Career Advice – Using the Internet

Internet career advice is everywhere.  There are hundreds of websites dedicated to job listings and employer postings.  Choices can be overwhelming.  The internet is a powerful tool, and the purpose of this career advice article is to help you think about how to harness that power to your advantage.

Research
First step?  Research.  Get to know which sites are best for the type of work you’re looking for.  A great place to start is industry association homepages.  These will often point to other excellent resources and are often where professionals will post jobs first.  Remember that some of the big online job posting boards earn their revenue NOT by the number of jobs they fill, but by the number of adverts they book.  Read the fine print. 

Check Your Digital Footprint
You’ve no doubt heard this career advice before.  Think you’re invisible on the internet?  Think again.  With the advent of Face book, Twitter and other social media platforms it’s easier than ever to have pictures of your private life broadcast for the world to see.  You may be technologically savvy enough to know how to manage these profiles and keep your private moments private, but remember that your friends may not be!  If you have any doubts, type your name into that Google search box and see what comes up.  Chances are your interviewer or boss will be doing the same, and you’ll want to make sure there are no surprises.

Get Off The Couch
This may be the best piece of career advice of all.  While it may feel productive to sit at home with your laptop, only 20% of jobs are obtained through the internet alone, with the other 80% found through relationships.  Remember to log off and get out there!