Before you apply for a new job, do you know what your social media profile reveals about you? I have met dozens of people who have used for positions and never heard back from the company. What happened to sidetrack their search? Was it their resume or their online profile that sank their chances? We’ll deal with the resume at another time.
Before you do anything, you should look at your online reputation. It is effortless to do a Google search of your name, including your home city(s). Do you have a criminal record? If so, you need to work out a strategy to get out in front of the issue. If you can correct the post great, but if you can’t, you need to explain yourself and the circumstances surrounding the post. The same thing goes for lawsuits. If you are the plaintiff or defendant in a lawsuit, you need to be able to explain what happened and what the outcome or anticipated outcome will be. Employers are always concerned about hiring people who may turn and sue them.
What does your Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter accounts say about you? You need to know what others will see. If you have any concerns, and we should all be concerned, shut down those pages until your job search process is concluded. Consider how disappointed you would be if you didn’t receive a job offer because of an unline indiscretion. Examples of drinking, lewd acts, criminal behavior including pot-smoking, and anything your grandmother would find offensive will come back to hurt you. Think before you post anything. If you don’t have control of the post, all you can do is pray that an employer does not find it.
LinkedIn provides a treasure trove of verifiable information like past employers, degrees, titles, and other fragments of information that any employer will find essential when considering you for employment. Make sure that all of the information on your LinkedIn page is correct. If you have a license, make sure it is current. If you say you attended a school for one of the four years of undergrad school, make sure the school will verify your attendance. Do not think for a moment that you can slip one by on an employer. I confirm the licenses of every CPA I represent. If I find something funky, I won’t represent them.
A job search requires a lot of leg work before applying for any job. As soon as your resume hits the street, you can be sure that someone, just like me, is going to begin kicking over rock and looking for inconsistencies.
For more tips on these and other “things to do before applying for a job,” contact me at sean@jacksonmccarthy.com