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Job Fair ROI

Michelle Nicholson — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 20:52:30 +0000

It’s been several weeks since the job fair I went to and I decided it was time to rethink my posting (Job Fairs: Are They Worth the Investment of Time). Every job fair is going to be different. Yes, there are a lot of people there. However, you do get to have face time with potential employers and it is a great way to network with other job seekers.

What happened to change my mind? I got an interview with a company for a job that I think is right up my alley. I would not have seen this possibility on my own, nor would I have had the interview. It may only be one interview, but one interview is one more than I had before and one more opportunity to connect.

I have another job fair next week that I am now looking forward to. For those of you out there that are struggling, like me, to find a job, let me encourage you to get out there.

How to find and follow the thought leaders in your industry.

Michelle Nicholson — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 22:46:27 +0000

These days there is so much information out there in just about every industry. If you are trying to keep up with trends, how do you determine who to listen to? Here are some of the steps that I took to discover the people I follow.

Do a search for top blogs in your industry
Do a Twitter search for people in your industry
Do some research and find out who is following the blogs/Twitter accounts and who those people are following.
As you research, you will begin to see patterns in the people that are continually referenced and followed. These are likely thought leaders and influencers in your industry.
Follow these leaders and they will lead you to other influencers

What tips do you have?

3 Job Search Blogs I Follow

Michelle Nicholson — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 21:21:44 +0000

Part of my job search plan involves following job search blogs. Following these blogs gives me insight, ideas, and continued motivation as I work toward finding my next job. What follows are three job search sites I discovered through reading Joshua Waldman’s book Job Searching with Social Media For Dummies (For Dummies (Career/Education))

Brazen Careerist I am currently participating in a job bootcamp through them and finding it very helpful.
Careerealism
Career Enlightenment

Tracking Job Applications

Michelle Nicholson — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:58:52 +0000

When job hunting, it is important to track where you send applications. It gives you a reference point when you are contacted and keeps you from applying to the same job multiple times. There are a number of ways to do this. Some, write down information. Some use a spreadsheet. These days there are websites that help you do this. The following are two that I came across an am testing in my own job search.

Jobkatch.com: The amount of information you can track through this site is good. They also have a bookmarklet you can add to your browser to make it easier to input information as you are on job boards.
Startwire.com: I just started using this one recently. The information you can track isn’t quite as detailed. However, if you get an email response from an application, you can foward it and it will automatically be entered without having to do much of anything. Other plusses? They will ask you if you would like your resume forwarded to various job sites and you have control of the status of your lead (marking an interview, etc) where jobkatch does not have a way to do this yet

There are other sites out there that I haven’t tried yet. What do you recommend?

Women I Admire: Gretchen

Michelle Nicholson — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:44:25 +0000

I met Gretchen Lange a few years ago. She was working at the same church that I was working at. We became friends following a discussion one day about Human Trafficking. We had both been learning about how big a problem it is and that Houston is a hub for it.

As I got to know Gretchen better, I was impressed with her passion for God, for life and for people. What I admire most about her is that she is, or at least appears to be fearless. She is not afraid to try new things and she has great business sense. Her most recent endeavor is Director of Development for CERI.

Gretchen, thanks for your friendship and for helping me become a little bit more fearless.

Are there Alternatives to the Traditional Resume?

Michelle Nicholson — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 22:28:45 +0000

I love this day and age of being able to apply for jobs online. I know how to navigate online and am very comfortable looking for information. The downside is that it is much more difficult to follow up on applications. Sometimes it feels like they are sent into the black hole of cyber space. It also means getting an interview can be difficult.

Being judged solely on my resume has always been frustrating to me. My resume may or may not get me an interview, but if I can get an interview, it usually goes well. One of my first jobs, I got because the recruiter liked me so much in the interview. I didn’t qualify for the job I interviewed for. However, as the recruiter talked with her co-workers about me, they found another position.

I read this article in the Wall Street Journal this week and was encouraged to see companies looking for alternatives to the traditional resume. This is one upside to having a blog or personal website. If recruiters do take the time to view my site, I think they get a little better picture of who I am than what I can show on a piece of paper.

What do you think? Are there better alternatives to the traditional resume?

Job Fairs: Are They Worth the Investment of Time?

Michelle Nicholson — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 17:51:13 +0000

I went to a job fair this morning. It was the first job fair I have ever been to. I was glad to see that there were a lot of companies represented. However, as I made my way around the room and through the masses of people, I began to wonder if it was worth the investment of time. I had hoped to take advantage of meeting with people face to face. However, with so many people, I wondered if I would even be remembered when the day was over. My resume was added to a stack of others. Worthwhile to get it in the hands of a hiring manager? Yes, but does it accomplish anything more than submitting a resume online?

Have you been to a job fair? What was your reaction?

Women I Admire: April

Michelle Nicholson — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 22:24:05 +0000

This is the second in a series for this month of women I admire. I met April my Sophomore year of college through my friend Stephanie. We clicked immediately, becoming fast friends and eventually roommates. I have always thought April to be an amazing woman. She has been through much in her life, but has kept her faith and continued to work hard.

I had an opportunity about a year ago to have dinner with April while she was in town for a Mary Kay conference. As always, it was great to visit with April. I loved catching up for a few minutes. I also enjoyed hearing about her work with Mary Kay. I was so impressed with what she had done as well as her genuine interest and care for those she helps by selling Mary Kay products.

I admire what April has done in creating a business and building it in order to help her family. I admire how hard she works and how she cares for people. Thanks April, for your friendship. May the Lord bless your work/ministry.

2011 Books

Michelle Nicholson — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 19:57:03 +0000

Several years ago, I started tracking the books I read during the course of a year. I use goodreads.com to do this. Last year, I read a personal record of 64 books. I read a lot more fiction last year than I usually do. Most of it was my typical spy novels. However, there was novel that stood out: “Gods and Kings” by Lynn Austin. This is the first book in a series that I plan to read that gives a fictional account of the lives of Kings in the Old Testament. Austin did an amazing job of pairing Biblical accounts to create a life story of sorts. Through her novel, she succeeded where no one else has in getting me interested in this part of the Old Testament. I look forward to reading the other books in this series.

The other two books that I favored during 2011 were “Rest of God” by Mark Buchanan and “Margin” by Richard Swenson. I was reading these books at the same time and found that though they are very different books, they are similar in topic. Margin is more of a self help book and covers emotional, physical and spiritual health. His basic premise is that we are overloaded and need to have margin in our lives so that when those super busy times come, we don’t collapse. It is a great book for anyone who is stressed out and doesn’t know what to do next.

Rest of God is more of an inspirational book and deals more specifically with the spiritual although he does cover the need for physical rest. He reminds us that God created us to need rest and rest is good. Rest gives God the opportunity to restore our soul as well as our body.

These cover my faves from 2011. I don’t think I’ll break my record this year, but I am looking forward to reading more great books.

Complete list of books read in 2011.

Why I like social media

Michelle Nicholson — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 20:41:14 +0000

Occasionally I come across someone who is not a Facebook user or is anti-social media. I don’t believe social media is for everyone or that everyone has to use it. I respect people that simply say “I choose not to” or even explain their reasoning for not being a user. What I do find interesting is the people that attack Facebook, Twitter, blogs etc saying “It’s stupid,” or, “a waste of time”.

It can be a waste of time, certainly. However, other activities long accepted can be a waste of time as well. TV and reading books can be considered a waste of time. Some would say my love of doing jigsaw puzzles is a waste of time (I consider it keeping my sanity). As with other activities, it is all about priorities. If your priorities are in order and you are getting things done, you ought to have, and feel the freedom to pursue these activities without being scoffed at.

That said, I have asked myself recently why I use Facebook and why I blog. I can’t answer for others, but here are a few of the reasons I do.

I love Facebook because I get to regularly see pictures and hear stories about my nephews that I wouldn’t otherwise
I was born and raised overseas. Many of my friends and classmates are scattered all over the world. Facebook gives me glimpses of what they are up to.
Because of social curating of information, I am exposed to books, articles, and more that I would know about otherwise
I love blogging because I love to write
I love blogging because I love to hear what other people’s ideas are and learn from them
I am a technology geek and love trying out new things
Because my background in in Internet design and development, I feel it is important to participate in Internet technologies

I think one of the biggest appeals of blogging and social media is that they have given a voice to the average person. For the first time, an average person can share their thoughts, ideas etc and gain a following without having to go through agencies etc.

I respect people that don’t use social media. However, I have to disagree with people that I call haters. As with every new technology, there are pros and cons, but to dismiss it without any consideration of both sides of the coin is thoughtless.