Here are I a few things that work for me.

– I read Mashable everyday. A daily news brief that talks about tech in business.

–I use Tweetdeck/Seesmic (Twitter application) to search for an article that I think would be of interest to my network. Then I post the link with a comment to Linked In. I do this 3 times a week.

–I talk to Millenials (20’s somethings). I am a digital immigrant (a Baby Boomer) and I can’t think like a digital native no matter how hard I try. They give me perspective and ideas and are most gracious about helping an old dog.

– Video. I use it everyday.

1. Want help with your job search? Or social media training in general? Check out Grovo.com
2. Over 50? The Encore Career Institute offers retraining & certifications.
3. The world’s leading universities have put hundreds of courses (+ audiobooks, movies, etc.) online FOR FREE! Check  out Openculture.com
4. Workforce training and continuing education:   The e-Learning Center.com
5. Don’t forget to look on  YouTube   or Vimeo for a tutorial of whatever you’re interested in learning. It’s probably out there!

Now go have some fun!

Photo credits: IELTS in 30 days 

— A CEO described interviewing a young man and liking him. After the young man left, the CEO decided to go online and ‘Google’ him. (Yes, that’s a verb now, to Google.) Here’s what he read on Facebook. “I just had an interview at xyz company. The company is a dog but I’m sure they are going to make me an offer which I’ll take while I keep looking.” He didn’t get the job and probably to this day doesn’t know why.

– A graduate student getting his Master’s in teaching began doing his student teaching. After about 3 weeks, he was called by HR and told he was being terminated. When he asked why, he was told that photos ‘unbecoming’ a teacher were found online. They found pictures of him on his Facebook page  drinking a beer (he was over 21) in a public park.

I live in New York, an ‘at will’ employment state, which means that any employer can ‘let go’ any employee without cause. (ok, that’s not the legal terminology).

Bottom line: Pay attention folks. It’s not a conspiracy but they are out to get you.

Photo credit: Random Good stuff.com

What do I mean by a ‘fishy’ handshake? Well, when you offer just the fingers of your hand or when you fail to grasp the other person’s hand and shake it with confidence; you run the risk of having people think you are weak. This especially goes for men shaking hands with women. It is disrespectful to barely shake hands with a woman. It makes them think that you don’t think of them as equals.

You’ve probably heard the story about why we shake hands, i.e.,  to show that we have no weapons in our hands. Aside from the way we dress and eye contact, our handshake is another very important signal of our confidence.

When you shake hands, please, oh please I’m begging you, look the person in the eye and give them a gentle but firm handshake. This isn’t a strength contest but it is a chance to make the other person sit up and take notice of your positive manner.  So ladies,  put your hand out there and shake firmly. Guys, do the same. it’s so important!

Photo Credit: Ads of the World

Sometimes we get so caught up in day to day living that we forget that we have the power to change ourselves. We have everything justified in our minds about why we can’t change, why things aren’t going our way, blah, blah, blah.

Practice one of these and it will change you…forever:

Promote someone else. When was the last time you helped to promote someone else? Not yourself; someone else. A person who you think is great. Talk about him/her to your connections.  This will require you to know them well enough to help promote them. (No promoting your son, daughter– doesn’t count!)

Be brave. My favorite poet is Mary Oliver. I know you’re thinking, oh no, not poetry. Yuck. Well, I get that. I like poetry and I don’t understand most it. (Maybe that’s because it’s bad poetry!) Anyway, Mary wrote this poem titled The Journey. She talks to us about listening to our inner voice and having the courage to be ourselves. Not easy but the most worthwhile of life’s adventures.

Be here now. During your day, be fully present when you are talking to someone. Look them in the eye, smile, listen as if you were going to have to repeat back to them what they just told you. Practice this with your children, spouse, friends, parents, etc. You’ll be surprised at how much fun it is, how much it is appreciated and the joy of being in the moment.

Change is good, timing is everything, patience is the key. I’m in your corner!

Photo credit: Sharon Greene

I know keeping up our skills is hard and that trying to make sure we’re networking and connecting is a pain. But consider the alternative. “If you don’t like change, you’re going to like irrelevance even less,” said General Eric Shinseki, Chief of Staff, U. S. Army. He wasn’t referring to the job market but, it does apply.

Each of us needs to be thinking about being a proactive career manager. Are you diligently building your network? Are you getting training? Are you actively discussing key aspects of change in your field?  Do you read blogs that are relevant to your industry? Are you out of your comfort zone?

I want to be one of those people that companies are willing to fight to recruit. How about you?

- You never know when you might need a job OR help someone else find a job.

- You can learn a lot about a company from what they are posting and how they describe open positions.

- You might learn the name of a hiring manager or HR person who could help you with that company.

- If you see the same skills required for job postings; it could tell you that you need to update your skills.

So if you don’t have one, start an automated job search. I like Indeed.com as it aggregates jobs from other job boards.  By the way, if you post your resume on job boards you open yourself up to all kinds of spammers. They troll job boards looking for contacts to sell ‘stuff’ to. Just be careful out there.

For more tips on job hunting, check out “10 Smart Things Job Seekers Do.”

Photo credit: The Santa Clara City Library Blog  May 27, 2010 (thank you!)

But as a rule, the idea of paying someone to change, improve or alter your digital reputation or “digital footprint” sounds crazy to me.

I know a lot of people don’t like Google but the reality is that Google’s search algorithms (their own self interest notwithstanding) are designed to give real people who are creating real content the best chance possible of being found by other real people.

Before I came across this article,  A Primer on Online Reputation Management, I didn’t even know these companies existed. While I appreciate the entrepreneurial spirit, I question whether this is a viable alternative for 99% of the population.  Here is one of the tactics employed by such organizations; they “include things like “astroturfing,” or the creation of anonymous commenter accounts to buttress a positive piece of content or lash out against a negative one.” Another tactic is to “sneak a client’s name into a site with a lot of rank with Google, such as IMDB.com.”

The whole point of a reputation is that it be a true reflection of who you are. Trust is built by being consistent and ethical. What many of us love about ‘social’ networking/media/business/commerce is the transparency. You can manage your own online presence by paying attention, reading and commenting on blogs, posting to Linked In and so forth. For heaven’s sake be genuine because if you get exposed as a fraud– you WILL need to pay someone to help you get rid of that and good luck doing so!

Photo credit: sarahmelnychuk.blogspot.com

As I go through my talk, inevitably the most vocal opponent (the one who kept telling me how insightful they are and how stupid I am) sees the light and suddenly  wants my help. Hmmm…

Why are there so many jobs posted on Twitter?

– It’s free, fast, easy, has an incredibly broad reach AND all those people who think social media  is stupid won’t be looking there!

Back to the job hunt. Of those 500 job posts per minute, there are, of course, redundant jobs BUT… the question is… how can you use what’s there to help you?

Using Hashtags to Boost Your Job Search is a terrific article on how to use Twitter effectively (Hashtag =# = keywords).  Hashtags such as #jobs, #jobadvice, #jobhunt and #jobsearch offer both job openings and general job search advice.  If you’re looking for high-level information to help your job search,  start here.

Put the hashtag in the twitter search bar and up will pop articles (links) that may help you.  Geographic hashtag can narrow your search, #roc = Rochester, NY.  Also, there are hundreds of recruiters on twitter, Check out this resource. Follow the smart people on Twitter and you might be surprised how much you’ll learn. Got  Twitter job search tips? Please share.

I believe that the way that we work, play and innovate is undergoing a revolution and social media/web 2.0 are at the heart of it. Beyond Facebook, Twitter and Linked In are wikis, online communities, videos, ning groups, meet ups, blogs, podcasts and so many more cool ways to communicate that we have barely begun to scratch the surface.

Back in the mid-1990′s, we used altavista to search for information on the then new “world wide web.” Remember?  If we had to use a search tool like that today, we would be tearing our hair out. The tools we have for collaboration are similarly unsophisticated compared to what we’ll have at our fingertips in just a few short years. The ways we want to work together are already evolving faster than the toolkit.

I have started a new blog, A Collaboration Nation to share ideas and get us thinking not only about tools for sharing ideas, but also how we work together. I came across a book called “The Power of Two” and from it, I took this excerpt;

Effective allies agree with these 3 statements:

• We focus on each other’s strengths, not weaknesses.
• We accept each other as we are and don’t try to change each other.
• We are understanding of each other when one of us makes mistakes.

In those cases where you work with one other person, how effective are you as a partner? When we focus on the power we have to make great things happen, guess what; great things happen.

In case you don’t have a chance to watch it, the person tells the story of a pink pantsuited, bracelet-jangling big haired blond who comes into a networking room where the marketing executive looks down on her… only to find out that she is personal friends with the one contact he cares about. Hmmm…

In some measure though, we’re all guilty of judging others. Some of that is human nature and we need to fight that every day of our lives. In our career, we need to make sure we have an open mind about how we can help others and how others can help us.

I have heard it over and over again from unemployed people when I suggest they talk to their neighbors. I hear, “they don’t know anyone” or “I’m embarrassed for them to know I’m still out of work” and other lame excuses. Get over it.

Maybe you can help your neighbor. Did you ever consider that? If you tackle networking like it’s a job, where the best scenario is a win/win and the worst scenario is that VERY LITTLE effort is put forth AND the results are lousy. No one said finding a new job is easy whether you currently have a job or not.

If you’re a bit stuck in your search;  find someone else to help. If you’re currently employed; find someone else to help. Choose wisely but help them; with a contact, a few hours of volunteer time, an idea or the best gift ever, listening.