7 Tips for Becoming “Social Media” Smart
Ready to advance your career?
Social media is a remarkable tool that can accelerate your reputation, credibility and personal brand to help you build a name for yourself for the services, knowledge, and value that you have to offer.
But social media can be a double-edged sword. If you’re thinking about ways to leverage Facebook, Twitter and the all-important professional tool, LinkedIn for the advancement of your career, you’ll need to keep in mind that you must present a professional appearance in line with your intended personal branding persona.
Below are seven super easy tips to help you navigate the confusing social media maze to advance your career.
How do you see yourself? Be sure your public image is in concert with your personal image. Not only will your audience and intended customers or clients appreciate an authentic voice, but it’s easier to be genuine when you use your own voice in articles, blogs, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
This does not mean being so informal that you don’t sound professional. Strike a balance, always keeping in mind that the world is watching. What do you want the world to see?
What are you selling, offering or providing for your intended audience? In other words, what is your product? Whether you’re using social media to offer a skill or talent you have and are looking for clients, or you’re seeking a career-oriented position, be relentlessly clear about two things:
a. Your niche or your discipline; and
b. Your experience and expertise in your chosen field.
- After mulling things over and deciding how you’d like to position yourself, it’s time to begin serious networking. Put up your professional looking and sounding self-named Facebook page, LinkedIn page and Twitter account. Blog on your topic and offer to guest blog on peer blogs and subject related blogs.
- Write timely and relevant articles on your subject matter and get them up on the many available ezines. One exciting consideration is that you can take your inspired writing from your blogs and turn it into helpful and interesting articles.
- Get into a career where you can thrive (not just survive!)
It’s impossible to thrive in a career if you’re just going through the motions at work. If you’re walking around tired and bored, then others are sure to see you that way. You need to be in a career that challenges you, flexes your professional muscles, and excites you! How can you start that transition?
Think about what kind of work you WANT to be doing. Identify three key ingredients you need in your career to be happy and fulfilled such as leading teams, working on creative projects, developing new technologies, etc. Once you’ve defined the three key ingredients, then do whatever it takes to drive your career towards that vision.
- Share your value!
Everything you do and say sends messages to your senior managers, clients, networking contacts and potential employers. Your words, actions, presentations, status reports, resume, and interview responses all shape the perceptions others have about you. You should be sending a crystal clear message that focuses on the value that you consistently deliver to a company or client.Your “value” is a unique blend of your strengths, professional accomplishments, and personal characteristics such as being a good leader, risk taker, problem solver, strategic thinker, etc. All of these things combined make up your “value package” which makes you truly unique from a crowd of colleagues, business associates, and even job applicants. The key is to role model the “value” that you provide by consistently demonstrating it, living it and breathing it.
- Open your mind to new possibilities.
I love the funny saying, “If you want to make God laugh – tell him your plans.”
One of the biggest mistakes I ALMOST made was declining the privilege of serving on the American Marketing Association’s National Council. What a HUGE mistake that would have been! I narrowly was only looking at it as just another volunteer opportunity that would burden me with a list of task and deliverables. Fortunately, a mentor helped me see the bigger picture which was a tremendous gift that could strengthen my leadership skills, deepen my marketing expertise, broaden my professional network, and advance my career ten fold. (After accepting the position and serving just one year, I was named President of the AMA’s National Council which advanced my career up to a completely new level.)Be open to experiencing new career opportunities. You should be giving serious consideration to each and every possibility that comes your way. Never decline an opportunity without first getting a fresh perspective from people in your circle whom you respect. - Send the “right” messages.
Everything you do and say sends messages to your senior managers, clients, peers, networking contacts and potential employers. Your words, actions, presentations, reports and work deliverables all shape the perceptions others have about you.You influence people through your actions and your words so make sure both are in synch. Send a crystal clear message that focuses on the that you consistently deliver to a company or client. Your “value” is a unique blend of your strengths, professional accomplishments, and personal characteristics such as being a good leader, risk taker, problem solver, strategic thinker, etc.All of these things combined make up your “value package” which makes you truly unique from a crowd of colleagues, business associates, and even job applicants.If you’re currently working with a company and you’d like to stay there, then you may want your message to be that you deliver high quality and results. For example, if you’re in sales then your message should be that you consistently generate revenue. If you’re a creative director then your message should be that you consistently develop fresh campaigns that increase sales.Take every opportunity to send your value message through project updates, status reports, presentations, hallway conversations, business networking events, in your resume, and in your interviews. Talk about the results or the success of the projects and teams you’ve led, or the benefit they added to the company like generating more revenue, saving costs, or making the company be more competitive. If you want to be seen as a problem solver then talk about the challenges that your team overcame, and the key lessons that you’ve learned.
The key is to role model the “value” that you provide by consistently demonstrating it, living it and breathing it.
- Go for the “High Value” Projects
Getting on the right projects and delivering strong results is the single most effective way to boost your personal brand. That means aggressively going after those projects that generate money, save costs or make the company more competitive.Just like everyone else, you have 8-10 hours a day at work. Now, you can either spend those hours parceling out your time in bits and pieces working on a variety of tasks and assignments, or you can concentrate your efforts on making major contributions that generate BIG results.
Consider where you can make the biggest impact for your organization and aggressively go after those assignments. Successful professionals don’t leave it up to their managers and senior leaders to drop plum projects in their lap. They drive their career by volunteering for, or even creating, projects that make the biggest impact. - Get into a career where you can thrive (not just survive!)
It’s impossible to have a powerful personal brand if you’re just going through the motions at work. If you’re walking around dull and listless (like the Clairol Herbal Essence girl before she shampoos her hair), then others are sure to see you that way. You need to be in a career that challenges you, flexes your professional muscles, and excites you!Think about what kind of work you want to be doing. Start by identifying the three key ingredients you need in the work itself to be happy and fulfilled such as leading teams, working on creative projects, developing new technologies, etc. Once you’ve defined the three key ingredients, then do whatever it takes to drive your career towards that vision.
There are a few great resources online for finding ezines to write for, such as the ezine directories at BestEzine, or FindEzines. These sites are broken up into different topics and niches, so you’re able to find your specific topic within minutes!
- If you’re looking for a career position, you’ll want to upload your resume. But even if your intention is to sell your product or a service you provide, there’s no reason not to have a resume up on the numerous available resume websites and job boards. It’s great free exposure. Narrow your resume to the precise area you are working in to assure that you get the responses you most hope to receive.
There are quite a few sites that are definitely worthwhile to upload your resume to. Try using CareerBuilder or Monster. They’re incredibly easy to use, and are relatively well known, so many prospective employers are likely to stumble across your resume.
Be sure to link your various social media and your internet sites to one another. Leave a trail of big, fat bread crumbs that will infallibly lead your potential customer, client or employer to you.
When you consider having “everything about you” transparently available to the world, it becomes clear that your presentation must be consistent. A profile of a fun party girl on Facebook may not jibe with the responsible word smith you present yourself to be on LinkedIn. It’s fine to be more casual on Facebook, but don’t let the difference seem incongruous.
Call it Karma, paying it forward, or simply, the right thing to do. In any case, there are stunning examples of the power of this approach. Take, for example, John Locke, the first self-published author to sell a million eBooks on Amazon. What’s relevant to the subject is his social media model, and the wise individual will borrow from it. He is generous in his praise of other authors and tirelessly tells his followers to check out the web pages and the books of other authors.
Generosity returns in kind, and multiplies on its return.
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Written by James Adams, guest blogger for CareerCoaching360.com. If you ever need to find printer cartridges online, just ask James. He is an employee of a British supplier of printer cartridges and spends most of his time blogging for the website, or keeping it updated. He’s recently been busy with keeping track of all the HP laser cartridges but still finds time to write guest articles.
Creating More Career Opportunities
I consider myself wealthy, not based on money, but because I have so many opportunities available to me in my career. Successful professionals aren’t lucky. They’re what I call “career smart.” They make choices, decisions, and take risks every day with one purpose: to advance their career.
Being career smart is NOT about accepting whatever job is handed to you, but instead it’s about creating opportunities that allow you to have a career that inspires you.
Want to learn how to do it? Below are three of my biggest strategies to help you become career smart, create more opportunities and achieve a career that fills you with purpose, meaning, and passion!
And finally…
Step up, branch out, and start being receptive to new possibilities. There are always opportunities around you. You just have to go after them! :)
Sherri Thomas is President of Career Coaching 360, an international speaker, and author of “Career Smart – 5 Steps to a Powerful Personal Brand” – on AMAZON’s TOP 10 LIST for personal branding books! Career Coaching 360 (www.CareerCoaching360.com) provides career planning, management coaching, and leadership development support to help professionals change careers quickly and easily. To learn how you can reinvent your career quickly and easily, visit Career Coaching 360′s website for resume help, interviewing support, and personal career coaching packages.
How to Create, Market and Role Model a Powerful Personal Brand
Personal Branding is a hot topic these days, but do you really know what it means?
And do you know how to leverage your personal brand to get the career you really want?
Getting bigger promotions, better clients and a more meaningful career depends largely on how you’re perceived by senior managers, colleagues, peers, and potential clients or employers. To maximize your career opportunities and get into a career that actually inspires you to get out of bed in the morning, let’s start by strengthening your personal brand.
Step #1. Identify your value.
Having a powerful personal brand means that you consistently deliver what you say you’re going to deliver. In other words, it’s the skills, experience and value that you provide to your employer or clients. Whether it’s bringing in new streams of revenue, managing highly valued projects or developing creative marketing campaigns, your career is fueled by the value that you consistently deliver to employers.
Your value is a unique blend of your strengths, professional accomplishments and personal characteristics (such as being a good leader, risk taker, problem solver, strategic thinker, etc.). All of these combined make up your “value package,” which makes you truly unique from a crowd of colleagues, business associates and even job applicants.
Read the full article on the Fresh Start blog.
Powering Up Your Personal Brand for More Career Opportunities
Cover via Amazon
To help you transition into a career that inspires and motivates you, I’m sharing below some tips from my book: “CAREER SMART – 5 Steps to a Powerful Personal Brand” (which is now on Amazon’s TOP 10 LIST for personal branding books)…
And finally…
Going after your dream career.
Do you dream of doing something different in your career? Something energizing, fun and creative that actually fills you with energy and passion?
I fully believe that life is way too short to stay in a meaningless job where you feel unfulfilled, unchallenged and under-valued. I’ve had a few of those jobs and I remember waking up every single morning and dreading going into work. The highlight of my day was stopping at Starbucks every morning to get my daily dose of lattes.
If you’re in that same position and now you’re ready to reinvent your career, then I’m here to help you! First, I’m going to tell you why it’s hard to do. I know that’s probably not what you expected me to say (or want to hear), but I’m going to tell you why it’s difficult to reinvent your career, and then I’m going to help you overcome those challenges so that you can get into your new career and get on with loving your life!
The reason that most people stay in an unmotivating and unfulfilling job is because it’s easy to do. It’s familiar, it takes minimal effort, it’s easy to blank out and be a zombie for 8 hours a day, and there’s comfort in knowing you’re getting the bills paid.
It’s easy because there’s minimal risk and minimal effort. But there’s also minimal reward. I recently attended a leadership training in Oregon and the instructor said, “Those who take on more risk, get more opportunities.”
Do you think that’s true? Do you think that when you step into a new organization that allows you to stretch and grow, that you might actually be inspired to go into work every day? Do you think that if you’re energized about doing work that excites you, that you’ll be making more significant contributions, and therefore, have more opportunities for promotions and career advancement?
Stepping onto a new career path is not easy, but it can absolutely be done! I’ve jumped onto a new career path four times, and it was well worth the risk! So, how can YOU make a successful career change?
1. Define your passion. In which industry would you like to work? Advertising? Finance? Health Care? In which job role would you like to work? Software Engineer? Financial Analyst? Management?
If you’re not sure, then read trade magazines, business publications, and talk to your friends, neighbors and colleagues about their job. The key to being in a career that excites and inspires you is to find out where your passion is.
2. Lead with your transferable skills. Once you’ve determined where you want to go in your career, lead with your transferable skills. Those are skills that transition from industry to industry, or from job role to job role. Examples include: managing people, managing projects, managing budgets, as well as negotiating contracts, and proposing new ideas that helped an organization generate revenue, save costs or increase market share.
These are excellent skills that can help you get your foot in the door at a new company. You’ll want to highlight these on your resume, and talk about them in your interviews and networking opportunities.
3. Attitude is king. I’ve found that reinventing your career mostly depends on two things: passion and confidence. Don’t worry if you don’t match all the job requirements. I got my TV gig even though I missed the two (2) biggest requirements – I didn’t have at least 2 years of TV experience and I didn’t have an audition tape.
To compensate, I focused my resume on my transferable skills which were being highly creative and a solid copywriter. Then, in the interview, the hiring manager told me I got the job because I was passionate about the company and the job!
Reinventing your career takes some perseverance, determination and a bit of risk taking. But the rewards are HUGE! Your next career is out there waiting for you – you just need to go out there and get it!
If you’re stuck in your career – get professional help! Career Coaching 360 helps professionals and executives change into a more meaningful and inspiring career, and we can help you, too! Check out our career coaching packages created to fit any budget at: http://www.careercoaching360.com/careercoaching/ Also, check out our resume and interviewing services.
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Sherri Thomas, author “Career Smart – 5 Steps to a Powerful Personal Brand” AMAZON’s TOP 10 LIST for personal branding books! Learn how to put yourself in high demand with leaders, clients and hiring managers! Buy it now!