LinkedIn is a great tool to build your online personality

ResumeBear Blog

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LinkedIn is a great tool to build your online personality Posted: 14 Sep 2011 07:38 AM PDT Please let me begin by saying I am not one of those people that spends every waking hour on the Internet, poring over social media channels every minute of every day – I have a life filled with 6 children, an amazing partner, and a full time job.   I have a regular schedule that I try to stick to, and just like anything else you build there needs to be a schedule, or for lack of a better word a strategy.  LinkedIn is a tool that I use more than most other tools, and as I said, it is a great tool to begin your strategy to create your online personality. LinkedIn can do so much more than just connect you to people, it can also benefit you in several ways.  A hammer is a tool, and you can build a shelf, a doghouse, or you can build a home.  LinkedIn will do what you want with it, but first you need to decide what success is defined as for you.  The first step to building a house is to determine the location, and for our purposes that is using LinkedIn as the tool to build your online profile.   The nest step of your strategy is to determine what your time to spend on using LinkedIn is going to be. Your personality on LinkedIn is many things, and using the tool effectively is not a difficult task.  If you say on your resume (or want to say) that you are a good communicator, then use good language, good grammar, and give opinions on topics that are adding to the conversation.  If you have poor grammar, and have spelling mistakes on your profile, then the tool will not build your online personality in the way you want.  If you pay attention to your communications, and keep in mind your profile is what you are using to build reputation, you will have more success.  Everything – EVERYTHING!! – you say on the Internet stays on the Internet.  Remember, a hammer can break your hand as easily as build a shelf if you use it in the wrong way, or miss what you are trying to hit! LinkedIn has added several tools in the past few months to make it more versatile than ever before.  I cannot talk to each tool in just this post, however I will detail them all in later posts, with a strategy for each.   The real power of using the tool that LinkedIn can be is in being creative, thoughtful, and most of all consistent.  Building an online personality is not quick, it is not something you can begin and then leave – it comes from effort, paying attention, and being persistent. More and more professionals are using LinkedIn, and more professionals are using LinkedIn to search for business, search for connections, and make hiring decisions based on the value and content of your online personality.  It took about 5 years for LinkedIn to reach 100 million, and in less than 6 months after that is is well over 120 million.  It is growing – and growing fast. Come back to my blog, leave some comments, and gather some free information about using LinkedIn.  The best thing about Social Media is the "social" aspect, and that can only come from interaction.  If you would like to have a discussion about anything on LinkedIn, have a question, or want some tips on building your online personality, please either leave a  comment or email me directly – without asking for something, you will never get it!  For me, there is nothing better than helping others, and using LinkedIn is a great tool – but first you have to know how to use the basics. About the Author: With a total network of over 15 million on LinkedIn spanning Australia, India, China, the UK, Germany,  USA, Canada, and even Iran, Chris Kulbaba is a LinkedIn Heavy Weight, and his wish is to help you become one too!  Chris is able to assist you to craft  your Unique Value Proposal which shows how your values can align with others to create the "fit factor"  and enable you to achieve real momentum in your career.

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[Ends in 8 Hours] Bonus Resume & LinkedIn Evaluations

Next week on... CAREEREALISM TV Hello, If you haven’t heard, I’m doing a special seminar for job seekers who are pressed for time. (Or, who HATE job searching and want to do as little of it as possible to get a job!) The 20-Minute Job Search is going to show you how to use the “less is more” approach to finding a new position. It’s limited to only 100 attendees and will include valuable tools and materials, including the PDF copy of my best-selling 144-page book, CAREEREALISM: The Smart Approach to a Satisfying Career. Early Bird Registration Special – FREE Resume & LinkedIn Profile Review Sign-up » before 11:59 PM ET tonight and I’ll personally review your resume and LinkedIn profile. Many time-crunched job seekers have no idea their resume and LinkedIn profile are part of the reason they aren’t getting calls for interviews. Don’t be one of them! I’ll look at both documents for you and provide feedback on ways to optimize these important career tools. You’ll get a personalized video recording from me detailing steps you can take to improve each one. Can’t make the live event? That’s okay! Anyone who signs up will get the recording. Note: This will not be available to the public via our Freemium Membership to CareerHMO.com. Only the 100 people who sign-up for this event will get the recording. And, if you sign-up before Tuesday, September 13 at midnight, you’ll get the FREE resume and LinkedIn profile review too! Don’t wait – secure your spot now and you’ll be on your way to learning the easy way to find work! We guarantee you'll fee better about your job search. Redeem » Your Evaluations Now! I hope you're enjoying your week so far. Best, J.T. __ J.T. O'Donnell Founder | CAREEREALISM.com CEO | CareerHMO.com About Us CAREEREALISM TV Career advice television network - powered by CareerHMO.com - dedicated to helping you find professional satisfaction. Network Details Show Days Tuesday - Thursday Show Times 9:00 AM or 1:00 PM ET Follow Us Twitter @CAREEREALISM Questions? Email tv@careerealism.com You're receiving this message because you recently attended one of our webinars or you signed-up to to get our weekly schedule via email.

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6 Rules for a Superior LinkedIn Profile

ResumeBear Blog

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6 Rules for a Superior LinkedIn Profile Posted: 12 Sep 2011 07:20 AM PDT For the last several years, I have been spending several hours a week, in total hundreds of hours on LinkedIn every year researching profiles and tools, testing theories and using the groups to focus and test ideas, and asking for feedback to discover what works well, what does not work well, and what the trends are among the LinkedIn population.  On top of that I spend hundreds of hours per month teaching social media and counselling clients, assisting people to use life skills and assisting them to make decisions that achieve the results they want.  Not only do I see thousands of profiles and test ideas on my profile, I spend a great deal of time sharing and helping others to use what I have found. I have seen profiles that are bland, I have seen LinkedIn profiles written in 1st person, I have seen them in 3rd person, I have seen stories and I have seen facts – the good, the bad, and some very, very ugly.  Sometimes, I even find (and suggest corrections) spelling mistakes.  So, combing through what I have found, I wanted to give you six simple rules to use for crafting your LinkedIn profile. Rule #1: Begin with the end in mind Before you even begin to write your profile, decide what you want people to take from it.  Decide what your personal vision statement is, and then start to promote it.  Your personal vision statement will carry through in all your networking activities. Rule #2: Profiles are NOT resumes! Your resume speaks to what you have accomplished and your features as a worker to the employer.  Your profile speaks to your character, your values, and the attitudes you use in the workplace or in a professional setting.   It does not give the reader a true idea of who you are as a business person, thought leader or individual when you fill it with dry facts or write in the third person.  What it does do is either sound elitist or as if you are writing a biography – leave the third person reference for celebrities. Rule #3: Write with conviction When you write your profile, use concrete words and tell the readers what to expect.  Tell them some interesting facts about you, and showcase some of the features you bring to the table.  Passive voice, poor grammar, spelling mistakes – all these and more serve to give the employer or a network contact the impression you do not take care of your brand. Rule #3: Connect to others Writing in the third person makes others think you are telling a tale – it does not let them connect to you as a person.  It seems distant and pompous – and believe me because I know –  I had a profile written in the third person for well over a year – until I got great feedback on what a mistake it was for what I wanted to achieve.  I rewrote my profile, and immediately I saw a dramatic increase in network opportunities reaching out to me, finding me, and having people connect to me as a person.  Other connections on LinkedIn want to know that you value them as a professional, but also as a person. Rule #4: Introduce yourself If you are a fan of Seinfeld, there was a hilarious episode where George started to identify himself in the third person.  "George likes his Kung Pao chicken spicy!" is what he exclaims in the middle of a business meeting.  Well, it was funny because it was so ridiculous.  Is this what you want a new contact to think – that you refer to yourself in the third person when talking to people?  I would hope not.  LinkedIn is a virtual networking platform for business professionals who want to do more business. It is the first step in building a relationship with someone, so using LinkedIn in a good way means using the same tools you would in real life. Rule #5: Solve pain, not just talk Your profile is meant to appeal more to the reader, to increase knowledge about what you can provide to your new connection, and about what they can expect from connecting to you.  An effective LinkedIn profile showcases as much value as possible to the reader, and will prompt discussions and conversations about you, your company, your products and how you can benefit others. When a reader engages with you, or joins your network, your profile should outline what they could expect.  The next piece, of course, is making that happen. Rule# 6: Write how you speak You want to sound like you are speaking face-to-face with someone and telling them a story about your background and how you can benefit them.  By writing in first person you can begin a conversation, rather than using third person and telling someone your bio, or sounding like the inside cover of a book.  It will showcase your communication style, and further will outline the fact you interact with people on a personal level.  Remember when writing your LinkedIn profile to personalize it by writing in the 1st person. Show your audience that you are just like them, you understand them, their pains, and you are here to help. Now, is your LinkedIn profile summary dry, and your experience sections in written in the 3rd person, sparse, and impersonal?  Go now, fix your profile, and come back to add a comment. You are missing out on have a great LinkedIn profile every moment you are breaking these rules. Go….now! Since Social Media is about conversation, why not read this article, then make some changes (if there are any you feel necessary) to your profile, then come back, and leave a comment.  Let's all learn and share, that is really what Social Media is for. About the author: With a total network of over 15 million on LinkedIn spanning Australia, India, China, the UK, Germany,  USA, Canada, and even Iran, Chris Kulbaba is a LinkedIn Heavy Weight, and his wish is to help you become one too!  Chris is able to assist you to craft  your Unique Value Proposal which shows how your values can align with others to create the "fit factor"  and enable you to achieve real momentum in your career.

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Leveraging LinkedIn for Mid-career Job Hunters

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• Leveraging LinkedIn for Mid-career Job Hunters
• How to Deal with a Controlling Boss or Micro-manager
• Job Seekers Are Remembered for Their Passion
• New Approved Partner: CareerLeak.com

Leveraging LinkedIn for Mid-career Job Hunters Posted: 09 Sep 2011 11:12 AM PDT Are you a mid-career job hunter who is baffled by LinkedIn? Do you have a LinkedIn profile that will bring employers to you like bears to honey? To get this useful advice and many other helpful career resources, visit us now at CAREEREALISM.com.

How to Deal with a Controlling Boss or Micro-manager Posted: 09 Sep 2011 10:38 AM PDT In this webinar, Anthony J. Fasano and J.T. O'Donnell will teach you how to deal with a controlling boss and continue to grow in your career. To get this useful advice and many other helpful career resources, visit us now at CAREEREALISM.com.

Job Seekers Are Remembered for Their Passion Posted: 09 Sep 2011 10:00 AM PDT During a job search, employers today are looking for the most qualified candidate with a true passion for the work that s/he performs. To get this useful advice and many other helpful career resources, visit us now at CAREEREALISM.com.

New Approved Partner: CareerLeak.com Posted: 09 Sep 2011 09:22 AM PDT CareerLeak.com provides users with free access to thousands of job reviews, salaries and employer information. Position yourself for success. To get this useful advice and many other helpful career resources, visit us now at CAREEREALISM.com.

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