Want to narrow down your career focus on LinkedIn? Read on for some helpful tips.
Here are a few questions for those of you with more than two letters after your name:
How many letters do you have after your name that are relevant to what you do now?
Are these letters recognizable to the average person?
Do you use these credentials to do exactly what you want to do in your career?
Was your training academic or was it focused on a specific career or business goal?
Did you feel it was necessary to have the certifications and training to do or provide services doing what you love?
How many “Add to Cart” trainings have you purchased and never completed or implemented? (You know the ones I mean – they state a value of $499 and are slashed to $59)
How much of what you’ve learned through your certifications and training have provided a step by step structure or format to follow for you to feel confident in offering your services to others?
Are you still struggling to figure out how to put all your training and education together with clarity and focus?
If any of these questions resonate with you, you are not alone. There are many professionals who do not lack certifications, training, or academics.
However, as I have been looking over many LinkedIn profiles over the past several weeks, I’ve noticed a distinct lack of direction and focus even though there does not seem to be a lack education and experience on the profile.
The confusion for me is that there are often more than one industries listed and a lack of clarity with regard to whether they are networking with others in their profession, selling a service or a product, or seeking employment. I had more than one and have since taken the extraneous industry off my profile.
The overall feeling of the profile imparts a lack of enthusiasm, joy or even interest in who they are and/or what they are offering. In many profiles, there is a distinct feeling of Career ADD going on. Are you on LinkedIn now reviewing your profile?
LinkedIn profiles are only one symptom of the confusion pervasive among professionals with many letters, training and education. This is not by any means meant to minimize the time and effort it takes to complete the trainings associated with these letters. However, it does point often to a lack of focus in how they are applied in the real world.
In conversations with professionals, some have told me that they perceive the letters will make them more marketable. Others feel compelled to accrue more and more training to feel worthy, when in fact there continues to be a lack of purpose or direction that actually prevents some from moving forward. The amount of money some have put into their training and education that will never be used can be staggering.
Here are some tips if any of the above relates to you:
For LinkedIn Profiles – start by reading your profile from a neutral reader’s perspective. What are your feelings about this person? Do you know with certainty what is being communicated to the public about you?
Then pick one area you want to focus on and clean up any non-related information such as listing a job, experience, or industry that has nothing to do with what you are trying to communicate.
Review all the letters you have after your name in your signature line and pick only those that represent who you are and what you love doing. Even if PhD does not relate to doing what you love in your work or with what you are offering as a service, do not include it. Those of us who use services only want to see relevant training and experience – it may seem to offer you credibility, but in truth, it looks like you spent a lot of time on an education that does not relate to your present goals. My own master’s program was as relevant when I got it as it is to what I do today. I’ve had dozens of trainings since then, relate to what I’m doing today.
If you are unclear, be honest and take the time necessary to soul-search or work with a professional to help you identify the work that will lead to real career happiness.
Be prepared to let go of what truly does not work for you, make you happy or represent who you are inside and out to the public. Clarity and focus in this regard will help you stand out from the pack. Your exuberance will shine through on your profile, in your marketing and in everything you do related to your career.
Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.