Let’s face it. If you don’t exist on the internet, you just don’t exist. The very first thing you need to do is create a “Me Site” to serve as your digital portfolio, a place where potential employers can find everything they need to know about you. How?

Our online meanderings and our day-to-day lives have become a inextricable mish-mash of digital and analogue. Grumpy Cat’s mug scowls at us as we annotate our textbooks. While sorting laundry, we idly tweet about being victimized by the sock monster. Instead of driving to a job interview, we check our hair in the monitor before logging into Skype. The gap between Internet and real life is no more.

Having an Internet life (read: online presence) is an absolute necessity in today’s professional world. Through social networking, we can interact with peers and potential employers in our field and constantly open doors to new opportunities. For potential employers, your online presence that showcases your professionalism, passion, skills and industry knowledge screams PERFECT CANDIDATE!

So how do you create an online presence?

All you need to do is collect your life’s work into one easily-found, visually-stimulating, impossible-to-ignore “Me Site.”

Read-on! This is the first part of a five-part series that will illuminate the wonders (and woes) of the top five Me Site platforms.

Me Site Platform Option One: Flavors.me

Flavors was created in 2008 with the promise to be “the easiest and most stylish way to create a unified web presence”. So easy, in fact, that it should take only 5 – 10 minutes, according to co-creator Jonathan Marcus.

What’s our first impression? It’s great! Flavors successfully delivers both style and ease-of-use from the get-go. As soon as the website loads, the user is confronted by a sparsely designed page, occupied only by Flavors’ logo, their tagline in bold type, and a single button that prompts the visitor to Get Started.

After a brief sign-up process, we’re taken to our shiny new website, ready for customization. All modifications are made through a toolbar that provides users with a number of controls under five categories: About, Content, Design, Mobile and Promotion.

My favorite thing about Flavors.me is the number of ways the site can be tailored to the user’s liking and specifications. Flavors offers 222 fonts, 36 social media services, seven different layouts, and countless colors to choose from.

Whipping up a quick header, bio, and catchy background takes less than 10 minutes, as Jonathan Marcus promised. Those of you who want more and are prepared to get your hands dirty can create a first-class Me-Site with an hour of thoughtful experimentation. It’s worth it! Small improvisations such as changing your service icons from color to monochrome can make a big impact.

Alas, Flavors is not flawless. As I began to create my own page, the shortcomings of the site’s interface became apparent. It’s difficult to navigate the toolbar and predict (or even remember) where different options are located. Having the available layouts under the Layouts tab in the Design category makes sense. Having a drop-down menu in the same tab to customize service icons….? Not so much.  In short, some deft hunting and memorizing what’s where is required.

Another letdown is that there is a limitation to Flavors’ services for free members. Only five social media platforms can be incorporated into your Me-Site without paying, and mobile sites, custom domains, contact forms and analytics are completely off limits. For $20 per year, however, you’ll have access to all this and more. In the scheme of things, spending as much as you would on a Hibachi Steak at the Cheesecake Factory for a year of superb personal branding isn’t unreasonable. But, when you consider that there are other platforms out there that give you these things for free… well, we’ll talk about that in the next post.

If you’re a social media maven with a dozen services to your name but no money to speak of, the limit on social media links can be rectified by using custom links. It’s up to you to determine your needs!

Flavors.me is a platform for those of you out there who are interested in putting a big, stylish, visually impressive “me” in your Me-Site. If you crave control, it will comfort you to know that the platform itself interferes very little with the appearance of your website. There are no conspicuous top bars or pesky pop-ups to divert attention from what you want people to notice: you and your brand.

Taking into consideration the site’s mission, it’s clear why Flavors is a top contender: it delivers.

NEXT ME SITE: About.me

Graphics by Maysoon Shafi

If you are about to graduate college or have recently graduated, you do not need to be un- or under-employed. You CAN launch the career of your dreams, and we can help you do it.

Degrees2Dreams serves two groups of people:

1. College students and recent grads
2. College career counseling offices

COLLEGE STUDENTS AND RECENT GRADS:

College students and recent grads generally break down into two groups, and we can help both:

1. Those who know exactly what they want to do
2. Those who don’t know exactly what they want to do

For those who know exactly what they want to do, we work with you launching your job search ”Campaign”  using our proven six-step process to showcase your skills and industry knowledge via social media, get you on the radar screens and in front of the powerful people in your professional niche, and plug into the hidden job network.

For those who aren’t sure what they want to do, we launch the “Exploration” process, investigating careers you think you might find rewarding and fulfilling. Once you’ve chosen your field and possible jobs within that field, we begin the six-step “Campaign” process.

We offer our services in person, speaking to groups large and small. We also offer one-to-one training at your convenience and at your pace, either in person or over Skype (if you’re not in Boston).

COLLEGE CAREER COUNSELORS

For college career counselors, we offer either a quick half-day overview of the uses of social media in the job search, leaving you with all sorts of tools you can then explore more deeply on your own. Or we offer full-day and weekend training workshops that actually have you doing the things you’ll be encouraging your students to use.

CONTACT US

If you’re interested in exploring how we might be able to help you, whether you’re a current student, a recent grad, or a college career counseling office, send me an e-mail (john@degrees2dreams.com) or call/text me (617-688-0137).

You do not need to be unemployed or underemployed. Your college education has prepared you to be a creative, thoughtful, resourceful, thinking human being, and you can convert your degree into the career of your dreams. It takes work, hard work, but it is a very realistic goal.

But don’t take my word for it; look at the testimonials of students and recent grads I have helped launch their exciting careers.

I look forward to talking to you and lighting a fire under your career plans.

John

1. As a job seeker, there’s one thing you can be sure of: your employer will look into you. So why not return the favor? Find out how to Check Up On a Company’s Web Reputation to ensure there are no surprises in store for you!
   
2. The powers-that-be say that a student should have three internships under their belt before graduation. Skeptical? Find out Why Internships Are Worth It, infographic style.
3. If there’s anyone it never hurts to please, it’s a hiring manager! Find out How To Impress a Hiring Manager, courtesy of one of Target’s executive team leaders, Renee Bilotti.
4. Creative Resumes aren’t for everyone, but they’re certainly here to stay. If you don’t know where to start here are 4 Rules For Creating a Killer Infographic Resume to make sure you start off on the right foot.
5. If you’re looking to incorporate Instagram or Pinterest into your social media strategy, 1. About time, 2. 8 Data-Based Tips For Optimizing Your Content on Pinterest and Instagram.

Fortune

1. How long do you usually spend reading a resume? Do you use resume-scanning software?

We don’t use any resume-scanning software. Those systems usually spend 30-40 seconds on each resume. At Target, we have several rounds of the preliminary screening process before we decide to conduct a phone interview or one-to-one interview. For me, personally, I only spend 10-15 seconds on a resume. To judge whether a resume is qualified, there are two things that I will look at the first sight: A. How long your resume is, and B. How much white space the candidate has on his resume.

DEGREES2DREAMS TIPS: For recent graduates, resumes should be no more than one-page. Therefore, it’s very important that you fully utilize that single piece of paper to present yourself, your qualifications, and your achievements. Also, use verbs to start sentences. For each job application, you need to understand its specifics and then incorporate as many of its keywords and requirements as possible in your “Profile” at the top of your resume. Where possible, include your achievements that relate to their requirements in the descriptions of each job you’ve held.

2. What kind of people will you most likely to hire?

I always tell candidates that it’s not a problem if, for example, you don’t know how to use Target’s inventory database because I can always teach you. If you don’t know how to run the logistics at Target, I will teach you that as well. However, there is one thing that I can’t teach, and that is who you are. We are looking for someone who has the potential to be the team leader in the future.

DEGREES2DREAMS TIPS: If you can establish in advance what a hiring manager like Renee is looking for (in this case leadership), you should tailor your cover letter, resume, and interview answers to those needs she is trying to fill. Resist the urge to talk about skills and achievements that are important to you and focus on what’s important to her and how you meet or, better yet, exceed those requirements.

3. What are the typical questions you ask interviewees?

We like to ask applicants behavioral questions. For example, give us an example of a mentoring experience. We had a candidate answer this question like this: “I remember when I was teaching my sister…” Even though it is a mentor example, I don’t think it meets our expectation. Aren’t you supposed to teach your sister? The answer we would like to hear needs to have a high scope such as coaching your teammates, classmates or friends.

DEGREES2DREAMS TIPS: Renee’s answer points out the need for two things: First, internships so you can collect professional experience and achievements and not have to fall back on irrelevant examples, and, second, pre-written and rehearsed answers to as many potential interview questions as possible. There are several places to go to collect these questions (here is an example of the 25 most common job interview questions).

4. What do you pay attention to when the interviewee is answering questions?

We pay a lot of attention to details: the way you dress, the way you talk and the way you behave. Take me as an example: I know if I am wearing jewelry, I will unconsciously play with it such as my ring or my bracelet. So I will make sure to take them off when I go to an interview. Voice tone is also very important during the interview. If the candidate keeps talking in a flat tone, I will fall asleep soon.

DEGREES2DREAMS TIPS: You know yourself. Think of how you behave when you are under stress, and then act to minimize that behavior if it indicates anything other than confidence. After you’ve reviewed the typical job interview questions and written out your responses, practice saying them so you’re comfortable with your answers. Don’t try to memorize the answers (you never will), but just capture the gist of your answer. Modulate your voice tone, sit up straight (preferably on the edge of your chair, not leaned back — one shows eagerness and energy, the other disconnectedness and disinterest).

5. What kind of questions do you expect the interviewees to ask at the end of the interview?

Ask genius questions. You should show the employers that you did the research on the company. But don’t ask more than two questions because that may leave them with the impression that you are not well prepared. One of the questions I like to hear is: What is your favorite part of the job? That question is work-related but at the same time is more leaning towards personal opinions as well. That helps the hiring manager start to have the emotional bond with you and open themselves up. It also shows your concern for others instead of just asking what the company can do for you.

DEGREES2DREAMS TIPS: You should go into a job interview with questions you want to ask prepared in advance. At the end of almost every job interview, the hiring manager will say, “Well, that’s all for me; do you have any questions?” That’s when you should hit them with one or two questions and then a closing statement. Renee’s suggested question is a good one, as well as “What does it take to succeed here?” or “What would you look for this new employee to achieve in the first year?” The closing statement should start out something like this: “I don’t have another question, but I’d like to tell you a story about one of my achievements that I think illustrates why I’d be the perfect candidate for this position…..” and then succinctly tell her about a great example of something you did that is relevant to their needs. You could close by saying, “I think that demonstrates how I could make your life easier, help X company exceed its goals, and contribute to a positive, profitable future here” (or something like that). That will be the final impression they have of you, and because it’s a story, it will be memorable.

(Creative Commons photo at top of post by bpsusf)

So you’ve applied for your dream job and received the email about arranging an interview. You feel as though you’ve just mastered the penultimate level of your favorite gruesome video-game; you’ve killed off all those enemy soldiers or ghosts or zombies or panda bears, or whatever you’re into… Now all that’s left is conquering the final stage – in this case, the dreaded Skype interview.

The Skype interview can be a daunting challenge. It can mean that the job you are applying for is in a different city than where you’re currently based and will require that you move. The job might also embody your hopes and dreams of finally moving out of your parents’ basement. A Skype interview might mean that the company is based in a different city and that this is the only chance you have of making an impression on your (if all goes well…) future employer. It might also mean that your interviewer is too big of a deal to meet in person. Either way, there’s a lot of pressure and it is of the utmost importance that you do well.

But don’t fret! The benefits of a Skype interview for you, the interviewee, do exist. For one, there is no way you can get lost on the way to the interview and arrive late. The meeting can take place wherever you are most comfortable (your office, your home, a coffee shop, Hooters… maybe not Hooters…). In other words, the interview can happen on your own turf, rather than in a cold, unfamiliar, intimidating office. This allows you to be more comfortable with your interview environment and consequently less nervous. The most important benefit, however, is that you do not need to commute to your interview, meaning that your Pre-interview self-prep process can occur right before, indeed exactly before your actual interview with no other distractions (the drive, the waiting room, etc.).

But you know all that already. You came here for the goods, not for lengthy descriptions of the pros and cons of Skype interviews. So without further adiue, we present to you D2D’s tips for Pre-Skype-interview self-prep.

1) If your interviewee mentions arranging a “Skype interview,” ALWAYS assume that they want a video interview and not just a phone call. Why?

Video call = sight + sound.
Phone call = sound.

If you assume your interviewer meant a voice call, and you do not prepare to present yourself physically, it can get embarrassing. It’s also a tad awkward when your interviewer has his or her video turned on and you only have voice, because you are fumbling to put a nice shirt on before you can turn your own camera on. It will inevitably make your interviewer suspicious, as he or she might feel like you’re hiding something. He or she also probably wants to see you in order to assess your facial features and see whether you have a nice smile or a tattoo which reads “I hate puppies” plastered on your forehead. So, even if the interview ends up being only over voice, always prepare for a video component.

2) Make sure you’re computer is plugged in.

Sure, the interview might last only 5 minutes and your battery can hold out that long… but what if they love ya and want to spend an hour listening to your opinion on every aspect of their company and their line of work? Watching your battery dwindle will make you increasingly nervous as you try to figure out a strategy to interrupt your interviewer and tell him/her you need to grab the extension cord in the other room. Your only other option is to suddenly go blank and have your interviewer think you hung up on him or her. Trust me…. You really don’t want to have to charge your computer, turn it on, wait for the wifi to kick in, sign into Skype and call back your interviewer. It makes you seem pretty unprepared.

3) Make sure your environment looks professional or at least mature to your interviewer.

If you live at home, it might be a good idea to conduct your interview in the living room or your dad’s study or any neutral, drab, serious looking room instead of in your childhood bedroom. Teddy bears and Backstreet Boys posters won’t help you look like a responsible adult who’s serious about the job. Neither will having your half-eaten Power Sandwich on a plate next to you. A bed is generally not a good thing to have in the picture, for obvious reasons… A noisy smart phone that screeches out your Daddy Yankee ringtone every time someone bumps you on LittleMonsters makes you look like a vapid teenager, not a savvy job candidate. It’s a good idea to have some books or office supplies (binders, paper clips, staplers, etc.) around to make you seem academic and/or productive. If you have a fish tank, have that in the background, as the presence of fish have been proven to have a calming effect, and because this may show that you are responsible for keeping something alive — always a good characteristic to have. Look around your apartment and see if there are any objects which relate to the job you are applying for or which say something about you that you want your interviewer to know. Have a Chinese lantern dangling behind you if you are applying to be a tour guide in China. Have a photo of yourself working with kids in a developing world country if you want to show off your compassionate nature. Get creative!

4) Dress for the occasion as you would for an in-person interview.

Your interviewer might only be able to see you from the waist up, but that doesn’t mean you can wear a suit and tie on top and pajama bottoms down below. Why? Wearing semi-uncomfortable interview clothes (i.e.: your Power Outfit, which we discussed in Step Three of the Pre-Interview Prep Series) naturally makes you carry yourself in a more formal way and maintain a better posture. The latter is necessary in a Skype interview. While some movement and especially gesticulation is always encouraged, a very slight rigidity or at least straightness in posture helps non-verbally communicate to your interviewer that you are a serious candidate. Wearing comfortable bottoms carries with it the temptation to stretch out one’s legs or even sit cross-legged atop your chair. Interviewers can pick up on this. Plus, what happens if you suddenly need to get up? Maybe the fire alarm in your kitchen goes off or maybe your interviewer asks to see something which you keep in the next room over? You stand up and your interviewer gets a look at the Hello Kitty! pajamas or short shorts or butt-less chaps you chose to pair with that smart-trendy blouse. That won’t make you seem very professional now, will it?

5) Have only websites and documents related to the position you are interviewing for open on your screen.

Close Facebook, close gchat, close any form of communication with friends who are only looking to distract you with tales of their rowdy night out on the town. It will not help your concentration. Smiling for no reason (as far as your interviewer is concerned) will make you seem creepy…
DO have things about the job open so that you may refer to them during the interview. Have your resume and cover letter ready, as well as the description of the position or offer letter the company/organization may have sent you. In fact, have every initial document they have sent you (literature about the history/mission of the company, list of tasks which will be required of you, etc.) open so that you don’t waste your interviewer’s time having to open them in Word/Excel/Powerpoint/whatever when he or she refers to them during the interview. Better yet, print some of them out and highlight the most important parts. It is also a good idea to have a little something extra on the company open, the knowledge of which will surely impress your interviewer. For example, a staff list with bio’s or the company’s “who we are” page is a great way to refer to other people in the company whom your interviewer probably already personally knows, thus impressing him or her with the research you’ve done on your potential future colleagues.

“I see Bill Murphy graduated from Occidental the same year I did and that he has a background in PR. It might be interesting to work together with him to help find an answer to blah blah…”

That kind of thing…

6) If you live with roommates, make sure they don’t have a screaming-match scheduled for the same time as your interview.

This seems like an obvious point, but it is an easy one to forget when you are absorbed in pre-interview self-prep. Having your roommates singing karaoke on the other side of the door is not a good way to achieve that 9:1 solitary-social ration we discussed in Step 2 (To Socialize Or Not Before An Interview). So do tell them to quiet down and maybe read a book for once, while your interview is in progress. Better yet, get’em out of the building. Treat them to a Starbucks or something.

These are our suggestions for how-to and how-not-to prepare yourself for your Skype-interview. In addition to these points, everything we have discussed about pre-interview self prep in Step One (The Power Sandwich) and Step Two (To Be Social or Not) and Step Three (The Power Outfit) applies in the same way. If you are lucky enough to get a Skype interview rather than an in-person one, understand that the only extra convenience you have is saving on travel time. So don’t get too comfortable or informal; take your interview just as seriously as if you were in the hot seat in the interviewer’s office. Remember, how you are perceived by your interviewer is the most important thing. So do yourself a favor and don’t botch that impression by fondling your childhood blankie or writing Star Trek RPG or whatever weird stuff you do when the cameras aren’t looking. Prepare as you would for an in-person interview, look and feel professional, and your interviewer will be sure to take you seriously.

Creative Commons photo above by docpop

In the last part of this “Success Stories” Series, I interviewed HubSpot’s Rebecca Corliss on why she hired Lindsey Kirchoff. For this post, Lindsey talked to me about her strategy for landing her dream job. Her first and most important step was to start a blog about how to market to millennials (“How to Market to Me”).

She wanted to attract HubSpot’s attention and stand out from the crowd by writing about HubSpot and about the business they are in: Inbound Marketing.

She explains her job-search theory through a very simple image: the hiring funnel. As a candidate, you start at the top with all the other candidates so you do things, like writing a blog, that will ensure you are the one to make it all the way through to the bottom: Being the one getting hired!  (Lindsey created a website to explain her theory called “inbound job hunting”.)

Lindsey also uses the funnel image to describe her approach to networking: Have lots of professional contacts at the top who will help move you through the funnel. The more people at the top of your funnel means the better your chances of being the one who works her way with the help of her contacts through to the bottom! Lindsey talks more about networking on a LinkedIn blog post)

So first things first, how to you attract the attention of key players in your industry? Interact with them: interview them for your blog, comment on their blogs, retweet their tweets, ask them questions on LinkedIn, etc. Interact with these people as often as possible so they begin to see you as a fellow practitioner of their “art” instead of just another person looking for a job.

The most important thing you can do is to BLOG! Create a professional blog about a niche in your industry. This will showcase your skills, demonstrate your industry knowledge, and give you the opportunity to talk directly with the most important people in your industry.

Lindsey Kirchoff landed her dream job at HubSpot using primarily her passion blog (“How to Market to Me”) to attract Hubspot’s attention and prove her skills, her industry knowledge, and her passion

Through blogging, you can network in person with the people who can make a difference in your life. You can interview them for your blog and then stay in touch with them via social media (especially Twitter and LinkedIn).

Your blog should establish yourself as something; for Lindsey, it was a “Millennial Marketing Writer”. Sounds professional, eh?

It makes finding you easier if you are established online!

Lindsey has developed four steps to describe how she created an online presence and landed her career-launching job at the company of her dreams (HubSpot) only three months after graduating. During her pursuit of HubSpot,  Lindsey was very precise and  calculating in the steps she took to make sure she stood out from the crowd of potential employees.

One of the most important things Lindsey believes you can do in order to land your dream job is to define your filters: What kind of companies are you looking to work for? What kind of work do they do? What makes them stand out for you?

Just as a hiring manager sees things that make you desirable to them, companies must stand out for you. When companies stand out for you, you know they truly spark your passion.

After learning about inbound marketing in college, that became her filter. Looking for companies that excelled at inbound marketing, Lindsey fell in love with HubSpot, perhaps the premier practitioner of inbound marketing in the world and the actual coiners of the phrase, “inbound marketing.”

Lindsey was always clear about her interest in HubSpot. She wrote many blog posts about the company and about topics that pertained to her filter/passion/niche: inbound marketing. She analyzed and discussed the company and their content.

Then she targeted people who could help her, starting with David Meerman Scott, a member HubSpot’s advisory board and one of the gurus of the new marketing world. Lindsey got a referral to Scott from her marketing professor at Tufts and ran with it, meeting with him several times and ultimately interning with him.

That internship with Scott resulted in a glowing recommendation from him as well as a blog post he wrote saying, “If I was hiring new graduates, I’d jump to hire Lindsey before anyone else does.”

What was ultimately one of the main reasons Rebecca hired Lindsey?“The incredible endorsement of David Meerman Scott,” said Rebecca.

Because Lindsey has such a passion for inbound marketing and content creation, she was able to follow all of her “inbound job hunting” steps successfully. Furthermore, she created her own content AND it was interesting and useful!

She added value to herself by growing an online presence. She showed potential employers that she was doing something productive and committed to the field she wanted to enter, not just waiting around hoping to find a job through Indeed or Monster.

So, take the Lindsey Kirchoff success story to heart:

• Define your Filters
• Build a Funnel
• Target Companies
• Target Individuals
• Start a Blog, and
• Market Yourself

For more information on how to use a passion blog to attract the attention of employers, check out our

series on the use of passion blogs in your job search:

Part One: Three Reasons Why Your Blog Hasn’t Helped You Get a Job

Part Two: Five Reasons Why You Need a Blog to Launch Your Career

Part Three: How to Choose a Professional Blog Topic 

in fact, sometimes under-dressing just a tad suggests that the interviewee knows that they are hot stuff (degree from a top school, impressive work experience, son/daughter of the boss’s best friend, etc.) and it shows a level of confidence the value of which outweighs the ability to match a tie to your eye color.

However, there are some principles that I firmly believe all interviewees serious about getting their dream job should keep in mind.

1) NEVER WEAR JEANS: It doesn’t matter if they are designer jeans and cost you $300 or if they were a gift from your grandmother, bestowed upon you on her deathbed. Jeans are jeans are jeans. The $10 pair of no-brand/H&M/Forever 21 black dress pants that you would never be caught dead wearing under any other circumstance are a better choice for an interview than ANY pair of jeans. It also doesn’t matter what kind of position you are applying for — the graveyard janitorial shift at Wendy’s or the corporate art buyer for Morgan Stanley. When you walk through that door, surging forward for that initial handshake, your interviewer will give you a once-over, starting at the top and working down to your legs and will check off one of two boxes -”jeans” or “not jeans.” Guess which one will damage your chances of being chosen?

2) GUY TIE TIPS:  Patterned tie with a solid color shirt or solid colored tie with a patterned shirt. I don’t know much about men’s fashion, and I’m definitely not claiming to. However, I do know that pairing a striped shirt with a striped tie makes a man’s chest look like an optical illusion. Don’t give your interviewer fashion hallucinations. You can persuade him/her to hire you without hypnotizing anyone.

3) LADY BUTTON TIPS: One button, okay. Two buttons, not okay. This is pretty self-explanatory. Showing off a little bit of collarbone never hurt anyone. Showing off more will lead you to either “Not Taken Seriously Land” or “Taken Seriously for the Wrong Reason Land.” Neither of these is a good place to be in.

4) FORM-FITTING….OR NOT: And on that “Taken Seriously” note, always dress a tad baggier than what actually fits you perfectly. While it’s definitely good to look fitted, as if your clothes have been painted on by the hands of Van Gough himself, it’s not okay for your flesh to be bulging out between the fibers of the fabric. What’s perfectly fitted is tight when one sits down and since most conventional interviews are conducted while in the sitting position, you should test whether that high-waisted pencil skirt cuts you any worse when sitting down than when standing at your full-length mirror, admiring your own shape.

5) NO COSTUME JEWELRY: No necklaces with heart pendants. In other words, anything that a 14-year-old girl would not find boring. Again, price and brand doesn’t matter. It can be a diamond-studded platinum thing with tremendous sentimental value. If it’s heart-shaped or pink, it will make you look younger, in a bad way.

6) COOL IT WITH HEELS: Ladies, heels help but only if they are one inch at the highest and only if you already know how to walk in them. If you don’t, you should probably not spend pre-interview self-prep time practicing. If they come naturally, heels feminize your entire way of walking and in some twisted way make you appear more mature and adult. I’m not saying that it is right that the impression a woman makes is partially based on how much pain she can endure for the sake of looking good, but well… that’s just how it is. So deal.

7) HAIR UP, LADIES: Unless your hair is tamed and straight or short enough not to get in the way, wear your hair up. No, you will not look like a boy, though it may take just enough away from your looks to make it obvious you are not using your sexuality to get the job. You will, however, look more professional and put-together.

My suggestion? The Power Outfit.

Remember those dress pants you wore when you won first place at the high school science fair? Or those Powerpuff Girls socks you had on when you got a 2360 on your SATs? Specific items of clothing often have sentimental value attached to them, value which comes from a memory of having achieved something while having them on. The confidence you gain from remembering these accomplishments may translate into your interview, helping you ultimately get the job. So pay a visit to those cherished items of significance in your wardrobe and give them their well-deserved second chance to shine.

P.S.: Put your Power Outfit on only after you have completely finished with your Power Sandwich. You don’t want any smudges of Power Mustard on that Power Blouse….

So you have decided to write a blog – congrats! Overcoming the “I don’t need a blog to get a job” mindset is not necessarily an easy thing to do, so getting over that and deciding to actually set up your blog is an important first step.

This is where you might think that the hard part’s over, but that was nowhere close to the hard part. That was the easy part. This next step will be the…well, not THE hard part, but definitely a much harder part. It will be the crux of your whole blog, the reason it exists at all.

Namely, what are you going to blog about?

You’ve signed up for a WordPress or Tumblr or Blogger account, you’ve got the drive to use your blog in your job search, but what’s it going to be about? What’s the topic? And what’s the personal, uniquely-you angle on your topic that will get readers interested and employers taking notice?

The answer is, in part, something only you know. It has to be about something you know fairly well and are confident in and passionate about discussing intelligently. At the same time, your toipic must be something that enhances your job prospects and networking possibilities. And,  unfortunately, I can’t get any more specific than that.

But there is something I can help with. Whatever topic you do choose, it’s important to remember that it needs to be professional and not personal.

In other words, it’s not about you, it’s about your field.

The distinction between a personal blog and a professional blog is a crucial one because it determines your audience, the people you interview, your web presence, and, ultimately, your job connections.

Here are a couple of key differences between a personal blog and a professional blog, and how to ensure that yours is the latter:

The Audience

Personal Blog:

In a personal blog, the audience is essentially just yourself and maybe your close friends and family. Ideally, it would nice if other people read what you write, but that’s not the point.

A personal blog is your personal journal; a personal blog is the digital equivalent of a diary you keep in your room or under your bed.

A personal blog is you writing about your day, about things you did or things that interest you. Its purpose is to chronicle your life or improve your writing or indulge a passionate interest or get something off your chest or just to enjoy reading it back to yourself some day. It’s your personal record; the only reader that matters is you.

Professional Blog:

On the flip side, a professional blog isn’t written for yourself, but for a very specific audience: potential employers and key players in your field.

Who that audience is depends entirely on what you choose to write about.

But in a professional blog, everything you post is tailored to appeal to a certain audience and to raise your profile among that audience either by directly interviewing them, linking off to their blog, or making sure they hear of you and your blog via social media. It’s not for you, it’s for them – which, in turn, will help you.

Content

Personal Blog:

The personal blog is your journal. Things that happened to you during the day, movies you saw, trips you went on, causes you care about, etc. will be the focus of your personal blog.

It’s your LiveJournal, it’s your personal outlet to write about whatever is going on in your life.

Professional Blog:

The professional blog, on the other hand, is all about a very specific topic, theme or niche within your professional field. It must be chosen using three criteria:

1. Is it a narrow enough topic so that you won’t be lost in a sea of other bigger bloggers writing about it? In other words, it can’t be about marketing but about the best social media marketing companies in Boston; it can’t be about graphic arts but about the best practitioners of commercial graphic arts in the Northeast.
2. Is no one else writing about this topic, or is no one doing it the unique way you plan to cover it? If it’s too popular a topic, think of another one because you’ll start out WAY behind all the others and it will be very difficult to rise to the top or even just get noticed. However, even if it’s popular but all of the existing bloggers are doing a bad job, go for it if you think you can outshine them!
3. Will it cause you to interview the key players in the field. The whole point of using a professional blog in your job search is to put you in touch with the key player whom you will contact again when it’s time to look for a job. Instead of being a complete stranger, you will have impressed them with your industry knowledge during the interview and with your skills in organizing, writing, illustrating and marketing the blog post about them. That said, you will never ask them directly for a job (that would be uncool); you will ask them what they’re hearing about opportunities for someone like you.

The professional blog is not about your life, it’s about your opinions and perspectives, and the opinions and perspectives of your interviewees, on issues, trends, and topics on the niche of your field you’ve chosen as your focus

As Drew Hawkins at Brain Wads discusses, blogging consistently about a specific subject gives your blog focus, establishing expectations that will give you a consistent readership. Blog posts that run the gamut of topics (e.g. the day-to-day happenings of your personal life) will confuse readers and not compel many to consistently come back to read your blog.

Getting The Word Out

Personal Blog:

Doesn’t matter! A personal blog is for yourself; there are no expectations of it spreading, so how you choose to tell people about it – or whether you tell anyone at all – is entirely up to you.

Tell your friends, tell the world, or just keep it to yourself. It’s up to you.

Professional Blog:

It matters! It absolutely, completely, like-no-other matters.

Using a professional blog successfully in your job search will live or die by how well you market it; if you don’t get the word out about your blog, and do it effectively, then all the work you put into the blog will amount to nothing.

You may write incredible prose, take beautiful photos, shoot and edit amazing videos, and talk to the most incredible people all laid out in an elegant and easy-to-navigate blog format…but if you don’t get on the radar screens of the key players in your field, well, it’s almost pointless.

The selection and use of the best Search Engine Optimization (SEO) keywords combined with the extensive use of social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, etc.) are two keys to your success. The former ensures that your blog shows up higher and higher in search engine results, while the latter get the links to your blog out on the Web for potentially exponential growth in readership among the people in your field.

If you don’t take advantage of social media in all its various outlets and neglect to use keywords in your blog posts (use Google AdWords Keywords Tool as a reference) then your blog will flounder and die.

Ultimately, the choice between a personal blog and a professional blog comes down to what you want to get out of the blogging experience.

If all you’re looking to do is write and maybe let off some steam, then by all means, just do that; there are no rules, no expectations.

But if you’re looking to use your blog posts as writing samples for your portfolio, or if you’re looking to make money from blogging, or if you’re using your blog to catapult yourself into a career-launching job, then take the route of a professional blog.

Creative Commons photo by Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

1. With recruiters taking to Twitter for potential employees, brevity is the new black. Here’s Your Guide To Applying For a Job In 150 Characters or Less.
2. What happens on the internet certainly doesn’t stay on the internet so here are 4 Tips To Protect Your Online Privacy and Digital Footprint, courtesy of one of our very own bloggers! 
3. Millennials- time to brush up on those skills. Check out 5 Career Skills Every 20-Something Should Master.
4. Updating your resume doesn’t always involve padding it with new information- a little pruning can go a long way.  Spring Clean Your Resume: 5 Items To Delete ASAP.
5. Meet the job seeker’s new best friend: Throw Out Your Resume. This website takes you, step-by-step, through the job search process. (And it’s easy on the eyes, too.)
   

Unfortunately for us, we don’t have the bumbling Inspector Clouseau on our case. Instead, our every move is being tracked by a nearly flawless, always relentless, and extremely capable  new inspector in town: online tracking. The increasing tracking capabilities of today’s Internet combined with the driving demands of advertisers to learn every possible detail of every internet user have pushed Internet privacy limits to the edge.

For example: You’re catching up on your friends’ Facebook posts and you come across an advertisement and you think “wow that’s just the kind of shirt I like… on Facebook?” Advertisers and social media networks can now take your recent online purchases and your behavior not only on Facebook but also elsewhere on the Internet and deliver tailored ads to you see based on what your past activities indicate you might like. So items similar to that swanky-looking coat you purchased or that flannel with the intricate colors will keep showing up more and more. Excellent detective work, huh?

How does this affect your job search? Well, think about it: Less privacy, more visibility, and potential employers can now learn a lot more about you without ever talking to you.

When asked, more than 68% of Americans say that being tracked online is unethical, but seem to ignore those pesky privacy protection agreements (when asked to read “terms of service” documents, most people just simply click “I Agree”). But seriously, who wants to go through hundreds of pages of literally every possible scenario that could possibly happen? Not me!

But there are ways to protect yourself that don’t involve reading voluminous legal documents. Here are Degrees2Dreams’ recommendations for how you can reduce online tracking, and surf the Internet without feeling that someone is watching over your shoulder.

1. INSTALL 3^rd PARTY PROGRAMS TO BLOCK ADS: Installing programs that help block ads not only makes surfing the internet much smoother, it eliminates the potential for accidental clicks leading to sites that are simply just wasting your time. Here is a list of some of the best…
   1. Adblock Plus (blocks ads, banners, pop-ups and video ads)
   2. DoNotTrackMe (blocks potential identity thieves and spammers)
   3. NoScript (aids against XSS and click-jacking, and works specifically with sites you trust).
2. FIX THOSE COOKIES: Changing your cookie settings on your browser to expire when you are finished browsing a website. This is a great way to prevent online companies from storing your personal information. With the average website generating more than 50 cookies per individual visit, changing your cookie settings can dramatically reduce the online tracking of your Internet life.
3. TURN OFF REFERRERS: Have you ever noticed that when you click on a box to fill out your information on a web site, your computer instantly knows everything from your address to something as confidential as your credit card number? This is due to referrers using various HTTP requests to distribute personal information to various websites throughout the World Wide Web. The best way to cope with this problem is to install the Referrer Control extension for either Firefox or Google Chrome. This handy-dandy extension eliminates those troublesome referrers and gets you one step closer to freedom from online trackers.
4. IT’S BETTER TO BE HTTPS THEN SORRY: HTTPS or Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure is simply the difference between a secured network and an unsecured network (HTTP), and it is essential when accessing your favorite sites that you add the “s” to http://. Downloading HTTPS Everywhere is a great way to reduce the risk of a third parties snooping on your activity in what you thought were private conversations, as well as the personal data you enter, or your activities on your favorite websites.

So follow our suggestions and enjoy healthy and unmonitored Internet browsing in the true privacy of your own computer. And feel a little more secure in the knowledge that potential employers will more likely find what YOU want them to find out about you online.

Happy (and secure) browsing!

Pink Panther Creative Commons photo by kennethkonica