right person within the organization. Want to get the ‘in’ with the marketing department, finance, management? Usually it’d be best to talk to whoever your boss would be if you got your dream job there. Once you know who this person is, research them through the internet, your contacts and online networks. See if you have anything in common so you can have a relationship builder. Did you go to the same school, grow up in the same area, members with the same organization or volunteer with the same non-profit?

Asking for the ‘Interview’

Best to get introduced through someone, but a lot of professionals are really great replying to emails requesting advice from younger professionals. Whatever the introduction, use your communications skills to explain to your contact at the goal company to explain your current job searching state and your goal of working at a company ‘like’ theirs and would greatly appreciate their advice. If they are willing to offer some advice ask them to coffee or lunch, whatever makes more sense for their situation.

Prepping for the ‘Interview’

Once the time and place are set, it is time to do some research. Just as you would for a job interview, research the company, it’s clients, it’s work, it’s philosophy, etc. because you need to go to this informational interview with plenty of knowledge. You don’t want to waste the other persons time by asking them trivial questions that you could have easily found on their Web site, so you need to know what the appropriate questions are to ask. Your research should help you prepare 4-6 questions that will give you insight into your contact, their company and their future. At the same time these questions should prove to your contact that you’ve done your homework, you are interested in this industry/organization, you want to learn and you are not wasting their time. Your questions should lead into deeper conversation that will sustain your meeting.

And your contact will have questions for you so make sure you are ready for those as well. As with any interview you may want to bring some articles to share or allow your contact to take with them, such as your resume, relevant portfolio pieces, etc.

The ‘Interview’

Be on time, if not early. Dress professionally, even if it is an early morning coffee or a Friday happy hour. Be attentive, conversational and relaxed. Do not be too pushy about areas you are curious about. Do not seem desperate for a job with them, which will make your contact uncomfortable and want to not give you helpful advice. Do not get too personal. As a rule I try to leave religion, politics and family situations out of most professional conversations.

Remember, the object is to introduce yourself and leave a great first impression, one of a professional they should consider for a position with their company in the future.

And if you get some great advice for job searching in the meantime, then it’s an added bonus.

Follow up Post-’Interview’

A personalized email thanking them, letting them know how much you appreciated it and furthering the discussion you had in person makes a great follow up & thank you note. See the advice I gave for post-networking event emails in my last post. If you promised them more info send this at the same time. And if you used any of their advice already, let them know what you thought or if you have had any great results yet. Sending this email will hopefully continue to build a relationship between you and keep you top of mind if the day comes he can offer you more help (like a job).

Networking Crash Course February 13, 2009

Networking is not an easy thing. You can’t just go out and start meeting people and POOF you have a new job offer, new business, or a career long friend. I have learned A LOT about networking, being active in the professional networking community since my freshman year in college and teaching my attorneys, from my most recent job at a Florida law firm, about the process.

Pre-Planning

Before you can start the prep work, you need to do some self reflection…also known to creative communicators as “brainstorming.” When you put yourself out into the professional community, whether it’s a professional industry you’ve been working in for 10 years, a new field of professionals, community-related or a ‘like minded group’ you found on Meetup you need to know who you are and what your best traits are to easily promote yourself to this new audience.

• What is the purpose of your networking? Your goal will help you craft your ‘elevator speech’ or at least the type of conversations you want to start.
• What professional traits do you want to personify to new contacts?
• Open Word or write on a slab of paper the first 30 adjectives you think of that describe you as a professional or the career you are seeking. You can narrow this down to a few key words to develop into your introduction or talking points for the in-depth conversations you enter into during the event.
• Are you being realistic? Don’t shoot to get a job in one night, instead make a goal to collect 10 business cards of people you will follow up with post-event. Hopefully one of those will turn into a good contact.

Prep Time

Once you have a strategic map of your professional self it’s now time to take that ’self brand’ you created and translate that into marketing materials for your networking use. This will depend on your industry, but for the marketing/PR community this is a necessary step. Apply your personal brand to the following tools:

• Personal business cards
• Resumes
• Personal Web site – www.lauraskern.com (at time of post, this Web site is not completed but the design is up to show my integration with the business card)
• If you have killer HTML skills try to incorporate your look into other social media sites and profiles (Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, etc.)
• Email signatures…you can take this as far as you’d like, just be tasteful and don’t go overboard (to your discretion)

The Event

At the event your basic goal is to meet people. Start talking to anyone, get comfortable with yourself in a new environment and then you can start scanning the room to make a strategic plan on how you want to work it. If your goal is to meet the senior level people in attendance, ask people’s titles as you talk to them, and you’ll find your way to your goal group. Use this same advice when you have a specific group you want to connect with — non-profit, corporate, agency, etc.

Remember to exchange business cards. There are two times during the conversation that seem to work best, in my experience, a.) as you introduce yourself extend your business card or b.) as you part ask if you may contact them for follow up advice, coffee or ask them to keep you in mind if they hear of any job openings and extend your business card. Once you offer your card it is common practice for the other person to offer theirs, and if for some reason they forget straight out ask for it. You’re at a networking event, hello!

To exit a conversation, be polite! There are many ways to do this: “It was very nice to meet you. I hope to see you at the next event.” “My friend just got here, please excuse me and it was nice to meet you!” “Please excuse me, I want to talk to this gentleman over here before the event begins/ends.” “Thank you again for your advice, I want to go grab a front row seat before they’re taken.” “I want to grab another drink before the event starts, please excuse me.” Etc. Nothing awkward about it.

Post-Event

Get those business cards out you collected! There are many opinions on what is more appropriate or effective these days: hand-written or email follow up notes. Being a child of the internet and a true believer in social media, and knowing that my industry lives in their email boxes, I am on the email side of the argument. Send a personalized follow up email (a repurposed version of your cover letter may work), that reintroduces yourself, attaches your resume and includes a follow up question (advice, coffee, lunch, etc.). My recommendation is to send these follow up notes within a week of the event so your new contacts will remember you. Remember these are busy people, so make it shorter rather than longer, if they want to continue the conversation you’ll hear back and can include more the second time around.

Organizing the Job Search – Part 1 February 13, 2009

Searching for that next great career step can be such an overwhelming task. There’s the 216 million job search engines out there, the networking, the personal branding and of course making time for it all, budgeting yourself, and keeping up with it all. Making this a little more difficult for my journey is moving to a new state where I need to start from scratch.

Being the extremely organized person that I am I had to wrangle the monster and make sure I took it into my own hands.

I am a true believer in networking, especially for those in the marketing and P.R. community, which led me to my step one. My second belief system is structured around social media.

Step 1-A: Update my social networking sites.

I already had a LinkedIn profile, a Twitter account and a MySpace profile(in the process of deleting). After updating my recent info and making sure it was some what obvious that I was searching for a new job I realized I might not be covering all my bases. So, I signed up for Facebook. Once my profiles were updated I made us of my networks. I found people related to my alma mater, who worked in specific industries I wanted to get into, members of organizations I was interested in, etc. that lived in my new city. Not only making them my friend but starting conversations with them. The first round was a great experience!

Step 1-B: Networking (In Person)

I met really great people through my online networks who I started emailing with, meeting for coffee, asking advice from and who continue to introduce me really good opportunities. From joining networking groups I never heard and being introduced to new job search engines my growing network has been very helpful.

I also did a lot of searching for local P.R. associations and communication organizations who have monthly meetings. After researching I found 11 in the Los Angeles area (see list below) that seemed to fit what I was looking for. No one can go to every event, but after making a calendar of the events and cutting out those that conflicted with my schedule I had to cut out ones that were outside my budget.

Getting ready for my first event and the results will be my next post.

L.A. area P.R./Communication orgs:

1. Public Relations Society of America, Los Angeles Chapter
2. Southern California American Marketing Association
3. Advertising Professionals Association, North Los Angeles County
4. HSMAI, Greater Los Angeles Chapter
5. Legal Marketing Association, Los Angeles Chapter
6. International Association of Business Communicators, Los Angeles
7. Healthcare P.R. and Marketing Association of Southern California
8. Business Marketing Association, Southern California Chapter
9. Direct Marketing Association, Southern California Chapter
10. Promotion Marketing Association, L.A./Southern California Chapter
11. Word of Mouth Marketing Association