I never considered using Twitter as a networking tool but it makes perfectly good sense. Twitter allows you to comment and meet people in a non-time centered environment. You have the ability to share knowledge and comments that help others who you follow and who follow you. It is an opportunity to develop a relationship and leverage the relationships that other people have in their networks in a passive way that can work out to your benefit.

You can check out the entire post of Leveraging Twitter for Your Job Search on Darren’s blog by clicking this link. Best of luck to you in your job search.

I recommend that you come early and avoid the lines. Yes it is true that the early bird gets the worm, and it is suggested that you arrive by 5 AM. This is an opportunity to meet and greet many employers up close and personal all in one location. Here is a link to RSVP and let them know you will be attending:

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/

Best of luck to you in your search and if I can be of any assistance to you please let me know.

The role of Table Topics, which is asking a club participant to answer a question in a one to two minute response, is a great opportunity for you to develop your interview and self promotion skills. Table Topics is a standard role during most club meetings and you will not only learn from listening but also from participating as well.

Another great place to learn how to improve your communications is attending a Toastmasters Conference. At the conference you will hear world champion speakers while learning communication and leadership skills at a number of workshops. You will also have an opportunity to network with Toastmasters from all over the district. If you plan to be in the New York, New Jersey area on November 8^th then I would like to invite you to attend the Inaugural District 83 Fall Conference at the Woodbridge Hilton. We will have Rory Vaden , 2007 World Champion of Public Speaking First runner up, provide 2 keynote speeches. You can obtain registration information at http://tinyurl.com/fall83 . You can learn more about Rory Vaden at http://www.takethestairsspeaker.com/tour.html

o Explore opportunities
o Do Your Career Homework
o Drop Off a Resume or Virtual Business Card
o Interview by Live Chat with Company Representatives
o Network in The Wall Street Journal Lounge

All from the comfort of home, some of America’s foremost employers will be available online (without you having to wait in line) to talk with you. The best part of all besides you not having to spend gas money to get there is that it is free. The date of the fair is July 29, 2008 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. EDT. So what are you waiting for, take a look at the Show Floor and then register today to guarantee your spot. Click the link and best of luck in your job search: http://vts.inxpo.com/scripts/InXpo.nxp?LASCmd=AI:4;F:QS!10100&ShowKey=1273

Social networking sites are great tools to meet others and expand your sphere of influence, but there are a few safety tips that you should follow.

• Limit your personal information – Some sites allow you to limit the number of people that can have access to your profile information. I recommend that you do not share your address or telephone number on line.
• Check your privacy settings – Privacy settings is a away to limit the sharing of information you have posted on your networking site. A number of sites like Facebook may allow for too much sharing of information if you do not use it correctly. Check your privacy settings and be sure you understand what the various plug-ins do before you install and use them.
• Comments are discoverable – Remember that what you write on the internet can be searched and found. This can have negative ramifications if you write or post a picture of you in an objectionable situation, you might loose your job.

Consider these tips went you decide to post information about yourself on the internet. These tips will help keep you safe and if you have not had a chance, please listen to the video to learn more.

Each person in your network has people that they know in their network. Some of these people you both may know and will be common in the network you share and others will be individuals exclusive to each of you. Linked In uses this knowledge to allow you to contact a person who you do not know in your friend’s network who may work at a potential future employer or may be a future business prospect. The person who knows you can offer an introduction to the person they know that you would like to meet. This person will be more open to communicating with you since they know the person that introduced you.

Sounds simple and it really is that easy to use. I found a great instructional video on Linked In and how to use it. You can watch it by clicking this link. Best of luck to you in your campaign to market yourself and happy networking on Linked In.

A great place to start your job search is at a college job fair. Why a college job fair? It is a place where a large number of employers gather from a wide variety of industries with varied potential job openings. The reason you would want to attend is to get face time with the hiring managers or human resources representative. You should dress up just like you would if you were going on an interview. Guess what, you are really going on an interview when you attend a job fair. It is a mini interview so you want to make a good first impression. Smile, make eye contact and give a firm hand shake, to the person you meet from the company you are obtaining information from. If you can find out what companies will be attending the job fair and Google them. This will allow you to ask meaningful questions and probe deeper into the company’s culture when you speak to one of their representatives.

College career days are not just for recent grads but anyone interested in finding a new job. They are usually free and open to the public. If you are in New Jersey there is a college career day scheduled at Rutgers University New Brunswick Campus on Friday January 4, 2008. There will be more than 230 employers in attendance and the job fair will run from 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM. You will find a list of employers and their hiring need at this link: careerservices. rutgers.edu

Don’t forget to look in your local paper, because there will be a college career day coming up near you. Take advantage of it. You will be glad you did.

An accomplished business owner in his own right Greg was selected as businessman of the year by the U.S. Congress, and sits on numerous committees and advisory boards. Focused on ensuring the success of others Greg is uniquely positioned in a network of subject mater experts who are willing to provide you with free information on current market issues. The cost to you is just a phone call and your time.

The teleseminar lasts for 30 minutes, so if you have an hour for lunch you can listen and learn then eat. If you only have a half hour lunch I recommend that you munch and learn at the same time. Don’t be afraid of someone hearing you eat; the call is muted on your end to provide clarity for everyone to hear on the call. Click the link and sign up for the Lunch and Learn Show; make the call and on Monday at noon eastern you will have the opportunity to not only feed your body, but your mind as well.

The Civic Ventures program portfolio includes:

• Experience Corps, a national service program for Americans over 55. Now in 14 cities, Experience Corps works to solve serious social problems, beginning with literacy. Today more than 1,800 Corps members serve as tutors and mentors to children in urban public schools and after-school programs where they help teach children to read and develop the confidence and skills to succeed in school and in life.

• The Next Chapter, an initiative that provides expertise and assistance to community groups across the country working to help people in the second half of life set a course, connect with peers, and find pathways to significant service. Local Next Chapter projects and related programs exist in dozens of communities nationwide.

• The Lead with Experience Campaign and The Purpose Prize, a three-year initiative to invest in older social innovators by recognizing outstanding achievements, creating a network of people wanting to use their retirement years for the greater good, and channeling funds and assistance to these new pioneers.

• Still Working, a documentary project that profiles people working for the greater good in the second half of life. In their own words, people share stories of the work they do, why they do it, the challenges they’ve faced along the way, and how they planned for this new chapter. The initiative is an attempt to create role models where few exist for the new generation of aging boomers, and to develop a richer understanding of work in the post-midlife years.

If these programs sound interesting to you then please click this link and connect to your passion while helping your community. Civic Ventures may be the vehicle that connects you with your next dream job.

I would recommend that you do not share anything on a social networking site that you would not want your future employer to know about you. This would include things like but not limited to pictures of you drunk at a party, behavior that might be considered objectionable (chugalugging a beer), or photos placing you in a comprised position (half dressed and hanging out of a window) like an active participant in Marti-gars in New Orleans.

My recommendation is to be conservative when entering items, pictures or statements of your position on a cause in a social networking group. The hiring manager at the organization that are looking to grant you an interview will be on line researching any information that they can about you. Since the information that you post on the internet is always there and available for the world to see, it provides an opportunity for this researcher to discover things that you would rather remain hidden when it comes to your work life. If this is the case then make a conscious effort not to share this type of information about your self on the internet in any way shape, form or format. You will stand a better chance of being granted an interview, as apposed to being overlooked for a passing statement of photo that you posted in a Social Networking Group.

QS Leadership Career Forums will offer workshops and seminars topics to teach you how to develop leadership skills and overcome stereotypes. Personal development sessions will also be offered from career management professionals and presentations will be made by participating companies. If think you would be interested in applying to be selected to attend this workshop at one of these cities then click here to apply at the QS Leadership web site. The first New York workshop will be given on October 26th and will not be offer again until October 2008. So, if you are interested apply right away, and best of luck to you.

So many of us are afraid to start a conversation with some one we are meeting for the first time. One of the best ways to conquer your fear is by joining a Toastmasters Club. Toastmaster is an international communication and leadership club. Joining a Toastmasters Club will provide you with a safe environment to practice speaking to people you do not know. In fact you will have the opportunity to write and deliver speeches to an audience. I know that so many of you would rather die than speak in front of a group of people. Do not worry; everyone who has ever joined Toastmasters at some point in their life was afraid to speak in front of a group of people they did not know including me.

You can join Toastmasters by finding a local club. Each club’s culture is different so shop around to find the club who’s culture fits your personality. I like a club culture that offers the opportunity to learn in a fun environment. I have been a member for about 4 years and have entered a number of contests. In fact I won 3rd place in the humorous speech contest in a pool of 250 clubs from New York and New Jersey. If you would like to see a video of my speech just click here and it will take you to my web site.

Can joining Toastmasters help you in your job search? Most definitely, and I will discuss the advantages Toastmasters and your job search in future posts. Check out this video by Keith Ferrazzi on how to be out going and then go join a Toastmasters Club. You will be glad that you did.

From time to time you may have experienced people being less than genuine when they first meet someone new. When I was growing up we called it putting on airs. This is an attempt by some individuals to appear very important or accomplished in an effort to get people to connect with and like them. This is not networking and is the complete opposite of what I recommend that you do.

Be yourself. People are interested in finding out who you are. Not who you would like them to think you are, but who you really are. If you prepare yourself before hand to come to the networking opportunity with information that you may have researched or a topic that is current in the media of interest to the people in this gathering you will find it a lot easier to start a conversation with some one new. Spend the time to focus on one individual. Find out things about them. What things do you have in common? Take the time to expand the conversation and give yourself an opportunity to connect with that person. Do not rush the conversation along, or change the topic of the conversation from one thing to another. This may give the person the impression that you are not interested in talking to them or that you are not being genuine.

What is the risk of not being genuine? Connection, think about it, do you want to spend time with someone who is not genuinely interested in what you have to say? You begin to wonder, what their motive is for speaking with you. This places a barrier of mistrust between the two of you. Once this barrier is raised it is very difficult to overcome. Why place yourself at a disadvantage? Just be yourself. People will like you, if you focus on what is important to them they will want to focus on what is important to you and the connection between both of you is established. Listen to Keith Ferrazzi the author of “Never Eat Alone” provide you with additional tips on how to be a successful networker. Remember, networking is the best way to get you connected with access to the decision maker who is looking for you to fill their job vacancy, and this could be your next dream job.