Your following on social media that is. Is it big? Does size really matter? Whether you’re a professional speaker, writer, artist or business owner, social media can be an excellent tool for making new connections. But in order for it to be helpful, it needs to be used correctly.
The problem with social media is that it’s always evolving so many people misuse it. While hackers and spammers are the prime misusers of these services, a vast amount of people with good intentions struggle to make use of the medium. Many treat it like a mailing list — like it’s another method of one way communication. Some use it as a popularity contest — the person with the most connections wins. However, the point of social media (especially from a business standpoint) is to create and maintain relationships from the comfort of your keyboard.
5 Social Media Mistakes That Can Prevent You from Getting a Job
With more and more people flocking to services like Facebook and Twitter, many of these same people are unknowingly preventing themselves from getting hired for jobs. Given the record unemployment, companies are really doing their due diligence to ensure they’re choosing only the best hires. Five years ago, a simple web search was the extent of their online research for prospective employees. Today, that search deepens as many organizations now search blogs and social media.
You Might Be Addicted to Social Media If…
Social media is a great tool for connecting with people, promoting your business and just plain socializing. You can learn great tips ranging from which gadgets best suit your lifestyle to how to make a great sandwich. If you’ve got a quirky interest, there’s probably someone else (possibly dozens, even hundreds) out there with that same quirky interests.
Yes, some people see social media as a time waster, a useless popularity contest and a distraction from the important things in life. But it’s fun and has a lot of practical businesses as well. Of course, you can get carried away with it so, in the tradition of Jeff Foxworthy’s “You might be a redneck” here are some fun indicators that you or someone you know might be addicted to social media:
Public Speaking Success: Demonstrating the Live Internet
With the popularity of social media sites and services such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, many presenters and speakers find themselves having to discuss them during their talks. Some are daring enough to hook up to a computer and try to do live demonstration for their audience. And that’s where the fun begins.
Adding any technology to a presentation increases opportunity for unexpected issues — just ask anyone who’s ever used PowerPoint for an important presentation. There’s issues with power, the projector, the lighting, the length of the extension cord, the computer and many others too numerous to list here. Trying to demonstrate social media in front of a live audience adds two more challenges: your connection to the internet and the cooperation of your friends in cyberspace.
Are Business Cards Needed For a Job Search?
The answer is an absolute “Yes.” I’ve been to far too many networking events where job seekers have attended unprepared. Yes it’s good to bring a stack of resumes with you (and even better to keep them in your car and/or have one handy at all times) but having business cards are especially helpful.
Why Business Cards:
Business cards are small, easy to carry and most people in the business world are used to dealing with them. Some people have Business Card Scanner
that can scan them into their contact management system. Others have a filing system for them.
Are You Taking Your Job Search Seriously?
Last night I attended a networking event and the topic of job searching came up. If you’ve attended networking events recently, you’ve probably noticed the same thing that I did: many (if not most) of the people that attend networking events are looking for work.
I shared a story from a speed networking event that I attended a while back. It struck me as odd how so many people looking for work didn’t think to bring business cards or resumes to the event. Others last night shared similar experiences so it got me wondering: are people taking their job search seriously?
My Will to Live, R.I.P.
Throughout my life I’ve had the chance to meet a wide variety of people. While the color of their skin, the language they speak or the entity they worship may differ, one thing is always the same — we all face challenges at different points in our lives. Of course, the way people handle those challenges varies but the good thing is that it’s something that we can control. And in many cases, it’s this way of handling challenges that dictates whether we stay in the game or go home in defeat.