LinkedIn has revolutionised how we network for business and  job search. It has made networking more accessible to the masses. It has made networking less daunting by removing “the room full of strangers” scenario. As a result, larger numbers of businesses and jobseekers are embracing the power of networking.

I recently trawled my connections and I was shocked to find many had disappeared from my radar. I compared this mystery to a Bermuda Triangle on LinkedIn. Budding friendships, potential job opportunities and potential business lost to a mystical place. I decided to make an effort to find those lost souls and ensure other connections didn’t meet the same fate.

How to avoid the Bermuda Triangle Effect

The Flare Gun – LinkedIn allows you to communicate to your connections without direct engagement. This includes the network update section on the LinkedIn home page and network update emails. Increased activity on LinkedIn equates to more indirect communications with your network. I sometimes question the impact of indirect communications – Do people pay much attention to this? It’s a bit like shooting a flare and hoping someone will see it. Use this strategy but don't rely on it 100%.

Send out an SOS – I firmly believe in the saying - “out of sight and out of mind”. I forget people who slip from my radar and I'm sure it's the same for everyone. It is important to take direct action to ensure you stay on the radar. Changing status update regularly can help (If you use Twitter to update - please avoid overkill!!). For even greater impact, sift your connections and take the time to mail them via LinkedIn. Start at A and gradually work to Z. This takes more effort but is a worthwhile strategy.

Get in your Life Raft – I have stressed this point on many occasions. The most powerful and meaningful networking is in the flesh. LinkedIn supports real world networking but should not replace it. It is important to meet new connections but don’t forget about existing connections. I feel that there is a scramble to acquire impressive connection numbers and quality suffers as a result. Start meeting connections and don’t be afraid to meet connections more than once.

I think many people celebrate too soon when networking. They see the initial engagement as the victory and think job well done. This should be where the hard works starts. The secret to achieving effective results from networking is to build relationships and stay on the radar. Failure to do so could mean vanishing in the Bermuda Triangle on LinkedIn.

I would love to hear your views and comments on this topic...

NB: I would like to take this opportunity to tell my connections (especially those who did not get a LI email –YET!!) that contrary to rumours I am alive and well I will be sailing my Life Raft to present at the Career Bootcamp 2 on Tuesday 17^th August at National College of Ireland (9am-11am).

NB2: More advice for jobseekers – Networking, LinkedIn and much more @ Measurability Careers & Jobs Club on LinkedIn and Measurability on Facebook.

What a complete waste of time!! Fortunately I gave up this misguided obsession with luck. I threw away my lucky charms and put my black cat up for adoption. I realised that luck didn’t just happened and was something I had to create. This was liberating because it allowed me to take back 100% control of my success (or lack of success). It also saved the pain of trying to find enough four leafed clovers to fill a bath each morning.

STOP kidding yourself about luck.

For years I conveniently used luck to create a reality where success was about me and failure about abandonment by Lady Luck. I was allowed to take credit for all my successes. I could blame Lady Luck for my failures - the defeat in the All-Ireland Schools Basketball Final to a 3 pointer in the dying seconds (bad luck and not bad defence) or when previous job turned out to be a horrendous experience (bad luck and not poor research/decision-making). I also used luck to explain away the success of others - when friends got promotion or landed large contracts (good luck and not hard work). Jean Cocteau’s quote still brings a smile to my face “We must believe in luck. For how else can we explain the success of those we don’t like” Does this all sound familiar?

STOP waiting for luck and get lucky.

I stopped waiting for luck to come knocking at my door and I decided to go get my share by embracing the quote “the harder I work, the luckier I get”. I realised that blaming lack of luck didn’t change my results. I ditched the lucky charms and started thinking and acting like a lucky person. For those interested - lucky people (i) create, notice and act on opportunities, (ii) rely on intuition for decision-making, (iii) expect good things to happen in the future and (iv) have a knack of transforming negative (bad luck) into positive (good luck).

Maybe there is such a thing as luck but I no longer choose to believe in it (except Wednesday and Saturday when I do the lotto). I would be interested in hearing your views on the topic.

Play to existing customers or employers

Ryanair took a positive action to inform me that they had delivered in transporting me to my destination on time. I was too busy moving my watch an hour forward to have acknowledged this fact myself. As an organisation - Do you remind your customers about your success? Never assume that they understand or appreciate the value that you add. This principle is very relevant for employees too. Communicating success can help an employee achieve promotion and climb the corporate ladder. In my early career I fell into the trap of assuming my employer knew my contributions and that I didn’t have to shout about them. Two missed promotions later I began watching and learning from the best trumpet players in that organisation

Ensure new customers or employers hear your music

It is important to identify success and learn how and when to communicate it. Ryanair does this very well to help attract new customers – “Deliver 90% of passengers to destinations on time and with more change in their pockets”. Communicating success effectively can help businesses attract new customers. It is important to tell potential customers what you have delivered and past successes. Jobseekers should take this on board too. Communicating success can help increase attractiveness to potential employers. Ensure a CV communicates achievements and tell employers about successes at interview instead of waiting to be asked.

Time to take your stage …

It is hard to understand why many businesses, employees or jobseekers hold back on trumpeting their success. Perhaps the myth that talking about ourselves is boasting and people won’t like it. You have to overcome the fear and take the stage. It is up to you as a business or a jobseeker to ensure your achievements and results are know and not let them go unnoticed or remain hidden. For business this can equate to loss of existing customers or failure to attract new customers. For individuals this can equate to missed promotions or mssed job opportunities.

Trumpet lessons daily for jobseekers at “Measurability Careers & Jobs Club” on LinkedIn.

Would love to hear your comments and views ……

The benefits of becoming a better networker are appealing but the thought of that room full of strangers not so appealing. Fortunately the equivalent to a knight in shining armour for networking was developed - LinkedIn. I believe LinkedIn has made networking more accessible to the masses. More importantly it offers a less daunting proposition than real world networking in a room full of strangers. LinkedIn has changed the fortunes for jobseekers and business but there are still many who don’t achieve positive results. These people misfire using LinkedIn to network as they do in the real world. Below are 3 (of many) strategies that will ensure you get less from LinkedIn.

Asking strangers to marry you – By this I mean sending out random invitations to connect with strangers. The culprits of this strategy normally don’t even take the time to customise the invitation which means the receiver doesn’t know who they are or why you want to connect. This strategy is like walking up to a stranger and asking them to marry you. A connection on LinkedIn is a commitment just like marriage. Are you growing connection numbers without growing any real value?

Attention seeking – I can be guilty of this on occasion and my mother always said I was a seeker of attention. LinkedIn success is about visibility and groups offer the main platform to achieve this. Commenting within a group can help you get noticed but it can be very clear when you are just trying to get noticed. Are your contributions within groups meaningful?

Virtual relationships – A very large % of US adults met their current partner online. These guys and gals engage online but quickly move into the real world by phone or meeting in person. Many LinkedIn users meet other professionals online but don't develop this relationship beyond LinkedIn. Keeping a relationship online will rarely lead to anything. Are you engaging with connections in the real world?

Love to hear your views and comments. Please feel free to share successful or unsuccessful strategies. Other useful LinkedIn articles - “Become the Pied Piper of LinkedIn” and “LinkedIn – Do you dance?”

“Measurability Careers & Jobs Club” - LinkedIn Group dedicated to offering free advice and discussion for jobseekers.

Drive on the hard shoulder

By the way I don’t promote hard shoulder driving on the real M50. I am normally the one stuck in traffic giving out at these people with a little envy all the same . It would be crazy to ignore the low hanging fruit and therefore at some stages during a job search you will be on the M50 and applying for advertised jobs. But perhaps it is time to try a new strategy when targeting advertised jobs. A bit like we see some drivers taking the hard shoulder on the M50. It is important to become more creative when targeting advertised jobs. Do you queue with others trying to get through the front door of an organisation? Do you follow the outlined application process like the other jobseekers? Perhaps you can try to get into the company through the side door or back door with the help of your network or inject a bit of creativity the help you get noticed and stand out from the crowd.

Leave the M50 at the next exit

Liberate yourself by exiting the M50 in a bid to get to your destination quicker. Most drivers stay on the major highways believing that the traffic will start flowing again soon. Equally many jobseekers only target advertised jobs believing that this time it will be different. Once you navigate onto the back roads you will find less traffic and equally when job hunting you will find less competition. The unadvertised job market requires blind faith and moving outside our comfort zone but the rewards can be worth it. Spending all your time on the M50 of the job market means that if there are no jobs advertised your search grinds to a standstill. The opposite is true when you exit into the hidden job market as there can be no end to social, real world networking or speculative applications.

For those interested in fine tuning their hard shoulder driving skills or in need of encouragement to exit the M50 of the job market feel free to join Measurability Careers & Jobs Club on LinkedIn.

Try to sing Bon Jovi’s “Living on Prayer”, but replace the lyrics to “Leaving on a High” should you need motivation to follow through on the advice below.

For many of us one of the most stressful and traumatic things that can happen in our life is being made redundant. Particularly when you have been working for a company for a long time and quite frankly been a hardworking loyal employee. Shock, depression, anger and resentment set in. All understandable feelings and reactions....however I am going to suggest that one thinks before one lets these emotions explode. Maybe a controlled explosion is the way to go to release these feelings?

Very often I see great candidates with super experience destroy their relationship with a company when they are made redundant. This is a real shame and it is important to note that it may have taken you 5 years to build your reputation, but it can take less than a week to destroy it. When we leave a company we want to missed, we want our absence to be felt and we want people to remember us for our great work.  So make the conscious decision to leave on high and be missed when you leave your job.

Here are some tips for leaving on a high:

• Try keep your activity levels high....hold on scrap that - Try to work even harder than you have been, when working your notice period. This may even make your employer feel even more guilty about letting you go and therefore more motivated to help you.
• Start to consciously build a network at work. Don’t go into a shell; communicate with staff and management more than you ever have. Ask them to keep an eye out for job opportunities for you and if they know anyone that might be able to help you find your next opportunity.  Do the same with your clients, suppliers etc.
• Make sure you leave no loose ends and that you leave a comprehensive handover.
• Let your customers know you are leaving, don’t complain about the company or your redundancy, but if possible make them aware that you will be looking for a new opportunity. Hopefully they will keep you in mind should they hear of any opportunities.
• Try not to get caught up with “the negative crew”.  Usually found huddled around a canteen table ranting about how badly they have been treated, how bad the company is, how there are worse people in the organisation that should have been let go before them and how doomed their future now is due to redundancy.  Wow, nearly got  depressed writing those last two lines. Negativity breeds Negativity.
• Where possible team up with other “positive” redundant staff and support each other.  This can be very comforting.  Share suggestions, information and contacts with each other.
• We you leave.....stay in touch with key personnel. Keep them updated and tell them what you are up to and what you are looking for.

We must remember before we burn our bridges that we never know when our paths will cross with an ex-manager or co-worker in the future.  And I have not even mentioned the reference about you that your ex- employer is liable to give your future employer.

So why not leave your job on a High?

I had a recent conversation with two recruitment managers who work for leading multinational companies on what separates a great from a good candidate. Both mentioned that for every role they have to fill they will have at least 5 excellent candidates that are equally strong on paper. Very often after interviewing they are still faced with a dilemma of who is the best candidate for the job.

So how do they decide? Here are 3 things they look for:

#1. Passion

This can be difficult to get across in a CV or cover letter, however it is vital that you demonstrate enthusiasm for both the company and position at interview stage. Many recruiters have mentioned to me that they have been very disappointed with the attitude, poor body language and a lack of eye contact that many candidates display at interview. Often the candidate with the strongest cv loses out to a more enthusiastic upbeat candidate. So, go to an interview with a smile and with the same excitement as you would have if you were off to see your favourite band or football team play! It’s not a funeral folks; this could be the beginning of a new beginning!

#2. Cultural fit

Companies have become increasingly aware of the importance of looking after their existing staff and ensuring that they nurture and retain their top talent. For this reason companies are taking a lot of care in recruiting candidates that will fit in and add value to their existing teams. The last thing a company needs is to hire a super candidate on paper that upsets the “apple cart” and destroys the productivity and morale of an established team. So find out who is working in the company and where possible try to talk to staff about the company culture prior to interview. It is no secret that the first place many companies look for new staff is through staff referrals.

#3. Personal Blog

A personal blog can be a really super way to demonstrate your knowledge and skills. Very often a blog can give an employer an insight into your personality and your sheer passion for the subject matters you blog about. A good relevant blog can be the difference between an interview and an unsuccessful email. Many job seekers have time to invest in developing a blog and starting a blog can be extremely liberating for a job seeker.

Job seekers I have spoken to feel that writing a blog gives them back their voice, reconnects them to their industry and more importantly gives them back some control. So a good idea is to experiment with a blog and take some time to feel comfortable with your content about what you are doing before you broadcast your content to the world. I would recommend wordpress.com , as a great site for setting a free blog. If you are not technically minded, do not be put off writing a blog, it is as easy as producing a word document. If you are not a great writer take note that the vast majority of the 250 million blogs out there are not written by literary geniuses. So no excuses and as the Nike slogan says... Just Do It.

Thanks for reading my post. Do you think you can be too passionate about your job search? What are your thoughts on company culture and would you pursue a position if you thought you would not fit in to the company culture? Do you think that a more detailed blog on “Blogging as a job seeker” would be a good idea or have I got my point across?

It has been a few years since I heard a good “Knock Knock” joke but having recently uncovered some research statistics I realised that I have been the butt of the “Knock Knock” joke for the last decade. It is with much regret I inform jobseekers and business owners that it's highly likely that many of you fall victim too.

A big part of successful job hunting and business development in this market requires proactive strategies like networking, cold calling and speculative approaches. Proactive strategies involve knocking doors in the hope of uncovering new opportunities and I think we can all agree that these are activities most would try to avoid. For those of you who engage in these activities I ask the following questions. How many times have you knocked a door and received an undesirable response? Quite a few I assume. How many times have you gone back and knocked that same door again? Very few I assume.

Are you the butt of the “Knock Knock” joke?

Research by Notre Dame University uncovered some interesting findings that may surprise many readers especially those selling a product or service. I believe jobseekers should stand up and take notice because you are sales people too and your product or service - yourself!!

44% of sales people quit trying after the first call (first knock)
24% of sales people quit after the second call (second knock)
14% of sales people quit after the third call (third knock)
12% of sales people quit after the fourth call (fourth knock)

This means 94% of sales people have quit after the fourth call. You will be interested to know that 60% of sales are made after the fourth call. This means that 94% of salespeople don’t give themselves a chance of getting 60% of prospective sales.

What lesson can we learn?

We can all argue about the accuracy of the above figures but for me the key lesson here is that persistence pays. A rejection or receipt of a “NO” is par for the course when job hunting or in business. Rather than accepting and moving on we should consider reengaging the potential opportunity. We must keep knocking new doors but not forget to return to those already knocked. When I look back over the years I can find many examples when persistence paid off – my wife is one good example even though there are times I wish I was less persistent – joke!!

To become more successful we must develop and practice persistence. We must return to potential employment or business opportunities because circumstances can change very quickly – a change in mood, a change in business conditions or just a more suitable time to talk. Revisiting canvassed opportunities will enable us to stay on the radar but it also demonstrates valued traits like persistence and determination.

As always I would love to hear your views and opinions. Feel free to share positive stories when persistence paid off and if these don’t spring to mind then share a “knock knock” joke to distract us from banks and the volcano.

My ability to ask for directions when travelling has helped me in life and business as I don’t have hang-ups about asking for directions here either. I don’t know everything but I do know that I am always one or two questions away from knowing it. Asking for direction is important in job hunting and business but ignored by too many professionals and business owners. Why would you waste time and energy going around in circles when a few questions can deliver results quicker? Our four lettered friend FEAR stems the flow of requests for help. Although I feel I am good at asking I still have to face down and overcome fear.

Fear of looking stupid – I guess we all carry this baggage. I always start by looking within my immediate network as it is less daunting to ask people I already know. When moving into the unknown I remember the Chinese proverb - “He who asks a question is a fool for five minutes; he who does not ask a question remains a fool forever”.

Fear of rejection – I tell myself that if I get a “No” it brings me one step closer to “Yes”. I remind myself of previous experiences - people are very helpful, people love talking about what they do and people love talking about their successes. Yes I have met the odd Victor Meldrew who won’t help BUT SWSWSW (Some Will, Some Won’t, So What). Research by Journal of Personality & Social Psychology indicates that we grossly underestimate just how willing others are to help.

Fear of showing weakness/vulnerability – I fear that asking for help shows weakness or admittance to lacking in my own ability. I have to remind myself that not even I know everything .

Fear of being indebted to others – I don’t like owing people or feeling like I owe a debt. To overcome this I pay for advice, offer my skills/expertise in return or offer a simple lunch or breakfast.

So start asking your way to success today. Whether you are job hunting or in business this strategy can pay great dividends and help provide a roadmap to achieving goals. Remember the saying - “To know the road ahead, ask those coming back”.

Love to hear your thoughts and views about the post ……

I watched Jonathan Ross a few weeks back and Lady Gaga was his final guest. I always thought of her as “flamboyant costumes” but taking the time to listen to her performance on the show made me realise that this Lady Gaga has an amazing voice with energy and passion to match. I started thinking about how Gaga got her break. Did the costumes get her noticed providing opportunities to showcase her talent? Is there more than just getting noticed? These questions are relevant to the current job market as jobseekers with great skills/qualifications are not creating the opportunities to showcase them. Equally there are many businesses with the same predicament.

Should we use flamboyant costumes to get noticed?

Lady Gaga certainly stands out in the crowd and gets herself noticed. I don’t know how much influence the “get noticed” costumes played in helping deliver success but I assume an important part. After all you hear about many talented singers who claim they never got the break or opportunity. There are many jobseekers and businesses who claim they never get the opportunity to present their talents. Two jobseeker issues I regularly hear (a) I apply for jobs and tick all the boxes and still don’t get called for interview or (b) I can’t seem to find any available jobs. Perhaps a flamboyant outfit would help stand out in the crowd for advertised jobs and raise visibility to access unadvertised jobs. Before anyone dumps their pin stripe suit please read on. When I say flamboyant costumes I mean strategies to get noticed and not peacock feather outfits. For example - taking risks or injecting creativity when applying for jobs/ pitching for business or bravery to move from our comfort zone to help employers/ customers find us. But is there more than just getting noticed?

What’s beneath the flamboyant costume?

There has been much debate in the case of Lady Gaga but that’s for another day Getting noticed creates the opportunity to present and help opportunities find you BUT landing a result requires more. Another key issue for jobseekers/businesses is not delivering at the final interview/pitch. Lady Gaga offers more than singing skills with great passion and energy. Jobseeker qualifications, experience and skills provide a strong platform but there is more to getting hired. Relying on qualifications and experience alone is a risky strategy. Having worked in careers and recruitment for 15 years I know the most skilled and qualified candidates don’t always get the job. Ability to do the job obviously plays a key role in any hiring decision but so does personality, ability to fit into team/organisation, passion and desire to land the job. Anyone who watched the two guys pitch their domestic wind turbine idea on Dragons Den last week will understand this. Great idea but not backed because the presentation lacked energy, passion or desire.

Love to hear you comments, views or costume ideas for my next business presentation ….