Q+A: LinkedIn profiles and personality

As published in Cynopsis Classified Advantage
~ ASK THE EXPERTS ~
Questions from our Readers
Answered by Michael Pollock

Q: Recently, I lost my job due to my company's financial state. Downsizing was a must, and I, unfortunately, got the cut. The thing is, it was almost a blessing in disguise. After leaving, I was happier, not something you'd expect after losing one's job. After re- evaluating my industry and the role I played, in the pursuit of happiness, I have decided to career change. It's not been easy, as the unstructured freedom during the work-week has lost a little bit of it's glitter, but I still think I'm heading in the right direction. I have chosen a new career path, but my question is this: how can I make my Linkedin profile reflect my career change? I of course want to put down all of my prior work experience, however, I also want to prove that I can do another job and that my skills translate. If I post my past experience, won't a potential employer think, why would I hire this person from X industry, when we're looking for someone who has experience in Y industry? Does that make sense? Please let me know what you would recommend.

A: I suggest you think very carefully about the skills and experience that will be desirable in your new career. Consider the needs of your potential new employer and find the angle on your past that could be relevant and persuasive. Make the fact of the change and your prior experience an added value. Use the summary section to express this  emphasizing the relevant and unique strengths that come from your rich background in other fields that makes you a stronger candidate than the pack of straight-liners you'll be competing with. Reframe the skills section as well as the details on all your prior positions to support your new positioning. Certain things that were awesome in your old field may have to be dropped because they are no longer relevant, or worse, contradict your new story. With a strong but unusual background, you are most likely to appeal to a smart employer who thinks outside the envelope, and that is likely to be someone you would want to work for.


Q: I find that LinkedIn is so business oriented, that it doesn't have much opportunity for one's personality to come through. Is this a good thing? Or is there something I can do with my account to make it seem less like a cover letter and resume, and reflect other aspects of my life?

A: LinkedIn is primarily a source for business connections. If you really want to express your entire personality in a social media setting, Facebook may be a better vehicle for you.

That said, on LinkedIn, the writing style you use for your summary section is an important way to let your personality shine through. Casual, jargony, straightforward, insightful  all these attributes will tell your reader something important. Different employers and industries have different codes and standards. The formal, passive writing style that appeals to academe is anathema to media people.

Another way to express your personality is through the updates you can post near the top of your profile, though do bear your target audience in mind when you update and remember what qualities they are looking for. By all means if it supports your business case you can mention your hobbies or other interests. If you are an ex-Marine, or a nonprofit board member for example these could certainly be important to include.

But do be sure not to make it look as if your eye will always be on the clock and your mind not on the job.

Don't forget LinkedIn for your job search

This article first appeared in Cynopsis Classified Advantage

~ ACTIONABLE EXPERT ADVICE ~
By Michael Pollock


I am sure you are well established on LinkedIn, but are you using it effectively in your job search? It is just too easy for us to let it sit there passively in the background, but there are some simple and effective ways to extract value.

Start by connecting to as many people as you can think of. Duh! But I am sure there are some you have missed. Don' t just think of people who might hire you...connect to people you once worked with. Connect to people who worked for you. Connect to people who might know someone who could help you in the future. Look closely at who is connected to your connections; I know you will have several, " Oh, yes. I had forgotten about her!" moments.

I was working today with a filmmaker who has been specializing in medical topics. He is going to see his dentist in a couple of weeks. This dentist goes to medical conferences and knows lots of people who might need film. What if he was on LinkedIn? What if some of his professional connections wanted film made for their professional associations? What if they worked for pharmaceutical companies? Sounds like a valuable connection for this filmmaker. Who are the equivalents in your field?

Another excellent use: as you look at job ads on Cynopsis Classified Advantage or other boards, note the companies who seem to have good opportunities for you. Then search those companies on LinkedIn  there is a drop down menu on the search field that lets you search for people or for companies. See if anyone from those firms knows anyone that you know. Then email your friend and ask to be introduced. I recommend not using the automated LinkedIn introduction tool  make the request something more personal. So now you can network your way into the hiring company and do your research and make the connections you need to get you in there.

Does your LinkedIn headline clearly indicate your value to a hirer? As with all communications  each piece needs to make the reader want more. Does your summary give a clear expression of what you offer and engagingly differentiate you from all the others? Does your chronology include experience and specifics that support and flesh out your summary? Does your specialty list include all the keywords that recruiters might use in a job search?

As with so many of these online systems there are depths that I never plumb, and I' m not taking you there. But start with the easy-to-use pieces; get them working together guided by your constant attention and research and insight. It really is an adventure, a voyage of exploration. Keep poking around and you will find valuable connections you never knew you had and see more and more ways to get your carefully constructed message into the right hands.

Productive tweeting

Despite Mr Demi Moore, Twitter has become a hugely valuable networking and researching tool. Media and creative people are all over it.

Think of it as one big cocktail party, but at this one you can sort out who you are interested in talking to - or just eavesdropping on - before you go in.

The important thing is to be pro-active and have an idea of what or who you are looking for - don't just watch the tweets go by. And of course be open to stumbling on people and stuff you never thought of.
I recommend using Twellow ("the twitter yellow pages") to search for people in the industry niche you're interested in. Search on job descriptions: TV executive, or designer, or ad director. Search on "creative director jobs" and see what you get. Search on marketing director or search the name of a firm you think is interesting. Get narrower and search on "design, Cincinnati". You can search tweets and on people's profiles. Decide whether to follow them. Then interact with them. Cross reference them on LinkedIn. The most important thing is to be there and see where you fit in.

Once you've got your follows in shape - get with Mr Tweet and have him pick more people you should know. And get in there.

There is a good guide for how to tweet so that people can find you. You can find it here. But you are in the creative biz - you will find your own way to use the tools and tweak the results.

And remember if you start your twittering day with a goal you have a better chance of it being productive.

Dear Sparkings: Should I use Facebook for my business?

What do you think? Write down all the gigs you got from it. Write down all the gigs you are going to get from it. Okay that's a start.

If you are looking at little photos of your potential partners and customers - and you know when their birthday is and when they last got drunk and when they are going to the gym...that has to have real value....doesn't it? It's certainly cheaper than buying them lunch.

But mainly of course it keeps you away from Solitaire. See you online.

(What's eating you today? Editor)

What your network says about you

What does your social network look like?

This remarkably beautiful image represents my own network of LinkedIn connections.

My genius friend Erich Morisse, who made this image, is developing products that quantify and value social networks. Here is what he told me:

"Social networks are as individual as we are, our own fingerprints of interaction with society. Turned into images, they remind us of everything from supernovas (see the concentrated brighter areas in this person's network) to beds of sea anemones (this one has many outliers, each with their own radiance).

Supernovas have the ability to get big and great things done with their close knit social group, but need to work hard at finding new ideas and opportunities.

Sea anemones are entrepreneurs, always finding new ideas and opportunities from their breadth of contacts; they have to rely on their contacts to find the right people to get big things done.

So which are you, are sea anemone or a supernova? And what do you need to change about your social network to meet your personal goals?"