Every
week, NETSHARE hosts Ask the Coach, a phone-in coaching session with leading
career management experts. Here is an excerpt from this week’s session with career transition coach and consultant Randy Block.
This week, seasoned career coach Randy
Block hosted the Ask the Coach call. As always, Randy was prepared with insight
and pragmatic advice about finding work. His most practical advice to job
seekers was find new ways to get noticed. Find ways to stand out from the crowd
of applicants. Make yourself unique.
Not long ago, noting on your resume
that you were prepared to stand apart as a “team player” or by being “results
oriented” was more than enough to get a foot in the door. These days, such
catch phrases are listed as the seven
deadly words or phrases on your resume. You need to make yourself unique.
You need to find the personal brand that differentiates you and your value
proposition, and then back it up with concrete proof.
To help you build that unique value
proposition, consider tapping the power of blogging. Creating a weblog where
you can share your insight and industry knowledge is an ideal means to create
an online brand presence; a foundation from which to launch your personal
brand. If you have target companies that you are truly interested in, blog
about them! Apply your experience to comment on what they are doing well and
where they need help. Offer suggestions and ideas to improve things.
Most companies have watchdogs
assigned to keep track of all Web references about the company. Your posts will
come to their attention. But don’t wait to be discovered. Take matters into
your own hands and proactively send links to your blog to hiring authorities,
such as the department managers, the HR department, or the CEO. And don’t just
say, “See, I am writing about you,” but rather use your blog to engage them in
conversation about topics of interest. Ask what they think. Provide a URL and
invite them to comment.
This is a great way to get a
dialogue going and make a positive connection with executives who can
positively influence your career. But remember, this is a conversation, not a
sales pitch. You need to engage the parties involved. Make sure they are heard,
and that they see your unique value and what you bring to the table. Over time,
it will become obvious that your skills and expertise will be an asset to the
company. At that point you can start talking about possible work. But if you
try to rush the process without engaging in the conversation, then you will
appear disingenuous and the strategy will fail.
If you want to learn more about how
to harness blogging as a means to building your personal brand, be sure to
attend this month’s Experts
Connection teleseminar, “Executives:
Get Noticed for the Right Reasons,” with recruiter and master blogger Jim
Durbin. Jim knows as the Social Media Headhunter because he understands how to
help you harness the power of the blog to build brand awareness that will help
you land your next job.
