Do you know what comes up when you Google yourself? If you don't, you'd better check if you're planning a serious job search, because hiring managers, recruiters, and other job search professionals will be typing your name in to see what comes up. Read on for more details, and what to do about it.
The Internet's been around for what - 10, 15 years? Not the "Al Gore" Internet, mind you, but the one that we normal folk use on a day to day basis.
Let me ask you something. Have you ever put something *out there* on the Internet over the last 10 or 15 years that may:
1. Embarrass you?
2. Polarize you?
3. Put you in a bad light by people who don't know your deeper, likable self?
4. Lose you the career opportunity of your dreams?
According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), "Digital Dirt" - the stuff employers find out about you with a simple Google search, let alone some of the more sophisticated means - is fast becoming one of the most sinister forces against executives attempting to transition to other industries or opportunities.
In fact, an article on the SHRM website about digital dirt references an ExecuNet forecast with this eye-opening statistic: "35 percent of executive recruiters who used the Internet to research candidates eliminated someone from consideration based on information they found online. That's up from 26 percent in 2005, it found."
And this is one of those things where you may not actually know that your job search has been affected. If no one's calling to ask you for an interview, is it because you're not standing out in your field? Or is it because an HR person found something that made you stand out in a way they didn't like?
Now, what could be out there, you ask? It could be anything from old emails to blog posts and comments, message board postings, or even the party pictures that, in hindsight, maybe you shouldn't have added to your public Facebook page or other social networking site.
In some cases you may not be able to undo what you've done online. But you should at least be aware of what an objective third party finds out about you, should they go a'lookin' for qualifying information.
So what's the solution? Google yourself to see, from an objective 3rd party standpoint, what an HR person would see. Then either do whatever you can to delete or modify anything that could sink your chances of landing that next level position, or decide right now you have no regrets about your life, pictures, and opinions online....and you don't choose to work with anyone who ditches a candidate based on a silly message board post you left in 1997.
(Guess which option is easier?)
Three Networking Basics to Get You Into a Networking Comfort Zone
Let's talk about networking, shall we? Stop ten people on the street, and ask them about networking. Nine of them will say things along these lines: ---I don't like to do it. ---It doesn't work for me. Other answers, like "I never get anything out of it," "I'm shy," and so forth are just reflections of some basic issues.....
The Four "Big Ideas" About Staying Educated on the Job
If you thought education days were over when you left high school or college, you've probably learned how wrong you were. From the kinds of continuing professional education credits required in some fields, to staying up with changes in technology so your job skills don't get out-moded, and everything in between, constant learning is the baseline expectation of the professional workforce, at every management level...
The Counter-Intuitive Secret to Success in the Workplace
My whole philosophy about fun in the world of business, and in relation to the executive, management, and professional audience is this: If you don't enjoy what you're doing, is it worth doing? Read the full article to learn more...
