Maybe you already know this, or maybe I’m the first person to break it to you, but your resume by itself – even if it’s amazing – just isn’t enough in today’s job search market.
With so many job seekers and so much uncertainty, the smartest thing you can do is diversify your job search. ‘Don’t put all your eggs in one basket’, as the old saying goes.
Be sure you are trying every possible way to increase your career visibility and likelihood for landing your next role. If you’re not sure how to do that, I’ve included 3 solid strategies to get you started.
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Develop a Strong Network
First, let me start by saying that if you’re anything like me, you’ve heard this piece of advice before, and it irritates you because you think to yourself, ‘Sure, it’s important to have a network, but I don’t have one and it takes time to build one, so that really doesn’t help me out right now.’
And because I’ve been in that position, I can tell you that you just have to start somewhere.
I talk a lot about the concept of ‘Future Me’, and how I try to take the extra time now, in the present, to do things that will be helpful for Future Me.
So when it comes to networking, be nice to Future You. Buy into the benefits of networking (there are plenty!), and start doing some work in the present that Future You will appreciate.
If you start with small steps now and keep it up over time, I promise it will lead you to a broader network and more opportunities.
Having a strong network is important and it can work for you on multiple levels in your job search.
For one, referral candidates have always been a preferred source for companies to find high quality candidates.
The reason for this isn’t because these referrals are magically better than everyone else who applies. It’s because they can be trusted more easily by the recruiter because there is a well-known mutual connection who is ready and willing to vouch for them. And studies show that referral candidates can be hired more quickly and onboarded more efficiently than any other external source.
That’s why it’s so valuable to leverage your network to get a referral for a role, because it lets you bypass the ‘anonymous submission’ phase of the recruitment cycle and go directly to a decision-maker with ‘referral hire’ status, which puts you in a way better position and gives you much better odds overall.
Building a strong network will help you gain access to resources that will foster your career development. It will help you stay on top of the latest trends in your industry, keep a pulse on the job market, and meet prospective employers, referral connections, and/or mentors.
Developing and maintaining a strong network also helps you build and improve skills like strategic communication, relationship building, emotional intelligence, and openness to feedback – which are all key to success in almost any career field or job function.
Okay, so I’ve told you all about why networking is important and how having a strong network can benefit your job search.
So how do you actually get started?
Well, to be most efficient, it’s important to devote time in the beginning to cultivating your social feed, which is explained further in the next section.
After that, you’ll want to follow up by dedicating time (daily or 3-4x per week) to reading posts and articles your LinkedIn feed. Interact with posts by clicking the ‘Like’ react (or other ‘react’ options), and by commenting. You can also share relevant articles and posts from people in your industry that you find informative.
As the LinkedIn algorithm starts to learn more about what you are interested in, it will begin to show you new, more relevant people and posts.
Follow people you are genuinely interested in learning from and Connect with people you are genuinely interested in developing ongoing communications with.
When reaching out to connect, always try to be helpful first (or at least flattering, because flattery will get you everywhere) – never lead with an ‘ask’ for yourself. Take the time to send genuine messages that are unique to them, not generic, copy/paste messages, and always show gratitude for any help (or even time) someone gives you.
You can take your engagement a step further by posting your own thoughts, ideas, and opinions as they relate to your career field. Then, you can Follow/Connect with other professionals who comment on your posts.
You can also write articles on LinkedIn about the things in your career field you know a lot (or are passionate) about. Not only will this give you more self-created content to share, it will also help you develop content for your Professional Portfolio (explained further in the third section).
Outside of LinkedIn, you can also send networking ‘letters’ (emails) to people you already know who are likely to want to help you, and ask them if there is anyone they can introduce you to.
Just as with new connections, approach these interactions with respect and gratitude.
On that note, here are a few more of my Digital Networking Etiquette Tips to round out your networking starter kit.
Give more than you get: Don’t be a needy networker. Make sure you strive to give more than you get in every relationship. Let people know they can count on you, let them know you care about their success and want to help in any way you can.
Respect others’ time: NEWS FLASH: Everybody’s busy, and we all think we’re busier than everyone else. If someone actually does agree to give you some of their time, be respectful and don’t take up any more of their time than necessary.
Play the long game: Don’t be the person who only networks when it’s beneficial to you. Make network maintenance a long-term habit. Building relationships takes time, so decide now that you’re in it for the long haul. You never know when you’ll need your network.
Share generously: Share posts from people you like, admire, and respect. In doing so, you not only help their information to reach a larger audience, you’ll also help yourself ‘get on their radar’, develop your relationship with them, and even build your own authority in your career space.
Cultivate Your Social Media for Passive Professional Development
I mentioned in the last section that you should devote time to cultivating your social feed, and I want to explain a little more about what that means.
This is something I’ve been trying to yell from the rooftops all year, and if you’ve been following me for a while, you’ve probably heard me talk about it at least a little.
You can strategically cultivate your social feeds to show you more helpful, beneficial, and positive content for your professional (and personal) development.
Read that again.
By being mindful about how you spend your time on social media, the pages and people you follow, and the groups you join, you can improve your social feeds and intentionally foster a more productive digital environment for yourself.
It all works like this:
Social media platforms are run by algorithms that, different as they may be, are all driving toward 1 goal: keeping your attention for as long as possible.
Why? Because in an online world, attention is the currency, and social media platforms make their money from advertisers based on how many people are on the platform and for how long.
So, each time you use a social media platform, its algorithm learns from your behavior and alters your feed to show you more of what it thinks you will like – meaning, what it thinks will keep your attention the longest and keep you coming back the most often.
Knowing this, you can be intentional about your usage and leverage the algorithm as a tool to help your feed show you more of the content that is helpful to your life and/or career, and less of anything else.
You still with me?
Good.
Now that you have this knowledge, do something with it.
The best way to get started is to first spend dedicated time researching the best people to follow for your particular needs – and then following them. This can be career/industry related, job search related, personal development related, hobby related – anything you want.
For job search expertise, you can start with this list of over 80 people, “whose purpose is to help others find work”, from Bob McIntosh, CPRW, a LinkedIn Top Voice and Career Trainer.
This list is compiled of many people whom I consider mentors, exceptional colleagues, and rising stars in the career space, and they all regularly share super helpful advice on all things job search related.
For your career or personal development/interests, you can simply do an internet search for, ‘best people to follow in [career field/industry/hobby/personal development topic]’.
And don’t underestimate the value of Groups, especially on Facebook. I have found immense value (as an entrepreneur, RVer, digital nomad, resume writer & career coach, woman, and all-around human) from joining the right social media groups.
Finding the right groups may take a bit of time in trial and error (an internet search for ‘best Facebook/Linked groups for [career field/industry/hobby/personal development topic]’ can be helpful), but I’ve found it to be well worth it.
And since a few more of my Digital Networking Etiquette Tips relate to this topic, I’m including them here:
Be active on LinkedIn and in LinkedIn groups: Groups should be chosen based on their relevance to your career- current or intended- skills, and interests.
You will see updates and articles from people in your groups. You can even set your preferences to receive emails whenever a new topic is brought up. This gives you the opportunity to learn new things about your industry, debate and give your opinion on group topics, and interact with others.
By being active in groups, people will begin to recognize you, thus creating bonds that may be useful to one or both of you in the future.
And, it doesn’t have to be a difficult or time-consuming task to complete. Just be diligent about logging onto LinkedIn once or twice a week, checking in with your groups, and commenting a few times. Then, if you find yourself consistently interacting with the same person or people, consider sending a connection request to grow your network.
Provide value and contribute thoughtfully: Consider how your knowledge, expertise, and skills can help others. People are much more likely to help you if you’ve helped them in the past. This can be as simple as answering a question posed on social media or forwarding a link to someone who may benefit from it.
Build a Professional Portfolio
I learned about professional portfolios as an Education major in college, but from what I can tell, professionals in most other fields/industries have never even heard of them.
So, let’s start with what a professional portfolio is, which is an organized collection of relevant documents and artifacts that showcases your talents, most relevant skills, and professional growth. (Source: UNCF)
A professional portfolio can be created and used for any discipline or profession, and it can add a massive amount of value to any job seeker who uses one. Your portfolio should be seen as an extension of your resume – not a replacement.
Typically, you’ll keep a personal working portfolio, which is very comprehensive and detailed, and then you can modify that comprehensive portfolio into various presentation portfolios tailored to suit a specific need or target a specific role, industry, job function, etc.
Creating a professional portfolio can be hugely valuable tool to help you assess your professional development, interview effectively, navigate career transitions, and track your professional growth.
The process of creating a portfolio also enables you to demonstrate examples of your qualifications, and helps you determine who you are, what your career philosophies are, what you do best, and how to best present yourself and your work to a targeted audience.
Professional portfolios are as individual as the person it belongs to – so no two will be the same. But there are some primary components which typically include:
- Cover
- Table of contents
- Introduction – who you are, what your professionals interests are, your goals and/or philosophies
- Credentials – such as your resume, transcripts, references, stellar evaluations
- Leadership Highlights
- Research or Project Outcomes – papers authored, articles written, important presentations
- Teamwork or Collaboration Projects – highlighting YOUR work and contribution
- Proof of professional development – courses, workshops, conferences
- Honors/Awards
To get started, you’ll first want to collect your data, which will be a continuous process throughout your career. Identify and collect evidence of your skills and experiences from: major career achievements or awards; work projects, special assignments, initiatives or programs; work involved in certifications, trainings, or professional development; college leadership, study abroad, courses, and extra curriculars (if relevant – typically more for your professionals); and/or personal community service involvement, hobbies, and interests (interests and hobbies only if highly relevant).
Find examples of your work that best represent who you are. Include a variety of items that are relevant, show who you are as a leader, demonstrate outcomes and solutions, and showcases your drive and initiative.
Your portfolio can be very comprehensive and include many documents. However, you should focus on quality and not quantity.
(Pro Tip: As you move through your career, be thoughtful in your daily assignments and think about how you can demonstrate your role, tasks, and activities performed.)
After you’ve collected all the data you need, you’ll sort and organize it.
Consider how you wish to tell your story. Analyze your target audience (this can be tailored in your ‘presentation portfolio’), and organize/sort your content into the proper categories.
I recommend having a very lean and highly targeted physical portfolio to bring into interviews (if possible/relevant). This can be created in a 3-ring binder, with dividers and clear sheet protectors.
Beyond that, I recommend that your ‘presentation portfolio’ for that position be offered via a link (using online tools like Prezio or a personal webpage).
Make sure your ‘presentation portfolio’ is always very clearly marked using section labels and sections. Lead each section with your strengths, and only include the most relevant content.
Last but not least, make it professional and visually appealing, but remember – it should not look like a scrapbook.
Portfolios are a really effective way to enhance your interview performance and the ultimate impression you make on interviewers. The best way to do this is to know your portfolio really well so that you are able to quickly refer to good examples that will substantiate your demonstration of skills during an interview.
A few tips about using your portfolio in an interview:
- Don’t lead with the portfolio unless it is requested. You want to first establish a rapport with the interviewer, and then utilize the portfolio.
- The portfolio shouldn’t be the focus of the interview, nor should you use it as a crutch – let it enhance your presentation, while you and your answers remain the full focus.
- When first using the portfolio, inform the interviewer that you have an example to share and remove the item from your portfolio and pass to the interviewer. Explain the relevance of the document to the example you have shared.
A professional portfolio is a valuable creative tool that can be utilized throughout your professional journey to help showcase your value and elevate you above other candidates.
And just like with networking, it’s never too early or too late to begin.
So…what are you gonna do for Future You, your job search, and your career?
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