Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Posted: 12 Jul 2011 04:52 AM PDT

Before I get into the meat of this post, let me say that while it is directed primarily at kids and youth, the topic is certainly be applicable to adults. I really started thinking about this a while back as part of the research I was doing for the "It's Not Who You Know…" book. There's a body of thought that believes technology, particularly social media, has given us a great boost in finding, building and keeping connections with people. But the reality is that it's a "yes and no" kind of answer. Social media can be a great tool…if used correctly and appropriately. Yet, too often, it's not. And that's when the complications set in. Let's look at a few of the issues:
Amount of time spent: our young people are spending increasing amounts of time on various social media platforms. According to a Kaiser Family Foundation report (2010), teens are spending an average of more than 53 linear hours a week using "entertainment media." But, because of their talent for multi-tasking they are actually "using" a lot more time than that. Consider that this is the equivalent of more than a full-time "job!"
Another concern is what they are doing with that time. I'm not going to get into all the details of the really bad stuff like cyberbullying, lurking potential predators, and sexting in this post — that's a huge can of worms to be opening today. But what I do want to talk about is how this online "social" time is affecting their offline social abilities. Consider:

Of your many FaceBook/MySpace…pick your platform…"friends," how many people do you actually know? It may be a few dozen…maybe a hundred. But you can't really form "friendships" with thousands of people, now can you? Often someone's popularity is dictated specifically by how many followers they have. If you are a teen, is your self-esteem affected by whether or not you have a large following?
The paradigm for forming friendships or building relationships on social media is not something that easily translates into the real world. You can't just knock on someone's door, ask if there are any kids who live there, and suddenly become "friends." Yet, this is essentially what a lot of social media connections are based on. You find someone who may have one or more common interests, see if they seem interesting, and ask to be their friend. Now, you may use that as the basis for later developing a friendship, but it's a bit backwards of a model.
And what happens if you no longer want to BE friends? You click a button and sayonara. Without any real consideration for how it may affect the person you just dropped. Heck, if Hollywood stars are dumping their significant others via text messages, clearly too many people see social media as "what convenience it gives ME," rather than something that is shared between two parties.
So much about building relationships has to do with things you can't easily replicate on a computer. Conversations for example, are generally held in "real time" — either face to face or via phone (ok, yes, I know you can have written conversation, too, but stick with me…). There are subtleties at play such as voice, inflection, facial expressions, body language. Skype and other video chat is no substitute for real connections with people. Conversations are meant to be shared communication; how can you be an equal participant in a conversation when someone can just click "off" when they are done "listening" to you?
Of course, then there's the whole issue of type of content that kids may be sharing online without an understanding or concern about how that may be perceived by others now, much less the potential permanence or long-term impact in the future (for more, see "Beware What You Share")

When you see two young people literally sitting next to each other but resorting to TEXT communication rather than talking face-to-face, you know it's gone way over the edge. I know there's a novelty in being able to do that…I used to echat with a co-worker who was just across the office from me because we could multi-task a "conversation" while we were working on other things. But, that, too, takes its toll; we're so used to multi-tasking that it's hard for us to fully focus on one thing. Don't "friends" deserve our undivided attention?
Yes, technology is taking a toll on our young people's social abilities. When employers #1 complaint of the youth entering the workforce is that they lack the social skills necessary to operate effectively in the job market, we know there's an issue. I mean, heck, there are stories everywhere of job candidates texting other people or responding to emails in the middle of a job interview! How do you suppose these nifty skills in online "communication" are going to impact their future success?
We don't want our children's online life to become more important — or more "real" — than their offline life. Technology is a tool and it does enable us to do so many things now that we never even thought possible 10/20/50 years ago. But it is a tool and should never be a substitute for real presence. There's a whole world beyond keyboards and computer screens; we have to help our kids re-discover and value that because, regardless of what they do online, they still have to live and operate in a real, tangible world.

About Corinne Gregory

The 'Civil' Warrior & School Crusader

I'm an author, speaker, award-winning educator focused on social skills, character and values development for children, educators, and professionals. As the President and Founder of SocialSmarts, a nationally-recognized, schools-based program for building positive social skills, I'm very passionate about improving the education system for every child, every teacher, every family. While it may seem like a big job — changing our education system — it's a necessary one, and one we can do, if we work together and insist on it.

My experience and message about the power of social skills and positive character have been featured on such leading media as The Today Show, CNN, Good Morning America, Time Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Washington Post and many more.

For more on SocialSmarts and how we are transforming education, click here.

To book me as a speaker for your students, education staff or business, email triciam@socialsmarts.com for info and schedule. You can also learn more about my presentations, view testimonials and videos at www.corinnegregory.com

The Work Buzz's Latest News: What makes good and bad email signatures

What makes good and bad email signatures

Posted: 11 Jul 2011 01:53 PM PDT

Email etiquette 101 declares that anyone composing a message should be careful about how their words can be misinterpreted by a reader. When looking at a computer screen, the reader doesn't know what you intended and can't hear the tone of your (imaginary) voice. In person you might jokingly say to a colleague, "You're dumb!" but via email "you're dumb" doesn't automatically read as playful. It can be downright rude.
Welcome to the world of digital communications, where what you write and what is read can be worlds apart. For example, typing in all capital letters is considered rude, as though you're screaming at the reader, even if you were just expressing excitement. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" can feel a lot more accusatory than a calmer, "What are you doing?"
Of course, you know this. Or at least you should know it, as we and thousands of other people have written about it at length. Common email etiquette hasn't changed much, but people seem to forget that the email signature at the bottom of the page needs just as much attention as the rest of the message. The content of your message should certainly be the focal point of your email, but the signature might be the last thing the readers sees and ultimately the one thing they remember about your email – or even you.
What a signature should do
According to "The Etiquette Book: A complete guide to modern manners" by Jodi R.R. Smith, signatures serve a simple but essential function.
"Unless you are emailing a friend or coworker, do not assume that the recipient will know exactly who you are or, if sending a business message, be familiar with your organization," cautions Smith. "You may need to specifically identify yourself toward the beginning of the body of the email and/or include your title and company name as part of your signature."
Good advice, and something that's easy to forget in today's world. The number of emails sent per day varies depending on the source, but they all point to an excess of 200 billion emails. Yes, 200,000,000,000. That's a lot of forwarded chainmail and links to videos of kittens playing in cardboard boxes. Email is so second nature to many workers that they forget the formalities of introduction that you don't take for granted when meeting someone for the first time in person.
Smith believes an email signature should have a few key elements:

Full name
Company name
Job title or division
Mailing address
Telephone number
Company website
Social media links
Email address

The problem that arises is that all of that information can make your signature longer than the message and take up half the screen. You should be the judge of what information is pertinent to your readers and include it.
What a signature shouldn't do
What you shouldn't do, however, is go overboard with information. A few signature items can make you seem unprofessional or just downright strange. Elements you should be wary of including are:

Pictures (of yourself or anybody or anything, really)
A variety of fonts
Moving or flashing text
Potentially offensive quotes
Embedded video or sounds that play automatically
A list of formal titles and certifications that read like alphabet soup (unless essential to your job)
Legal disclaimers that are irrelevant to the message. (See an excellent post on the topic at Lawyerist.com)

When she heard I was working on this story, one reader forwarded me an email signature that takes up 20 lines of a message. It has no fewer than a dozen links in it, one which goes to the sender's website, another for a social media account, and the rest are for examples of the sender's portfolio. If the sender's website is comprehensive, that single link could take care of the rest of the information that is crammed in the signature.
When you're composing your next email signature (or frantically editing your current one after reading this), keep the above tips in mind and think about your reader.
Some people even have fun with their signatures. The ubiquitous "Sent from my…" messages that are tacked on to many smartphone emails seem to be the easiest way to get a giggle out of a reader.
George Burke, founder and CEO of ebook-lending site eBookFling, decided to mock his iPhone's AutoCorrect feature by signing off, "Soryr fro typos. Setn by iPhone."
Blogger Jessica Gottlieb remembers the funniest email signature she received: "Sent from my iPhone, in real life I know how to spell."
At public relations group Outside media, Sammi Johnson says she and her colleagues put quotes from fictitious "Saturday Night Live" inspirational writer Jack Handy in their quotes. One employee's signature is, "Contrary to what most people say the most dangerous animal in the world is not the lion or the tiger or even elephant. It's a shark riding on an elephant's back, just trampling and eating everything they see."
What are your thoughts on email signatures? A bunch of text that you ignore anyway or something that people pay attention to?

[Newsletter] Why Co-workers Don’t Make Good Facebook Friends

Weekly Newsletter | July 12, 2011

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Why You Should Work On Your Resume NOW plus 1 more | Career Rocketeer

Why You Should Work On Your Resume NOW

Posted: 12 Jul 2011 03:30 AM PDT

Are you currently employed but want to look for a new job in, say, a few months, for whatever reason? Perhaps you’ve decided that you don’t want to go back to work until the kids start school in the fall. Or maybe you want to spend time with the spouse while he or she is off of work for a while.
If you’re not ready to go back to work and therefore aren’t searching for jobs, it’s still a good idea to work on your resume now. It may seem unnecessary, but here are some benefits you get from taking this route.
1. You Have More Time to Build Your Resume
While you’re taking time to manage your life, it’s a good idea to work on your resume little by little so that you can actually build it into a stellar document. Oftentimes, we spend just a few hours on the resume, hoping that it will impress employers. But writing an impressive resume isn’t usually accomplished in a short period of time.
So while you’re not seriously searching, you can take your time to decide exactly what message you want to send to employers through your accomplishments—and maybe even remember additional bits of info from the past that you’ve forgotten about. This way, when you’re ready to apply, you will have a solid document to submit.
2. You Have the Ability to Edit and Perfect
Working on your resume now also allows you to edit and perfect the resume’s design, ensuring that you have eliminated typos, spelling problems, or grammar issues. You can create just the right amount of white space and arrange your sections to help managers flow through the document exactly the way you want. (Not to mention that you get the opportunity to keep up with new trends in resume writing so that yours doesn't look dated when the time comes to start submitting them again.)
3. You Can Streamline Your Career Path
Sometimes, developing your resume without actually submitting it gives you a chance to take a good look at your career and decide whether you’re on the right track. As you look at the jobs you’ve worked and the positions you’re likely to apply for, you may realize that you’re moving laterally, when in reality, it’s actually time to start climbing the ladder.
When you’re actively searching for a job, it’s hard to see the changes that you could make to advance your career. But as you take weeks or months to slowly build your resume, you may find that you’re ready to guide your career in a new direction.
There’s nothing wrong with taking time away from a job search to manage other areas of your life. But if you want to make sure you’re still in the game and up to speed when it’s time to start applying again, it’s good to keep working on your resume while taking your break.
For additional resume tips and advice follow Jessica Hernandez on Twitter @GreatResume.

Author:
Jessica Holbrook Hernandez is an expert resume writer, career and personal branding strategist, author, speaker and President/CEO of Great Resumes Fast. She creates high-impact, best-in-class resumes and cover letters that transform job searches into interviews and ultimately job offers. For more information about professional resume writing or to read more career and job search related articles visit http://www.greatresumesfast.com or call 1.800.991.5187.

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Definition of Job Search Insanity

Posted: 11 Jul 2011 04:00 AM PDT

"What is the definition of insanity? Doing the same thing time after time and expecting different results." Wall Street – Money Never Sleeps
As I watched this movie on HBO today it got me thinking how this applies as much to college grads looking to get started in the job market as it does to the Bulls and the Bears looking to make a killing in the stock market.
You see once again it's the time of year that my in-box fills up with dozens of resumes from recent graduates taking advantage of my offer for a free resume critique; and unlike the dozens of professional and executive resumes I critique each week for free that are written using varied styles and formats but are for the most part mediocre at best, I continue to be amazed that year after year 8 out of every 10 entry level college grad resumes I see (BS, BA, MS, MA and MBA) are carbon copies of one another. And this is true if whether the student graduated from NYU or Hostos College, UCLA or East LA College, Harvard or Podunk U, the names of the candidates change but the basic format and facts remain the same.
One reason for this I found after talking with college career and placement counselors over the past few years is that they, not unlike certain resume mills, are under the assumption that there is only one way recruiters and hiring authorities want a resume to look and read. A second reason, one that is troublesome to me and should be for all new grads, is they desire continuity for all the resumes that are placed in the Career Book which they provide to on-campus recruiters. The reason this bothers me is that less than 25% of graduates (and I imagine in most school the number is considerably lower) are recruited directly off campus.
I disagree vehemently with this premise. After all when screening 30-330+ entry level resumes for the same position, which I did for at least 5 years during my career, and to all intents and purposes the vast majority look and read the same, how can any screener differentiate your resume from others in the pack. Do we use quality of the school, GPA or other criteria that eliminates you if you were not a top student or you were a bad test taker; or worse yet if your family could not afford to send you to a prestigious or well known university? This is a dilemma I talk to students about all the time.
So what is a frustrated college grad to do? Once again I'll tell you that your resume must be written to separate you from the crowd as apposed to placing you smack dab in the middle. If your resume comes across to a screener as a recycled version of 80% of the resumes a they read every day your chances of being noticed and called in for an interview are very low, especially when you submit it or post it on a job board among tens of thousands of other candidates' resumes.
I can tell you this with assurance, creativity works exceedingly well in my practice and it will work for you. Once I convert a recent grad's old resume to my Bio-Rez or MBA style format the 'submit to response' ratio for most candidates has increased substantially.
So if after a few months of sending out the same tired old version of your resume and expecting to get different results is driving you crazy, I suggest you forget what your college advisers told you and try something new. Be creative and remember what I say to everyone I meet; "a resume is not a one size fits all document" because just like funk pioneer Sly Stone said "different strokes for different folks."
This advice is not only meant for recent graduates, it's meant to aid anyone who is not getting results.

Author:
Perry Newman, CPC CSMS is a nationally recognized executive resume writer, career coach, AIPC certified recruiter and SMMU certified social media strategist known for his ability to help his clients get results. You can view his sample resumes at http://www.perrynewman.com, and email him your resume at perry@perrynewman.com for FREE resume critique.

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3 Secrets to Sending a LinkedIn Invitation that Works Everytime

Posted: 11 Jul 2011 11:00 PM PDT

We've all experienced the frustration of sending out a LinkedIn invitation and getting ignored. Here's a process for getting around this problem.

To get this useful advice and many other helpful career resources, visit us now at CAREEREALISM.com.

4 Things Your Entertainment Resume Should Not Say About You

Posted: 11 Jul 2011 10:30 PM PDT

Even though it is not literally a person, your entertainment resume speaks. Loudly. It tells people everything they need to know about you.

To get this useful advice and many other helpful career resources, visit us now at CAREEREALISM.com.

The Attitude of Success: It’s All in Your Head

Posted: 11 Jul 2011 10:00 PM PDT

Projecting an attitude of success can start with simply working on your body language. With a strong posture and a solid handshake you are well on your way to exuding confidence. But to complete the picture, to truly project an attitude of success, the real work may need to be done in your head....

To get this useful advice and many other helpful career resources, visit us now at CAREEREALISM.com.

Our Newest Approved Career Expert: Jenny Yerrick Martin

Posted: 11 Jul 2011 09:32 AM PDT

Jenny Yerrick Martin, founder of MomentumAdvantage.com, is a Los Angeles-based entertainment career expert and strategist for people in all fields.

To get this useful advice and many other helpful career resources, visit us now at CAREEREALISM.com.