Every week I check dozens of “career” blogs and other online publications, looking for things that will help you find a job, get promoted, develop your skills, and keep everything in perspective and balance. Here’s the pick of the lot for this week. I’m pointing you to items about cleaning up your social posts, what to do while you’re waiting for the next step in the process, making keywords your friend, how recruiters view your resume, and becoming visible to the right headhunters.

From Newsday: Boozing, drugs on your resume?

“Careerbuilder.com says to watch your social posts — some employers go looking for digital dirt on jobs applicants.”

Wally’s Comment: You’ve heard this message a lot, but it doesn’t hurt to hear it again. Pay special attention if you’re starting the interview cycle for internships or looking for that first job after graduation.

From Alison Green at US News and World Report: How to Play the Post-Interview Waiting Game

“So you had the job interview, things seemed to go well, and you left expecting that you would hear back soon. But now…silence. And you’re left waiting around with no idea of when or if you’ll hear from them. It’s not at all unusual for the hiring process to take longer than a candidate would like, for all sorts of reasons: Decision makers are out of town, scheduling conflicts are delaying a final interview, the bureaucracy necessary to finalize an offer takes weeks to work through (not necessarily a great sign about the work environment, but that’s a different topic), and so forth. But you’re not entirely at the company’s mercy, although it might feel that way.”

Wally’s Comment: It seems to me like most candidates expect the process to unfold faster than it does and that most companies don’t pay much attention to “how long it’s been” so this post may be especially helpful.

From My Global Career: Keywords of the Rich & Famous

“Are you buzzword compliant? Maybe that’s the problem - in the careers field they’re no longer called buzzwords. They’re called keywords, and without them, your résumé will slide into a black hole in cyberspace from which no search engine can find you.”

Wally’s Comment: Today’s resumes move on line. Many are culled from the pack by software searching for just the right keyword. Read this post to make those magical keywords work for you.

From the Boston Globe Job Blog: Difference of opinion

“Ever wondered what hiring managers think when your résumé flops across their desk? Do they intently scan every word, or does it quickly get crinkled up and shot through a mini basketball hoop and into a garbage can? This is one of the things we wanted to know when we solicited résumés from Boston.com readers and sent a select few to hiring managers, HR experts, and recruiters across greater Boston.”

Wally’s Comment: Another fine post on how recruiters see your resume.

From Forbes: How to Headhunt the Headhunters

“Sending a blind letter like this to a recruiter you don’t know is a total waste of time, particularly when there are thousands of former Wall Street employees lined up in front of the copy machines. Even more clueless: Sending a résumé to someone who doesn’t even conduct searches in your field. ”

Wally’s Comment: At a certain level, headhunters become important to career moves. Here’s a solid post on how to find the right ones in the right way.

This entry was posted on Friday, September 19th, 2008 at 9:21 am and is filed under Tools and Strategies for Success. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.