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Chronicles of a Graduate: Quantity Over Quality?
By Patty Marra, Series Guest Blogger
Quantity Over Quality? / Monster and CareerBuilder and LinkedIn, Oh My! When I needed to start looking for jobs, I had no idea what I was doing. I was stuck in the world of information overload. Between the job boards, online forums, social media networks, company websites, and other resources available to help you find the perfect job without leaving your bed, I was overwhelmed. So, feeling directionless and hopeless, I went to bake some cookies. When second semester of senior year hit, I knew I had to do something. I joined about 4 different job boards, linked the heck out of LinkedIn and tweeted up a storm. My thought was that increasing the number of places I put my resume would increase the likelihood that I would be spotted by some nice recruiter. I would improve my odds by bombarding the market. I would make it impossible for them to miss me! …Or so I thought. Time to make a Change In early June, I changed my entire approach to job searching. For one, I more or less stopped putting time into my job board accounts like Career Builder, Monster, etc. After getting an interview for a position that was less than honestly described, I decided that the job boards would not render a very high return on investment. It was hard to look specifically, and the term “marketing assistant,” could mean anything from sales, to hocking sausages at Sam’s Club, to developing a campaign. I didn’t delete my profiles, but I don’t actively use them as a means for searching. June is also when I started amping up my LinkedIn presence. I sought out connections with people I knew to build up my resources. I chatted with them, seeing where they were at and if they had any tips for me. I also made sure that my relevant work experience was up-to-date, so that people could easily look at my experience to see if they had any advice or leads for me. Now, I dedicate a substantial chunk of my job searching time on LinkedIn. Following my June overhaul, I received 2 job referrals via LinkedIn, 1 via Facebook, and 1 via CareerBuilder. The CareerBuilder referral didn’t move beyond the initial, “Are you an actual, live person?” interview. However, LinkedIn and Facebook both led to, at the very least, an informational interview with further discussion (and presently open-ended results—keeping fingers crossed!). In the end, my assessment is that quantity is not so important as quality. To find results, you have to put time into cultivating and maintaining a select number of presences. It doesn’t hurt to have the others as back-up, or as support to your main strategy, but people ultimately drive results. Focus on connecting with people and bring a desire to learn to the job search. Just because you graduated, that doesn’t mean it’s time to stop learning! About the Author  Patty Marra
is a freshly graduated alumna of Marquette University, who is working
on answering the question, “…what next?” She is navigating the
ever-evolving hiring maze of today’s business environment, and sharing
the pieces of knowledge she learns along the way. She loves social
media, but appreciates a good face-to-face conversation. Long-term, she
is looking to establish a career in marketing project management, and
help everyone she can along the way. You can get in touch with her by email, or you can find more of her thoughts via her blog, Twitter, and LinkedIn.Does this sound familiar? Are you in the same situation? Have you been here before -- what's your advice for Patty? Please comment below. blog comments powered by Disqus |