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What’s your dream job? Do you want to work for a Fortune 500 company or maybe found your own non-profit? You can land your dream job through hard work and networking. Networking can help you to build connections that can help you to advance your career. Whether it be through keeping up with industry trends or collaborating on big ideas, connections you make while networking are invaluable. Those connections could also be great references or resources when you’re up for a promotion. If you don’t know what kind of career your want, networking can also help you to find your dream job. You can gain a greater sense of career direction by asking others about their jobs to see if it’s something you might enjoy.
Whether you’re a seasoned professional or just starting out, networking can help you to boost your career. Ian Siegel, CEO of ZipRecruiter, motivates others to network on social media by stating “Now is not the time to be shy. Go to your preferred social network/s, and connect to everyone you can. Don’t limit yourself to close friends or past co-workers.” I couldn’t agree more with Ian’s take. Networking online is such a great tool to help advance your career. If you’re currently job searching download ZipRecruiter to find your dream job!
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Why try Social Media Networking?
Networking on social media is especially helpful when you’re working a remote job or a demanding job in hopes to progress your career. With the availability and ease of online networking, you can network at home (from your couch in comfy clothes), instead of going to industry mixers in hopes of connecting with impactful people. With the ability to view professional profiles on networks, like LinkedIn or Facebook, it’s never been easier to find people the kind of people you aspire to be and connect.
That leads us to the first networking tip. Check out four tips for social media networking below!
Social Media Networking Tip #1
Follow professionals that work in your industry or that already have your dream career. By following people in the positions that you aspire to have, you can learn what kind of career they previously had to reach that desired position. You can also learn about the types of projects they do and overall what kind of skills are needed for that job. From there you can work on your own professional development and build your skillset for your dream job!
Social Media Networking Tip #2
Reach out once you have found people that inspire you or work in your dream career! Always introduce yourself and let them know why you’re messaging them. It always helps to give them a compliment on their work or career. Once they get back to you, make sure you ask them your relevant career questions. Prepping a list of questions beforehand can help to make social media networking less intimidating!
Perhaps message something like ” Hello I’m Sarah and I’m currently a travel blogger. It’s my dream to write for a travel magazine. You have such an impressive profile! I see that you have written for many different magazines. Do you have any advice for someone just starting out in journalism?”
Social Media Networking Tip #3
Search for groups to join on Facebook specific to your industry. Any group that has valuable dialogue between its’ members can help you to have a conversation and network with others in the group. Watch out for job board groups too. Often times they are for a certain region and industry which helps you to meet other professionals in your area.
After you join a group, be sure to introduce yourself, check out the rules, and ensure you’re following them correctly. From there just watch for posts and write meaningful comments that will start great conversations with the other members!
Social Media Networking Tip #4
After you’ve found a couple of groups that you find valuable, sharing your own content or sharing other valuable content with the groups will be very useful in building connections. The more active you are in these groups, the more people will see what you are sharing, and reach out to you to discuss the things you are sharing. Once people get to know you, you’ll be able to build the foundations of a great networking connection.
A Note on DM Etiquette
After you’ve chatted a couple of times in the group, feel free to message people directly to start building on your connection. Be sure to keep things professional and discuss topics you both feel comfortable discussing. This is important because when messaging online, you don’t always know how the other person is reacting or feeling about your messages. Emojis do help to show expression but they don’t always work in getting your point across. By keeping things professional you won’t have to worry about your words being taken the wrong way. There’s nothing worse than thinking someone on the internet is being ingenuine or creepy in your DMs.
Don’t Be Afraid to Go After What You Want
THIS. This statement is my best advice when talking to someone about their career. I am currently a Resume Writer and spend a decent amount of my time giving advice to strangers on the internet. I haven’t come across better advice yet. In fact it’s exactly how I landed my writing gig.
By the time I was about to apply to the job I have now, I went on the job site to find that the job listing had been removed. This was a dream job for me! It offered flexible working, would pay me enough to live off of, and would allow me to be anywhere in the world with WiFi (which exactly what every travel blogger dreams of). After soul-crushing disappointment for about an hour, I decided I wasn’t going to give up.
After all, I had nothing to lose.
I decided to scour the job site, look for any kind of contact information for this company, and beg them to consider me. Well okay, I just asked if I could apply but I was ready to beg if it came down to it! After I sent them an email, I received a pleasant email back explaining why they had closed the submissions early. Apparently, they had an overwhelming amount of applicants. Then they sent me a questionnaire to fill out to get a better idea of my writing experience. My determination paid off and I was in the running for the position!
I ended up getting my dream job by refusing to give up. That’s the advice I have for you. Put yourself out there and don’t be afraid to go after what you want! I hope these tips will help you to confidently network online and go after your dream career! Social media networking can help you to grow into your dream career!
Looking for More?
If you liked this article and are currently job searching, click here to check out my article on ZipRecruiter!
If you’re interested in finding a remote position, click here to check out my article on Tech Skills to Teach Yourself!
