A new Generational Difference in Networking & Job Seeking

Recently I shared with you the new video resumes used by more than one generation.   The method changed how recruiters view potential candidates and demonstrated the lengths to which the jobless will go to stand out from the crowd and be the one selected for a position.

Participants uploaded their resumes and other relevant documents.

Here is another example of a market differentiator that did not exist just a few years ago. 

Networking with your Avatar


Now this is the way to go eh?  Teleport into the venue and experience the things you can only do in Second Life.

The interesting thing to me is that More than 70 people registered from all over the US as well as from Canada, the UK, France, Spain, and Hong Kong.   And they probably did it in their pajamas.

Part of the fun of this networking event is the presenters are able to use their PowerPoint presentations, or not, as they preferred.  LinkedIn profiles are also featured.  What are you doing with your LinkedIn profile?  How comprehensive is it?

Check it out and share your thoughts.  I would love to hear what you think of this medium both for networking and for job seeking.

Using Video Resume is a Generational Difference in Personal Marketing

Whether you are a recruiter or a job hunter today's job market is a stressful one.  Job hunters are hard pressed to stand out in a sea of resumes so that they are the ones selected for an open position.

One recruiting manager informs me that his staff has gone from receiving 2000 resumes a day to 40,000 per day.  It is difficult to keep up with the high volume of people seeking employement and using the internet to post their resumes for open positions.  It is no wonder then that job hunters have found a novel way to find a job, the YouTube video. 

Witness HireMeHeadblade:



Eric Romer created a video resume, posted it to YouTube, and sent the link along with his resume to the hiring manager. 

He heard about a marketing manager job at razor company HeadBlade via Twitter and decided to set up a blog called “Hire Me, HeadBlade,” where he included a YouTube video of himself shaving his head with the company’s product.  “I got a response within 24 hours, and the founder/CEO flew me out to interview less than a week later,” said Romer.    He got the job.

Boomers do it too
Louie Bernstein, age 57 created a video resume as well.  He wrote the script and had his son play the role of the interviewer. 



While he has not yet had an interview, his video has been viewed 167 times. 

He also posted his resume to YouTube


Still somewhat traditional
One job candidate created a video that included why he wanted to work at the company.  The recruiter was impressed by the research and work the candidate had done in preparation of the interview. 

What this means for job seekers
In the age of Social Media setting yourself apart from the competition means you must be creative in ways that didn't exist before.    It also changes the game as the recruiter is no longer simply viewing your experience, knowledge, and credentials.  With video resumes they can see your age, weight, race,  and more. 

This can put some people at a disadvantage and knock them out of the running for a job opportunity right out of the gate.  Before the age of social media, recruiters examined a piece of paper and selected candidate based on skills and credentials.  Video resumes changes that.  

What do you think about video resumes?  Please share your comments here about this new change for job candidates.

Generational Differences in the Church Causes Conflict

An article about generational differences in the church caught my eye recently.  It seems that the young pastor's communication style is causing disconnect with the older members of the congregation.

The question posed was "Our church just hired a pastor who is young enough to be the child of many members.  His language about 'the emerging church', 'post modernism' and 'interfaith dialogue' distresses older members." 

The result is unhappy constituents in the church.  The communication style and words used by the young pastor is causing sparks to fly and a disconnect between the generations.    Older members have trouble understanding what he means by "the emerging church" and the terms he uses makes them turn away from his sermons.

Michael Clingenpeel, pastor of River Road Church believes that the young pastor is responsible for the words he uses to encourage change.

I believe this is a continuation of the ubiquitous generational conflict we all face.  Regardless of the industry, people of different generations have trouble communicating with each other.  It is not simply a matter of verbiage.  It is a matter of mindset.  Yes, people don't like change, but the truth is change is inevitable.

In this instance, the responsibility lies both with the young pastor and his congregation.  This is an opportunity to open a dialogue whereby everyone can candidly hold a discussion about their faith.

If the young pastor relents to the older members of the congregation, he might lose the support of the younger generation.  They are the future of the church and we need them in order for there to be a congregation going forward.

I say, follow the action of the Pope. On January 23, 2010 Pope Benedict XVI gave a new commandment to priests struggling to get their message across: Go forth and blog.

As a matter of fact the Pople has several blogs and many are right here on blogger.  A  really good blog by the pope allows the visitor to choose the languge that works for them.

Just google pope: blog and you might be surprised at the quantity of blogs out there.

My point is, the pope has jumped on the social media bandwagon because he realizes that generational differences mean that you must communicate with your constituents the way they expect it.  He communicates with his flock using the medium that works for them.

Here is another good pope website.  He is on Facebook as well.  You go with change and meet the people. 

I dare say the young pastor should do the same.  Help the congregation to realize the value of varied styles of communication and work with them break down the barriers he currently faces.

Moving from Generation ME to Generation WE

It's the end of the decade and it's been an interesting one. We went from the "Me Generation" as the baby Boomers called themselves to "Generation ME" as the Gen Ys call themselves.

Generation ME focused on what happens outside of themselves. Everything begins and ends with "ME" - My videos, my Flickr, YouTube which is all about ME, MySpace, and numerous other online means of showing off how wonderful I am.

Admittedly, there were some positive aspects of creating videos for fun, but meaness, bullying and showing off was off the charts this decade. The decaide was filled with incidents where the good samaritans were scarce. If they helped at all, they did so *after* they took a video of the incident.

Book titles bore out the focus on one's self. Books like "Not Everyone Gets a Trophy" and "The Narcissism Epidemic" chronicled the mindset of the new generation and looked for ways to connect with the mindset of the young generation.

Even when alone, some took videos of themselves in various states of undress while debasing themselves. It seemed as though no one knew the word or the emotion called SHAME.  The hottest new means of becoming famous was a sex tape, done alone or with others.

Parents joined "REALITY SHOWS" to demonstrate how dysfunctional their families were. This type of 'entertainment' was so popular that one "D-List" couple crashed a White House Party so that they could get on a reality show. Another family pulled a stunt that included implying that their young son was trapped in a balloon that had taken off.   After thousands of dollars were spend and hundreds of emergency personnel tried to save the boy, we learned that it was a publicity stunt.

So let's close the decade on a positive note. We learned a lot about networking, connecting, finding and reconnecting and that there's more to life than just ME.

What's to come in this new decade? 
 
Lets commit to making 2010 the beginning of a new decade called the "WE Decade." Let's use the connections we made with Social Media to help each other enter the decade of wonderful possibilities where we come together to create a better decade than the one we just ended.
 
Let's commit to learning more about each other and communicate better.   Like anything else, the decade will be what we made of it.  We can use it to synergize our differences, use the best from each generation and forge a union of the minds.

The Greatest Generation of Texters and Networkers

During my seminars, I often recommend that those who text should get one in before we start. I realize they are unable to help themselves. It's an addiction and they will do it anyway. Sometimes during my Generational Diversity programs attendees are incredulous that Gen Y and Gen M won't attend meetings or respond to email.

I explain that they are texters and to communicate with them one must also text. A perfect example is bourne out by this article about a 17 year old who was texting while being reprimanded for texting.

So what do you think?  How will the workforce be changed when these people join it a year from now?  Will they be able to put down the devices long enough to get work done?  Will they participate in meetings or text under the table the whole time? 

It's true they are more networked than ever, but face to face is another issue.  Just look at the picture above and consider how networked they are.

Read the full article here

I Hate Conflict but ... I Want Coaching

Gen Y hates conflict and will do anything to avoid it. Listen as a Gen Y manager tries to get the point across.