LinkedIn and Social Media

     I personally have a LinkedIn page.  The only reason I partake in the LinkedIn experience, is because I needed one in order to conduct research for my previous internship.  Outside of that, I cannot say that I fully understand the point of LinkedIn.  I understand that it is valuable for connecting with people about jobs or internships, however I am always hesitant to contact some one on a social media platform.  Without face-to-face contact, you can never tell if the person you are contact is who you really think they are.  In that aspect, I do not agree with the use of social media for the job market.

     As far as following the advice of Tishgart, I do feel that some of it was relevant, and can easily be applied outside of the use of social media.  You can easily talk to contacts you have made prior through face-to-face contact in order to try and land your next job.  I also find that something similar to what I am already doing with my own website, and personal business cards is an effective way to reach potential employers.  Additionally, I will be participating in an amazing volunteer opportunity in the next fifteen days.  While we have been working hard all year to raise money, I along with the rest of the Habitat for Humanity group at Holy Family will be leaving the morning of March 2^nd for Taos, New Mexico.  This is a volunteer opportunity that may or may not set me apart from other candidates in the job market, but there is no loss in putting yourself out there and attempting something like this.  LinkedIn, is just one way of connecting with potential employers, and call me old fashioned, but I much rather prefer the traditional face-to-face contact.

     Again, I do not agree with the use of social media to obtain a job.  This is not because of what I post on social media, because for the most part I try to keep all of my posts as clean a possible.  However, the truth is that you cannot control what your friends are posting on social media websites.  This makes it difficult, unless you are creating two profiles for each social media site; one that is professional, one that is more for play.  Consider what were to happen if a future employer got a hold of your for fun social media sites, would you still have your job?

     In closing, I do not believe that I will use social media as my main way of contacting future employers, and trying to obtain my dream job.

Hours Worked

Friday:               3:45pm-9:00pm (event)

Saturday:           8:30am-1:00pm (event)

Sunday:           12:15pm-6:00pm (event)

Wednesday:    10:00am-1:30pm (office) [sick, left early]