How To Use Web 2.0 To Get Ahead

I had the pleasure of speaking with two good friends today at Texas State's Mass Communication Week 2008. (See Mass Communications Week at Texas State Adds Web 2.0 to Schedule post)

For my portion of the talk I spoke to students and shared with them keys to successfully making sure that hiring managers take notice of them in our Web 2.0 world. It's important to know that as the web continues to grow and the wealth of information expands exponentially that they use the skills they're developing and their natural inquisitiveness.

You can watch the recorded podcast here: Web 2.0. (apologies up front - not great audio or video - promise the next one will be 100% better)

And download the slide presentation here: slideshare

And finally check out the Texas State Mass Communications site for a brief documentation of the entire presentation.

Three Cheers for Good People

They're every where when we really look around.

It's the person that held the door open for you as you left the store with your hands full of bags.

It's the person that let you sneak into their lane during rush hour not realizing you were running late to a meeting with your boss.

It's the person across the cubes that said bless you when you sneezed.

In our real world it's simple to find really good people. Is it any different on our social networks? Not really. But it takes a commitment from you on the front end to establish relationships in order for others to talk back to you and show you a glimpse of their good side.

I had a chance to speak with several recruiters today over a conference call that I had recently connected to across various networks. We called in from Minnesota, Atlanta, Dallas and Oregon. We've never met in person, but we have started conversations online. Once on the phone it was as if we'd known each other for quite sometime. We simply jumped on introduced ourselves and the call ensued. We asked questions, suggested solutions, posed theories and within a few short minutes left having really connected and with plans to connect again.

The relationships established online happen much more quickly and for the most part much more effortlessly and without as much work.

Twitter is my social network of choice and has been since Chris Brogan introduced me to it in September 2007. I didn't met him on Twitter, but rather on Facebook. Then I found a post on his website that led me to an interview that Guy Kawasaki conducted with Chris which asked him some of his top hints. One of the hints was using Twitter. So I signed up. Yes, I'm open to new adventures.

Within 5 minutes from joining, Chris sent out a note to his followers asking them to introduce themselves to me and boom. I was in thanks to Chris. As of today I have almost 700 people following me on Twitter. It's amazing.

And it's all because I follow good people and good people follow me back. The relationships have grown both online and offline. I've met people from all walks of life who are simply doing just that. Living. We giggle together. Laugh together. Cheer each other on. Joke with one another.

Gary Vaynerchuk had posted a wonderful idea today asking each of us to chat about the Good People that we know. And I'm not one to disregard a challenge especially for an idea as good as this.

So here are a few of my own personal favorite recommendations of good people you'll find on Twitter. If you haven't joined us on there yet, we'd love to have you!

@chrisbrogan - Known as The Mayor of twitter and super nice guy in Boston
@conniereece - Social media and PR goddess in Austin
@susanreynolds - Social marketing pro and cancer survivor in D.C.
@shashib - Social Media Swami (his biz card reads that!) in D.C.
@thomsinger - Networker extraordinaire in Austin
@chrisbergman - Marketing specialist and all around great guy in Cincinnati
@tojosan - Computer programmer and photographer in St. Louis
@pistachio - Social media maven and consultant in Boston
@karasoluri - Social media queen in training and mom in Austin
@mikeneumann - Business development consultant and all around great guy in Austin area
@sheilas - Blogger, Traveler, Former Navy, more energy than my small toe in Austin area

and my, my, this list could go on and on, but these are simple a few folks who have made an incredible impact on my life. Thank God for Good People!

Real Life Collides with Online Life

Social networking and media have recently become more and more real to me as I've been having more human interactions with folks that I've become friends with on various social networks. The two have collided.

This afternoon as I logged into my Twitter account I found that I was invited to attend a Social Media Breakfast here in Austin this week. Just after registering to attend I had a call come through on ooVoo from Geoff Livingston in D.C. I clicked on, plugged in my webcam and for the first time had a conversation with Geoff, Jay Moonah, Joseph Jaffee, and Robin Good - - two guys here in the states, one guy in Toronto, one guy in Rome and little 'ol me in Central Texas.

A year ago it would have never crossed my mind that I would be having conversations of any kind with folks like this and that they would be from all over the world. But today, it's becoming more and more normal. In addition to this afternoon's chat I also caught up with my CMO in Belgium and an old friend in Argentina earlier this week. Amazing.

My boyfriend has been chatting with his social friends online for years now - again coming from all over the world. Of course his conversations are never around media, marketing and the effects of social media though.

My organization, Bulldog Solutions, is constantly trying to help our Business-to-Business (B2B) clients find better ways to reach their clients on social networks and media and the simple truth is that it begins with a conversation. First they have to determine where their customers live and then begin interacting with them there. And by interacting we know it's not pushing more advertisements at them, but really interacting - posing questions, offering helpful insight and opening up about what's going on at an organizational level and becoming more personal and interesting.

I have to believe in my own experiences that although it might take us a while to teach our clients how to evolve in this new social world that their efforts will pay off exponentially.

Why Social Media Matters

Within the last six months I've developed an affinity for online social media and networking. I know that it honestly drives some of my colleagues nuts. Good thing I have a slew of friends on Twitter that share in my passion and my desire to spread the works of my new love.

Mostly people want to know what they'll get from using sites like Twitter or Facebook. I think many people have come to realize that MySpace tends to be a fun place and with LinkedIn is easy to see the business connections and networking. But Twitter? Facebook? And seriously, why would anyone over the age of 15 want to join any of these or even Second Life for that matter?

And a few weeks ago everything changed. Twitter suddenly mattered. Twitter mattered to Susan Reynolds and the host of friends that follower her Twitter posts and blog and artwork. Susan was diagnosed with breast cancer.

In addition to being an avid Twitter poster and artist, Susan dabbles in other fun things like Second Life and various other social media. Susan is not 15. Susan is way past 15 and I'm sure she doesn't mind me saying so.

Susan has become our friend, our sister, our confidant, our playmate.

And Twitter rallied.

Many people who call Twitter one of their social networking sites of choice decided to make a stand against cancer by creating a site and a movement based on one of Susan's postings about frozen peas. Frozen Pea Friday began last Friday on the Frozen Pea Fund site and all money raised each Friday goes to the American Cancer Society's initiative Making Strides Against Breast Cancer.

I had already had the opportunity to participate in November in the Austin Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure and personally raised over $200 in donations, one donation actually came from a Twitter friend of mine. Around the same time I followed others on Twitter also participating in Race for the Cures around the U.S. So, the thought that the good people of Twitter would create such an effort for one of our own really didn't surprise me.

But what it should prove is the power of online social networking.

Any more questions?

Would You Believe I'm in the Old Category?

(Photo: ABC News)

Okay, maybe not the old category, but definitely in the 30+ category. The reality is I hit the 40s group back in September and goodness I don't feel that old. Even fifty's beginning to look younger.

A few weeks ago, Sarah Lindner of the Austin American Statesman newspaper read one of my blog posts and sent me a note to see if I might be interested in her interviewing me for a story she was writing about Facebook users over the age of 30. I told her that I'd love to be included.

Her story was published today, Facebook for thirtysomethings, it helps those of us that haven't started an online persona gain a better understanding of its uses, benefits and reasons to be on such a site.

It's not that I think everyone of us should be on MySpace and Facebook and LinkedIn and Twitter, but for me, especially as the recruiter part of me, being involved on these and other social networking sites is a super advantage to my career. For others it may simply be a way of connecting with people of like interests and learning from their new network of friends. Most of all it's learning how to begin conversations.

Chris Brogan, a friend I connected with first on Facebook, introduced me to Twitter is the King of Conversations. He's a huge proponent of social communities and the benefits of getting to know each other on a personal level - beyond simply wanting to connect with someone that may be of benefit to you on either a personal or professional level.

I like to think that I subscribe to Chris' philosophies on social networking and that beyond my trying to help others with their careers and help me learn from their knowledge of the things that interest me that I am adding to my connections lives in a positive way.

So, get out there, find a site that works for you and begin your own conversations. You'll be amazed at your results.

Creatively Seeking Candidates

Found this in an e-mail I receive this morning about Deloitte & Touche USA LLP. I was amazed at what a cool and innovative way that they decided to seek out candidates from Gen-Y and tied it in to community giving too. Good job.

Deloitte & Touche USA LLP (Deloitte) recently launched the first-ever Deloitte Film Festival. No, these films aren't intended to get the attention of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Forget Oscar; that is, unless he's a Gen-Y job seeker.

The film festival was aimed at creating films that will appeal to job seekers; its objective was also to drive workforce engagement by getting employees to participate in filmmaking. Thus far, it certainly seems to have tapped into the latter group.

Launching the initiative with "What's Your Deloitte?" as a theme, the company invited its employees to make and submit short films that express the organization's culture and values. To encourage participation, film production kits, which included a high resolution Panasonic PV-GS320 Mini DV camera, were offered to the first 250 registrants. Interest in the film festival surpassed Deloitte's expectations, and the company made an additional 100 cameras available.

More than 370 short films were submitted by teams of Deloitte employees (one to seven individuals per team) from offices throughout the United States. The films were then posted on an internal "You Tube-like" intranet site, where they were viewed and rated by Deloitte employees. The best films will be integrated into campus recruiting programs.

Deloitte indicates it relied on trend data in coming up with the filmmaking program. Among the trends it cites are:

· Generation Y is the fastest-growing population in the workforce, representing 22 percent of all workers. By 2010, approximately 10 million more Gen Yers are expected to join the working world, outnumbering their predecessors.

· Film is a medium used to connect and engage on an emotional level, and Reality TV has shaped the perspectives of young men and women in or entering the workforce.

· Social networking and user-generated content have migrated from a pure social tool to a medium harnessed in the identification and recruitment of talent across many industries.

· The Society for Human Resource Management's 2007 Job Satisfaction Survey reports that overall corporate culture is "very important" to more than one-third (36 percent) of respondents.

Deloitte indicates the winning films will soon be available at its site. It also indicates that, as part of its community involvement initiatives, it will donate cameras and equipment used in the film festival to nonprofit organizations that use the power of film to support displaced people around the world; these organizations include FilmAid International and IFP.

Tweet Reasons on Why You Should Twitter

Part of our corporate intiative of late is to encourage our employees at Bulldog Solutions in Austin, Texas, to become more involved in Social Media and Networking and step beyond our city limits. We see it as a win-win both for them as individuals and obviously from a corporate standing as well. It simply makes sense to connect, to learn, to share.

On Twitter this evening, I found a post from Connie Reece to Sheila Scarborough. I briefly met Connie a few weekends ago down at Blogtoberfest down in San Marcos. We're connected on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. I've never connected with Sheila before, but after I finish posting this I'll add her to those I follow on Twitter and see where else we can connect.

Sheila posted a great article on ProBlogger today on why Twitter isn't a waste of time and included a great graphic of when other social media outlets showed up in our history and how they worked along with why you would use them. She notes, just as many of my friends ponder:

As a freelance writer/entrepreneur in her mid-forties, married with two kids, it’s hard to justify fitting one more thing into my life. It’s easy to become overwhelmed by all of the available social media options; Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, StumbleUpon, etc.

So, why Twitter?

Think of it as a stream of mini blog posts (and we all know why blogging isn’t a waste of time.) Think of it as an interesting news feed. Don’t judge it by the continuously-updated public timeline of often pointless blather. The value is in your own micro-community of followers and who you choose to follow.

Great point and great commentary. If you're still trying to figure out where you fit into this new mix, check out the full article of: "Why Twitter Isn't a Waste of Time."