Promoting Yourself Through Twitter

To promote yourself via twitter you need to be clear about what it is that you want from your twitter profile and what it is that you are after. Then you can start thinking about who you might like to follow, who you want to be following you and thus who you want to be engaging with.

Following People

It’s good to think of this in terms of following people that you can learn from, be inspired by and also having those that keep you in the loop or ‘in the know’. Start conversations with key people who you sense may be able to help you or who may be interested in the same field as you and build that relationship.

Follow experts in your field and learn from them. Take a look at other people’s profiles to see how they present themselves and who they are following and who’s following them.

What to Say Yourself

Share your own insight and expertise through your tweets. Show others what you know, what you think and also share other people’s opinions and tweets that you have read and feel are good.

Keep it professional. No dodgy photos. No talking badly of others or past employers, or even those that you currently work with. Keep your tweets and profile polite. Make sure that you would be happy for anyone to see it – and that includes your current boss, future boss, and even your mum.

Have a point and a purpose to each of your tweets. Show your personality and your uniqueness – yes, but don’t bore people with uninteresting detail or mundane events since that will stop people being interested in you. So the fact that you brushed your teeth this morning or had a cup of tea is irrelevant. Also be specific about what you are after and try to be clear in your messages. For example, simply saying that you are looking for a job isn’t specific enough. Many people are looking for jobs and so stating that fact won’t get you many useful responses. What kind of job, in what sector, doing what role? What specific information are you looking for or what specific piece of advice are you seeking from your followers?

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Career Dilemma: How Do I Get Out and Make a Career Change?

As career specialists we often get asked to take part in career clinics and online advice panels. We have put together a series of blogs to share some of the challenges that others have faced and our thoughts and suggestions to help them move forwards...

Question:

I have an MA in Art Museum and Gallery Studies and a BA in English and Fine Arts. To go along with this, I also have monstrous student loans.

I am currently doing work at a university in the North East. The atmosphere is oppressive, the work unsatisfying and my manager is horrible. I have been trying to get out but am not sure what sort of jobs I can apply for. What other sectors could I take a look at? I'm open to a change of direction, but am not sure where my qualifications can take me...

Our Thoughts:

Firstly, thank you and also well done for coming here today and sharing your dilemma with us. What is sometimes the hardest step in these situations is to acknowledge that we are unhappy where we are and that we are ready to take action and do something about it. For you, it sounds like there will be some challenges ahead but you have already made a great step forwards in identifying what they are and in showing a real desire to move forwards.

When we work one on one with people, it is often their career options that they are unsure about. People know that they don’t want to stay where they are and that they must have built up some sort of skill set – but the question is always around “what can I do?”, “where can go with this?

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How to Create a Strong Email Cover Letter

If you're out in the job market, it is likely that you will need to be filling in online application forms and/or sending out your CV. As part of this process one can assume that the person reading what you have written won't have much time to focus on what you have to say. This includes the process that starts from reading and opening up your email, clicking on the attached CV that you've sent to them and drawing some quick conclusions from it. Overall you are likely to have around 30 seconds of time dedicated on your application. This is the sad truth which means that your email cover letter is an important part of the process and that it needs to be well thought out, short and punchy! 

We've put together a few tips to get you started:

1. At the top of your email, either in the subject box or before you introduce yourself, you should state which job that you’re applying for
2. You should assume that you have two short paragraphs before you sign off your email. In those two paragraphs, you should aim to answer the questions - who you are and why you’re right for this role?

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How to Engage with the Learning Revolution – Part 2

In Part 1, Sir Ken Robinson’s TED Talk suggests we need to transform our learning or education system into a learning model focused on identifying individual talents and personalising learning.

In Part 2, my intention is to share my thoughts on specific actions that will support an individual in making change. How refers to actions ~ if I put myself in the shoes of an individual contemplating change in relation to their professional life, I am certain they are curious about the actions ~ how to make change happen?

Many people look to a Professional for guidance and support when they are serious about identifying meaningful work and I commend people for making that very important step.  After all this is your life, it is meant to be enjoyed, not endured.  Professional Guides at Position Ignition are skilled at supporting clients to unlock their unique passion, purpose and potential.  The professional relationship is fundamental in order to craft and deliver a programme that meets the needs of the individual. Depending on a client’s needs, many clients are keen to explore and discover their passions, talents, strengths, values and beliefs.  This is an essential piece of work that supports clients to answer who they are.  People are energised and excited when they are ‘in flow’ with their unique talents, strengths and skills.

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8 Tips for Being Smart in Your Job Hunt

1. Evaluate your finances: If you’re currently searching for a job or are about to start looking for a job, immediately look at your finances to see where you can curb costs and expenses.

2. Perform an honest self analysis and take stock: Take time to understand who you are and what you can bring to the job table. Really understand your strengths and weaknesses.

3. Create realistic and achievable goals that you review daily: Make your time count when it comes to finding the right job. Make a specific to-do or checklist each day to make sure your job search is productive. Set goals such as “I need to make at least five calls today” or “I’m going to reach out / network with four people today.”

4. Think of your job search like a job: Finding the right job requires the same commitment as one would commit to a full-time job. 

5. Network to build relationships, not to find a job: Networking is about building relationships with people who can connect you with people who can help you find a job.

6. Focus on self improvement: For those who are currently unemployed, dedicate time during your job search to acquire new skills and to improve your candidacy. Use this time as an opportunity to build on your existing skills and experience. Make your time fruitful.

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Job Searching Dilemma: How Can I Get Some Interviews?

As part of our work we've been running many webinars and career clinics across a range of topics with job search being one of them. Here in our career blog we wanted to share with you some of the dilemmas and challenges that crop up.

Question:

I must have sent out a hundred or so applications and managed to get maybe ten interviews. In the end I signed on and was out of work for seven months. I have reasonable experience as an editorial assistant, have worked in HE as a lecturer and developed all kinds of transferable skills (copy / report writing, understanding financial matters, graphic design etc). However, I couldn't get interviews for any of the jobs I really wanted.

Our Thoughts:

Many of us go online, look at job boards and various sites as well as working with recruitment agencies – to apply for a whole host of roles. We spend ages writing up each application, re-doing our CVs and sending out what feels like hundreds and hundreds of these things to various employers. We cross our fingers and hope that a few will come back with a positive invitation to go in for an interview. We then can often get demoralised when there is a long silence or when we get a rejection. Even if we manage to land a role – it is most likely one that we aren’t massively keen on. This is a story that I hear time and time again.

The challenge is that in these situations we end up playing a game of volume. Quantity over quality. This is often very time consuming and is not very effective. If you are going to many different roles – how can be convince each one that yes – this is the job you really really want? It can also feel like we are hitting ourselves repeatedly against a brick wall. So why do it? Now what could be done differently is for us to try and focus in on quality over quantity and the way to get quality is to identify precisely the type of roles that we actually want.

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Want a Higher Salary? Don't Wait for an Offer

Don’t wait for your employer to offer you a pay rise; approach them instead. Any organisation that’s being managed according to standards, conformity and salary ranges is going to be concerned with not breaking the mould. This means any pay rise they offer you off their own back is bound to be a compromise. If you just let it happen and don’t take control of it in some way, expect an offer that’s a compromise.

Many of us sit around waiting for our boss to notice how well we are doing and how much value we are adding to the company, in the hope that eventually we'll be given a promotion and a pay rise, however if you're serious about moving up and in getting the pay you deserve, you need to plan for it and take charge of it yourself. For more information on how to negotiate the pay and salary you want take a look at our eBooks: Up Your Game, Up Your Pay! and Get Paid Right, From The Start! 

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Tips for Mothers Getting Back to Work

If you took a career break for children and are now preparing to return, you might feel that the transition will be tough going. It can be challenging, whether you’re returning to your previous place of work, embarking upon a whole new career, or anything in between. Whatever your situation, your experiences as a mum can actually help make the shift back to work a smoother one. Don’t underestimate the value that motherhood experiences can bring to other arenas, including your career.

The transferable skills you develop as a mum are no different in variety or value to the type of skills that can be acquired during other key stages of your life and career, such as getting hitched or starting that first job. Being a stayhome parent is, after all, one of the biggest challenges out there. Like any form of care, childcare takes it out of you emotionally, physically and mentally-especially when the children are your own! Successfully looking after your kids involves continuous multi-tasking, managing your energy levels and maintaining a laser focus, not to mention clear goal setting, calmness in the face of emergencies and the ability to think outside the box.

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How to Engage with the Learning Revolution

The foregoing TED talk presented by Sir Ken Robinson and viewed by over 2.6 million people speaks about the necessity of a ‘learning revolution’.  Sir Ken’s presentation refers to our talents and the need to transform our learning or education system into something else; to innovate fundamentally our learning model, personalise learning and identify individual talents.

It is a fact that every one of us has strengths or talents that are part of who we are.  The challenge is some of us have not explored or identified what they are.  Sir Ken believes there are two groups of people: those people that do not enjoy what they do, they endure, rather than enjoy and wait for the weekend to arrive. Secondly, there are people that love what they do.  People in this category describe their experience as “this is me ~ this is who I am”. Individuals that align with their natural talents speak to their most authentic self.  Unfortunately, the latter is not true of enough people and the former prevails.  At Position Ignition, we work with people to change that phenomenon, by creating conditions for people to learn, flourish and align with who they are.

Sir Ken’s passion, belief in and life’s vocation on talents and learning resonated with me and millions of other people.  Why? Because similar beliefs are shared with respect to talents, strengths and passions ~ identifying what feeds our soul, excites our spirit and nourishes our energy is exciting territory. You can refer to a blog that outlines how to identify your unique talents and strengths. As Sir Ken says, “human talent is tremendously diverse” and human communities need all types of talent in order to operate. Whatever your unique talent is, it is needed and once you identify it, it will draw you towards where you need and want to be.

At Position Ignition, we work with individuals and organizations that want to enjoy, not endure their professional life.  It is possible to explore and identify talents, values and beliefs through listening, questioning, wondering and guiding a person to their most authentic self. Human communities depend on a diversity of talent. 

How to engage with the Learning Revolution? Make contact with Position Ignition to discuss your needs and way forward.

Author: Stephanie Mount is a Position Ignition Guide. She is profoundly interested in people and their potential. Stephanie engages with individuals to discover their most authentic self (the positive energy, their passions and strengths).  Stephanie’s diverse career in the helping profession spans two continents.  She uses her international experience, professional knowledge and living as an expatriate to enable others to create a fulfilling and balanced life.  Stephanie is an adventurer, passionate about the ‘great outdoors’ and travelling to far flung places on this beautiful planet.

www.positionignition.com

Executive Job Search: Do you Need to Cut Your Hair to be a Chief Executive?

Here, Louise Simmons gives us the lowdown on being CEO of Birmingham Disability Resource Centre and answers some key questions to do with executive job search.  How easy is it nowadays for women to land senior roles? How useful are secondment opportunities for career development at this level? What can people with disabilities do to manage their senior career? And do employers really care about how job candidates wear their hair??

Similar blogs:

• Having Confidence as a Woman Leader
• Job Search Tips for Senior Executives
• What Really Going on Behind the Scenes in the Interview Process?