Well, I finally did it, I signed up for Twitter. I was not sure it was a great idea, but since so many are doing it, and apparently like to do it, I finally had to give in and set up an account. I can report it is easy to open the account, and the profile is pretty effortless. What may not be so effortless is the business end of the process -- tweeting.
It seems you gotta go to the site and enter a line or two talking about what you are doing. Crap, I just mowed the yard, and walked the dogs. That is interesting to exactly who? Oh well, I can always say I am doing interesting stuff! Most of the time we are all sitting here at the keyboard trying to think of something nifty to report in a tweet. I see this could get out of hand.
My other effort is to think up something interesting to say on this blog. Do you see a pattern developing here? Dog, this could become embarassing -- I need a content source!
I also need to get another article written to publish online so I keep my article count growing. I published my 16th article the other day. It is titled; 7 Attributes of Effective Leaders. I think it is a fairly well written short article outlining a few things I hope will help those trying to become effective leading teams. I noticed the article view count started to grow right away. That is good, now if only some of those reviewers will leave a comment or two letting me know what they think about the quality of my writing.
If you want to review some of the articles I have written, please do, and leave me a danged comment! They are found here; http://EzineArticles.com/?expert_bio=Kenneth_Wallin and I do get by there every day to check for comments.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Friday, July 24, 2009
Feeling a little political today
My good friend and I were chatting about this situation between the Cambridge Police Officer (Sgt. Crowley) and Professor Gates. It seems there were agendas all around, in my humble judgement. The officer is certainly in the weakest position here, tangling with a well known Harvard professor, who just happens to be acquainted with the President -- Barack Obama.
Could that have been more devastating to his position? I rather doubt it, but he is holding his own. Support from the Policemen's Association of Massachusetts is helping his side a bit. The biggest stumble for Sgt Crowley is the President interrupted his Press Conference to announce the police acted "stupidly" in this matter. Whew! That cannot make your day.
Now, the President has backtracked a bit as the facts are coming in supporting the contention that all sides may have acted a bit rashly. Professor Gates apparently has a hair trigger attitude when it comes to being approached by policemen, and his first reaction was "racist policeman" profiling a "black man in America." I think he could have taken a less confrontational approach and gotten out of the situation with both sides saying, "Oops." Apparently, that is not his method of dealing with a policeman.
Bottom line here; the Professor apparently has an agenda that says, "attack policemen as racist cops" and they will run away, the policeman has a "don't attack me, and don't mention my Mom" attitude," and the President has a "let's jump to a conclusion" approach (apparently he assumed -- wrongly -- that Cambridge officers are racists, and all black Harvard Professors are unable to behave badly in public. I reckon everybody was wrong.
My old, now long gone grandmother, used to say, "if you can't nothing good, don't say nothing." Looks like all these fellows could have use dthis sage advice, eh? Might be a lesson in there for them, and us.
Could that have been more devastating to his position? I rather doubt it, but he is holding his own. Support from the Policemen's Association of Massachusetts is helping his side a bit. The biggest stumble for Sgt Crowley is the President interrupted his Press Conference to announce the police acted "stupidly" in this matter. Whew! That cannot make your day.
Now, the President has backtracked a bit as the facts are coming in supporting the contention that all sides may have acted a bit rashly. Professor Gates apparently has a hair trigger attitude when it comes to being approached by policemen, and his first reaction was "racist policeman" profiling a "black man in America." I think he could have taken a less confrontational approach and gotten out of the situation with both sides saying, "Oops." Apparently, that is not his method of dealing with a policeman.
Bottom line here; the Professor apparently has an agenda that says, "attack policemen as racist cops" and they will run away, the policeman has a "don't attack me, and don't mention my Mom" attitude," and the President has a "let's jump to a conclusion" approach (apparently he assumed -- wrongly -- that Cambridge officers are racists, and all black Harvard Professors are unable to behave badly in public. I reckon everybody was wrong.
My old, now long gone grandmother, used to say, "if you can't nothing good, don't say nothing." Looks like all these fellows could have use dthis sage advice, eh? Might be a lesson in there for them, and us.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Let's talk about networking
I suppose everyone thinks that after several months of searching for a position (any opportunity) one develops a feel for the process. Probably, but realistically, probably not, as it is a really complex process. If you have searched for a viable, money-earning position you have the understanding to enter into a discussion with me on this process. If you have searched for a viable, money-earning position in this down economy, and have landed an interview that makes you an expert in job searching.
Absolutely important in this process is the artof networking. When I say networking I am definitely not talking about Linked In, or Facebook. They do have some good things going on there, and you may even get a Recruiter you meet there to take a copy of your resume (presumably to consider you for a job they are acting upon). Truth be told, they are not really doing that at all, they are gathering resumes to hope they can find one perfect fit in the pile. In most cases they won't be successful either, as the perfect fit usually does not exist. So, who is finding those jobs and getting hired?
It is networking, but it is more like the old days of 'who do you know.' If you can draw upon a friend with a named contact in the internal recruiter (think HR) industry, you have found a strong first step. A lot of scam artists talk about the 'hidden job market.' They don't have any more access to that market than you or I. They will take your money and promise to get you in "there" -- there being the receptionists desk. You have to get past that receptionist. So, what I am saying is save your money.
The best way to get access to a real job opening, and stand any chance of landing the job is to have someone on the inside pushing your resume onto the desk of the hiring manager. That takes muscle, and that muscle usually comes from someone with credibility inside the company. A friend has loads of contacts in many different companies. He is a former CFO, and knows a bunch of recruiters (internal and external) by name. They owe him a few favors, and he is willing to help you get a hand up into the inner well of the company so you can get a shot at a job. This takes a lot of set-up, and a lot of nourishing the system to keep it working. But, this is the system that will land you the good job.
Absolutely important in this process is the artof networking. When I say networking I am definitely not talking about Linked In, or Facebook. They do have some good things going on there, and you may even get a Recruiter you meet there to take a copy of your resume (presumably to consider you for a job they are acting upon). Truth be told, they are not really doing that at all, they are gathering resumes to hope they can find one perfect fit in the pile. In most cases they won't be successful either, as the perfect fit usually does not exist. So, who is finding those jobs and getting hired?
It is networking, but it is more like the old days of 'who do you know.' If you can draw upon a friend with a named contact in the internal recruiter (think HR) industry, you have found a strong first step. A lot of scam artists talk about the 'hidden job market.' They don't have any more access to that market than you or I. They will take your money and promise to get you in "there" -- there being the receptionists desk. You have to get past that receptionist. So, what I am saying is save your money.
The best way to get access to a real job opening, and stand any chance of landing the job is to have someone on the inside pushing your resume onto the desk of the hiring manager. That takes muscle, and that muscle usually comes from someone with credibility inside the company. A friend has loads of contacts in many different companies. He is a former CFO, and knows a bunch of recruiters (internal and external) by name. They owe him a few favors, and he is willing to help you get a hand up into the inner well of the company so you can get a shot at a job. This takes a lot of set-up, and a lot of nourishing the system to keep it working. But, this is the system that will land you the good job.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Hunting for work in a down economy
I suppose there are many folks looking for work in this down economy, and I happen to be one of them. What activity lends the most success to this effort? Local networking groups? Or is it the social networking websites? I suspect it is a combination of the local networking groups and, for me, Linked In. I have been attending a couple groups and have made a number of good contacts. The big shortcoming is we are all job seekers!
I really have found Linked In to be profitable for my job search. I have made a huge number of connections there and many of them are in the recruiting industry. The real tough thing is to sort the ones out that are not even in the niche of your search by industry. It is time consuming. Add to the value of the social networking sites is the contacts one makes off-line may direct one to a contact online. Makes a huge success if as a job seeker you can actually link up with the person. I have found two of those and I am scheduling a chat on the phone.
I want to endorse the direct contact method to get some traction in your job search program. Find a Mentor, or a Colleague that may be willing to give one an assist and the job search can take a whole new life. It is often said the jobs are filled by someone that knew someone already inside the target company. I really believe that is so true.
I am also building my dream into reality as I try to find a day job. I set about applying to as many online faculty positions as I could find colleges and universities with online programs. I think I have gotten about 50 applied to thus far. Probably 10 or so have responded. And several of those have advised me they have no open positions. I keep looking and applying. It is the only thing that makes sense.
I really have found Linked In to be profitable for my job search. I have made a huge number of connections there and many of them are in the recruiting industry. The real tough thing is to sort the ones out that are not even in the niche of your search by industry. It is time consuming. Add to the value of the social networking sites is the contacts one makes off-line may direct one to a contact online. Makes a huge success if as a job seeker you can actually link up with the person. I have found two of those and I am scheduling a chat on the phone.
I want to endorse the direct contact method to get some traction in your job search program. Find a Mentor, or a Colleague that may be willing to give one an assist and the job search can take a whole new life. It is often said the jobs are filled by someone that knew someone already inside the target company. I really believe that is so true.
I am also building my dream into reality as I try to find a day job. I set about applying to as many online faculty positions as I could find colleges and universities with online programs. I think I have gotten about 50 applied to thus far. Probably 10 or so have responded. And several of those have advised me they have no open positions. I keep looking and applying. It is the only thing that makes sense.
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