Good Reads from Chip Hartman (1) LinkedIn and (2) Personal Branding

Good Reads from Chip Hartman (1) LinkedIn and (2) Personal Branding Chip Hartman is a really nice guy.  A gentleman.  Hes a very good person, and a job seekers advocate. Chip recently created two ebooks that you can get for free, no strings attached.  Download and check them out.  Print them, study them, apply them.  They are both very good, and worth your time. First, a few weeks ago I wrote on my LinkedIn blog about his ebook: Turbocharge your LinkedIn Profile. Heres the direct download. Second, he just sent me an email for the new one, on personal branding.  It is called The Basics of Personal Branding (download here). It is very, very good.  I do a lot in the personal branding space and highly endorse this ebook. Get them both, study them, apply them! Good Reads from Chip Hartman (1) LinkedIn and (2) Personal Branding Chip Hartman is a really nice guy.  A gentleman.  Hes a very good person, and a job seekers advocate. Chip recently created two ebooks that you can get for free, no strings attached.  Download and check them out.  Print them, study them, apply them.  They are both very good, and worth your time. First, a few weeks ago I wrote on my LinkedIn blog about his ebook: Turbocharge your LinkedIn Profile. Heres the direct download. Second, he just sent me an email for the new one, on personal branding.  It is called The Basics of Personal Branding (download here). It is very, very good.  I do a lot in the personal branding space and highly endorse this ebook. Get them both, study them, apply them!

What is a Platform - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

What is a Platform - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career This weekend I attended a book festival that offered a session on platform building for authors. The panelists launched into a discussion of the importance of platform to sell books, but it wasn’t until an audience member asked for the definition of platform that they actually attempted to explain what it was. The definitions varied slightly among panelists. In some ways, the concept of platform is a little like the concept of branding. You hear about it a lot, you know you need it, but what it is and does is a little vague. The problem is, without understanding platform,   you can go through the motions to build it, but not have success. Here are some ideas to understand, to guide you through building a platform Visibility and reach If you think about a platform as a stage, you can imagine that the taller it is, the more people can see you (visibility) and the more your message can be heard (reach). These are the most common terms used to define platform and often what advertisers or, in the case of book writing, publishers use to determine if you’re worth their time and money. Building visibility and reach involve marketing tactics such as blogging, building an email list, developing a social media following, public speaking and engaging with media (i.e. writing articles or doing interviews). Through these activities, people can discover you, learn what you’re about and come to view you as an authority or valued resource. What you stand for Interestingly, the concept of platform as a way to convey ideas is mostly associated with politicians. People running for public office can have visibility and reach, but what attracts people are ideas. You can build platform through tactics like blogging or speaking, but for that to work you need to stand for something or have ideas you’re sharing. You can be visible and reach a lot of people one time, but what distinguishes a developed platform is having people who know and point to you as an authority. In order to have this type of credibility, you need to deliver messages or ideas people want. This is where knowing what type of brand identity you want to build is important. Disney Parks want to be known as the happiest places on earth. I doubt there are many people in the world who’ve never heard of Disney, but that alone isn’t platform. Disney’s customer service, movies and other activities are designed to deliver its message of happiness, which in turn, attracts and fos ters customer loyalty. Who loves you? Another way that platform building is like branding is that its success depends a lot on your target market. You can do activities to build a brand, but it’s only successful if it delivers the promise and positive feelings to consumers. The same is true for platform building. You can blog and Tweet to your heart’s content, but if your market doesn’t care or see value in what you’re talking about, you don’t have a platform. In some ways, this aspect of platform is the most important. While a lot of value is put into numbers, such as the number of Twitter followers, what’s more important is how many are paying attention to you. Although most people don’t describe it this way, platform is really about influence. Oprah has a huge platform, with gigantic visibility and reach. But her platform is most at work when she says, “I love this book,” and people run out and buy it. However, big numbers don’t necessarily equate to influence. Big numbers mean the potential for reach and visibility, but that potential is reached only if people like you and your message, and trust you. Further, there are people who don’t have a huge reach, but the few in their market who are listening, respond when they talk, making them very successful. The important idea to remember when building a platform isn’t just to focus on getting subscribers or followers, but using strategies to share your knowledge, build credibility and rapport, and engage with your market so that your messages mean something and will result in action to those who hear it.

These 13 Skills Will Improve Your Branding Efforts - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

These 13 Skills Will Improve Your Branding Efforts - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career What skill could an entrepreneur learn in his or her spare time that can help them improve theirbrandingstrategy or efforts? The following answers are provided by members ofYoung Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only organization comprised of the worlds most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launchedBusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses. 1. Improv Brandingis all about presenting yourself in a calm, confident and articulate manner no matter the circumstances. Improv class is a great way a founder can hone the skill in their spare time. Not only does it help you think on your feet, but it can help you grow your public speaking confidence at the same time. Quick thinking and performing on cue is something founders can always keep improving on! Kim Kaupe,ZinePak 2. Basic Principles of Psychology You dont need a degree in psychology, but it helps to know what motivates people. Reading books and articles, watching videos and taking basic classes on subjects such as social psychology, group behavior and motivation helps you understand what people respond to. This overlaps with advertising and copywriting, as the best copywriters have to know something about psychology. Shawn Porat,Scorely 3. Public Speaking Building a brand is creating emotional connection with the customers. Since communication is so important for connecting with the audience, one skill that every entrepreneur should learn is public speaking. Clear and precise communication creates a positive impact on the audience. Your audience remembers you based on how you present yourself and your business to them. Liam Martin,Staff.com 4. Charisma People often think that charisma can’t be learned, but there’s plenty of evidence that charismatic leadership techniques can be learned. John Antonakis, a professor of organizational behavior, is a leader in this field and entrepreneurs will find it rewarding to familiarize themselves with his work. Vik Patel,Future Hosting 5. Content Creation I spend lot of my spare time in creating valuable content: Digitalbrandingis huge these days, and everyone is looking for brands online. By learning what content needs to be created, and how to create and market the content, you can build lot of digital value for your brand. I have increased traffic to our brand by 150%in one yearby writing and promoting new content, so it was very helpful for me. Piyush Jain,SIMpalm 6. SEO Spend time really understanding the value and role of SEO in marketing. Many think they understand it, but in reality, there is so much there to learn. This can be done online and through various courses. Peter Daisyme,Due 7. Copywriting Copywriting â€" the ability to communicate out to an audience clearly and effectively, evoking emotion and telling the stories that matter â€" is essential to improving yourbrandingstrategy. It doesnt matter what youre selling or which brand youre trying to leverage, if you cant talk about it succinctly and in a way that moves people to interest and action, your efforts will be fruitless. Erin Blaskie,L-SPARK 8. Basic Coding Even if you have people coding for you, it never hurts to have skills in this area. Knowing the basics about coding helps you recognize design flaws in websites and gives you insights into solutions. There are many basic coding courses online that can give you a working knowledge of this important discipline. Kalin Kassabov,ProTexting 9. Research Other Brands When you arent working on building your own brand, spend time studying what other successful brands are doing to promote themselves. Check out popular social media accounts that are, or arent, related to your business and brand, and spend time on their websites and blogs. Examine how those strategies are working for them and how they might, in turn, work for you. Kevin Conner,BroadbandSearch 10. Organization Getting things done as quickly as possible, and knowing each and every day what you need to get done can go a long way in improving abrandingstrategy. Andrew Schrage,Money CrashersPersonalFinance 11. Graphic Design Its important to have a consistent brand strategy, and the best way to get your vision across to your team is by creating a brand guide that includes everything from logo, sizing, fonts and brand-specific styles. Graphic design skills will allow you to have a better idea of exactly what you want and how to get there without having to rely on other people to get you there. Jared Brown,Hubstaff Talent 12. Candid Photography Having good candid pictures to help you with your social mediabrandingis an easy skill to develop. Its also really obvious to your followers when you dont know how to do it. The best way to get better is to just force yourself to take a certain amount of pictures daily until you start to develop instincts. Its both easy and necessary. Matt Doyle,Excel Builders 13. Web UX/UI This is a great skill that is rapidly growing in demand. With technology ever changing, brand and design is no longer a flat plateau, but a dynamic landscape.Brandingbecomes more than just what you want the messaging to be, but what kind of interactions and experiences you are capable of creating. Nicole Munoz,Start Ranking Now

9 Ways to Get Bloggers Talking About Your Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

9 Ways to Get Bloggers Talking About Your Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career What is one surefire tip for getting bloggers to talk about your brand? The following answers are provided by the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC),  an invite-only organization comprised of the worlds most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched StartupCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses. 1. Reach out to your blogging customers Dont send a free pass to your software for a blogger and expect him to write a raving review on how great your cool new service is. Instead, find out who of your existing customers blog regularly, and ask them if theyd like to write a short, hands-on post on their blog about using your service to boost business. In exchange, offer a few months off payments. Its a win-win deal. Juha Liikala, Stripped Bare Media 2. Build relationships The easiest way to generate buzz on blogs is to already have relationships in place before you ask for coverage. Give, and you shall receive. Its also essential, though, to have something new, cool and unique. Build something great, and bloggers will want to talk about it! Alexis Wolfer, The Beauty Bean 3. Give them real news Instead of a boring Company X Launches Product Y pitch, tell bloggers a story uncovered by your product. For example, if you run a pill reminder app, give them data about the types of medication people forget most. Bloggers will love the chance to break an interesting story, and your brand will get a positive mention in an article directly related to your product. Neil Thanedar, LabDoor 4. Try writing a guest post Bloggers are busy; many maintain their blog as a side project, and the full-time bloggers are always looking for quality content. Try pitching a guest post to them (written by you) on a topic that will be interesting to their readers. If you get picked up, you will be able to tap into their network of followers and build relationships with the outlet for other opportunities. Ronnie Castro, Porch 5. Write data posts Bloggers love posts that are loaded with data and stats because they appear to have research backing up the post. This takes opinion out of the equation and allows the blogger to simply report on the facts. In addition, stats are great for headlines and generating interest from the reader because the posts are backed by proven data. Data posts allow the blogger to gain the trust of their readers. Dave Nevogt, Hubstaff.com 6. Add value and share trends The best thing you can do is help a blogger see how brand is relevant to the overall market. Share information about how people are using your brand. What are they reacting to? How is behavior changing month after month? Why is that important? Think of it as the exact opposite approach to contacting a blogger just to say you have a cool brand. Cari Sommer, Cari Sommer Media + Communications 7. Have a good brand If your brand sucks, then it doesnt matter what kind of tips you read. The brand and the company should actually be good. Being good means that your users come back to use your product; they pay for it, and they organically want to share it. If this isnt happening right now, then dont talk to bloggers. Fix your brand and your business. Liam Martin, Staff.com 8. Keep everything timely Time is everyones most valuable asset. Show that you care by keeping your initial pitch brief and your responses timely. Quick turnarounds and thorough responses make bloggers lives easier, which gives them more time to talk about you and your brand. Matt Hunckler, Verge 9. Create Helpful Infographics Bloggers seem to be very interested in infographics, especially when they are visually appealing and include relevant data. When weve shared infographics with bloggers, theyve often written about us and included the infographic. Jesse Pujji, Ampush Featured Image

Tips on How to Get the Best Resume Writing Service

Tips on How to Get the Best Resume Writing ServiceHow to get the best resume writing service? It is not a question that can be answered easily, but when it comes to getting the information that you need, you should do your homework and know what you are looking for.What you need to find out is whether the top service has reviews from their clients. If they don't, they are probably not the best and you should look elsewhere.When you go looking for professional resume writers, you need to look for one that has already proven themselves and have over 5 years of experience. It is important to note that this cannot be claimed for every writing service, but many people will only have a few months of experience in order to get good business.Great resume writing services will be willing to work with you to write your resume properly and to cover all of the areas that you are looking for. You also need to make sure that the writing is for you and that it is for a specific job that you want. T his means that the content needs to be tailored for the specific job that you are applying for.You also need to take some time in order to ensure that the content that you receive is exactly what you want on your great resume. Some resume writers may put some content in place that is not even applicable to the job that you are applying for. This is something that you should never have to happen to your resume.Resume writing services also ensure that they check each resume that is submitted. This way you can be assured that your resume is exactly what you wanted on it. You can be certain that there is no content in there that is not related to the job that you are applying for.The content for resumes is a very important part of making sure that you get the right information in to make you a more successful person. Having a professional writing service look over your resume will ensure that you get exactly what you want on it. This will help you with the rest of your career and that m eans that you will get a better chance of getting the job.Resume writing services are a great way to get a great resume that is exactly what you want. This can be a great way to make sure that you get the best offer that you qualify for. The only way that you can ensure that you are getting the best writing service is to make sure that you do your research so that you can find the one that is best for you.

Smash These 3 College Habits Now - Before They Ruin Your Career - CareerEnlightenment.com

Smash These 3 College Habits Now - Before They Ruin Your Career Depression and anxiety among college students are on the rise according to Penn State University’s Center for Collegiate Mental Health’s 2017 Annual Report. So what’s causing this anxiety and depression epidemic? Respondents from 147 college and university counseling centers say 28 percent of students seek mental health treatment due to academic performance.Of course, academics are stressful. They’re prepping you for the rest of your life, especially, landing that one big dream job. And as a college student, you hold the weight of this responsibility every single day.However, many habits you’re currently following that are fine for your collegiate aren’t giving you the necessary tools to create a healthy and successful work-life balance. But don’t let this add stress to your already full plate. Instead, take a deep breath and follow these tips to jumpstart healthy habits now that will carry into every stage of your career:Bad Habit: Binging Everything Physical healt h often gets put on the backburner in college. Let’s face it, the freshman 15 is real but it isn’t the only real problem. From binge eating to watching Netflix for 10 hours straight and even drinking too much, these unhealthy habits are taking a toll on your body.While each of these habits is vastly different, the reason college students are susceptible to them is the same poor scheduling. When you’re on your own for the first time, it’s easy to eat whenever it’s convenient, get lost in a Netflix series, and not know how to balance working hard and cutting loose.Most students don’t even think about these activities as bad habits they’ve formed. They’ll surely just disappear on graduation day, right?Unfortunately, it’s more likely theyll carry well into your career. Poor eating, too many happy hours, and a lack of time management make it impossible to find a work-life balance. Without this balance, it’ll be challenging to be successful and love any career you pu rsue.Break it:Healthy habits should begin now no matter where you are in life. For example, change how you eat. Eating well leads to a more active, happier lifestyle. Whether in the college cafeteria or sticking to a meal plan when determining your grocery budget, learn to eat healthy and meal prep.Creating a new habit, and sticking to it, is easier said than done. Find an accountability buddy to keep you on track and on schedule. Text them when you’re craving a pint of Ben and Jerry’s to see if they want to go for a walk instead, and let them know when you’ve hit your happy hour limit.Bad Habit: The Last Minute Cram“I work well under pressure.”You and every other procrastinator has said this at least once or a million times. This leads to all-nighters, cram sessions, and increased anxiety just to wrap-up a project you’ve been putting off since syllabus day. Unfortunately, once you reach the workforce, managers and clients will be less forgiving than your professors.Co llege is a time for learning, extracurriculars, meeting new people, having fun, and prepping for your future. Often times, this makes you put long-term projects on hold when you have more exciting and pressing ventures in the present moment.Life after graduation doesn’t get any less hectic. There’s always something more timely to address, and without a good system in place, you’ll limit your potential and demolish any possibility of a healthy work-life balance.Break it:Try every organizational and habit-making system to find what works best for you. Is it a written planner, online calendar, daily phone notifications, an organizational app, or block scheduling? Once you find which system works best, find your most productive time and schedule project work for those hours.It’s important to take these ‘working’ hours seriously like it’s your job to help you stick with them and avoid cramming. During these working hours, work toward professors’ final due dates by setti ng your own smaller task dates and hitting them. Want to Read More Articles Like This One?Sign up here to receive weekly updates from Career Enlightenment, and never miss another powerful job searching tip! SUBSCRIBE! You have Successfully Subscribed!We hate spam too. Unsubscribe any time. Bad Habit: Saying “Yes” Too QuicklyDuring freshman orientation, you were overly excited and joined every club and extracurricular imaginable. Now your duties as president, secretary, historian, and team captain are taking up a majority of your time.Struggling to say “no” is a bad habit that leads to other detrimental bad habits. All of a sudden, you’re anxious about everything that needs to be done, you’ve stretched yourself way too thin, and sleep is the farthest thing from fitting in your schedule.It’s easy to step-up and claim one, or 10, too many roles. As a freshman, especially, you have no idea just how much of your time clubs, internships, and classes will consume. Similar ly, once you start working, saying “no” to friends, family, and extra roles at work will become even more challenging. This will hurt your work-life balance, creating less time for you to take care of your own important needs.Break it: Make a new habit of saying, “I’ll think about it and get back to you.” Your people-pleasing self will initially hate this, but resorting to this immediate response gives you time to assess your current time commitments.Once you’ve given yourself time to think, consider if saying “yes” will get you closer to your life goals. Does volunteering at the animal shelter help you decompress or do you worry about all the other things on your task list while there? If it’s the latter, saying “no” now doesn’t make you rude or lazy, it makes you self-aware.However, if what you’re considering will get your closer to your career and personal goals, take the next step looking at your calendar. Be sure your new commitment will fit reasonabl y within your classes, work, extracurriculars, and most importantly, your personal time.

Why do long interview processes fail

Why do long interview processes fail 5 Flares 5 Flares Want to win an absolutely FREE Professional Resume Edit complete by Vertical Media Solutions (www.vmsolu.com)?  Read contest details at the bottom! All participants win! Top talent moves fast, so why do companies insist on interview/hiring processes that take forever?  Most of us have been part of an incredibly awful interview process before, or at least know someone that has.  Its never fun, and I can ensure you its not a walk in the park for the organization either.  Recently, I was researching company interview strategies and came across an example of a terribly long process that Im sure results in frustrated candidates and lost talent for the organization.  Here are the painful  7  steps in their process: Resume submittal/Quick initial phone Screen if resume meets basic qualifications Candidate takes at least 1 skill assessment test Second phone screen lasting one hour with their recruiter (an hour, really?) Face-to-face interview with hiring manager lasting 2 hours (finally) Candidate takes personality assessment test (find something sharp, and stab me, please) Second face-to-face interview with hiring manager and team members (why not meet the team the first time around?) Offer presented.   Contingent on successful background and reference check (if the candidate is still around) Why do long interview processes like this fail? Processes like the one above drive candidates absolutely bonkers.   People (especially top talent) arent willing to wait forever and will jump on the first opportunity that comes their way.  A process like the one above would take at least 3-4 weeks to schedule.  Not only does the candidate need to make room for each terrible step, but the recruiter, hiring manager, and team members of the organization need to plan time.  The elongated process greatly increases the risk of losing talent to competitors and other companies. What would I change? There is much I would change about the above process to make it run smoother for the organization and candidate.  Here is the process that I would implement: Resume Submittal/Phone Screen with recruiter (just one phone screen needed) Skill and Personality Assessments Complete by Candidate (if these tests are critical, get them out of the way first) Face-to-face interview with hiring manager and team members (panel interview possibly) Offer presented.  Contingent on successful background and reference check (done!) The process I outlined works, Ive implemented a process like that and received excellent feed back from candidates.  People do not like having to go back to an interview site or plan for 3, 4, or 5 separate screening sessions .  Many people that are already working want to spend their vacation time on the beach, not in your office.  Those that are unemployed hope the process moves quick and makes good use of their time.  Its simple, just treat candidates like customers and everyones happy. Contest Details Win a FREE Professional Resume Edit Vertical Media Solutions, the official resume writing company of CornOnTheJob is giving away a FREE resume edit to one of my readers.  Along with this great prize, EVERY participant will receive an incredible discount to any of the services they offer.  To participate, just comment on this post and your name will be entered into a random drawing out of a hat!  Here are more details: What should your comment say? Ask a question about a step in the interview process, tell me about a terrible interview process youve been involved in, tell me about the longest you needed to wait to hear back from a company, or anything youd like me to hear/know!  Simply, just respond with a comment and youll be entered into a random drawing! How do you win? When you comment, your name enters a random drawing out of a hat.  I will email you once I receive your comment When does contest start/end? Starts  12:00AM Monday, November 2nd and Ends 11:59PM Friday, November 6th More about the prizes! Winner Receives a FREE Resume Edit ($150 value) complete by Vertical Media Solutions. Winner also receives a FREE 30 minute Interview Preparation session.  This session can be used within 180 days from the end of the contest.  This is a $200 value total completely FREE! Participant Prize Each participant receives a 20% discount on any services that Vertical Media Solutions offers.  Please take note that the purchase must come within 7 days of the contests completion.  With purchase of any service, the participant will also receive a FREE 30 minute Interview Preparation session, which can be used within 180 days from their purchase. *Please note that a resume edit is an edit to your current resume.  Vertical Media Solutions will look for ways to improve your existing resume, which is the first thing the hiring manager/recruiter sees from you. Photo credit http://www.metronews.ca/edmonton/Work/article/84384