Being Predictable and Playing it Safe is not always the best advice!

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vintage-housewifeTwo nights ago I thought I’d try a new recipe. I love ceviche and have made it one other time and it turned out amazing. This time? Not so much.

The recipe was Halibut ceviche (raw fish that cooks in herbs and lime juice) and pineapple salsa. Sounds good, right? It was horrible. The first thing my husband Nick said was “Hon, stick to what you know! That’s the rule!“ Pardon me, but whose rule is that?

I’ve never been one to follow the rules or play it safe much less stick to the same ole, same ole especially when it comes to cooking. I’m an avid foodie and love to cook. I love trying new recipes. 9 times out of 10 they come out perfect. There’s likely to be a crappy recipe in the mix at some point. But I’d much rather try new things than have the same menu every week (like my Mother has always been doing for years).

I’m sure that the fact that I’m not predictable scares the heck out of a lot of folks and I add my husband into the mix. Now, I’m not talking about the fact that he will wake up one day wondering if I’m still his wife. I’m talking about trying new things, finding a new hairdo, going to new places and doing new things. Oh, and continuing to try new foods and new recipes.

Some people play it safe their whole lives and never get to experience life to the full. They eat the same places, go on the same vacations year after year, and perhaps they stay at the same job for fear of change. Change can be a good thing.

It’s these same folk that get in a tizzy when change occurs in their lives without their control. They can’t seem to handle it and spin OUT of control because of life’s circumstances.

I’m glad I inherited my mother’s curiosity and living life to the full mentality (aside from the predictable meal planning). At 76, my mom still has goals to skydive when she turns 80 and finish her missionary work in a foreign country (when my dad passes). Here she is fulfilling her bucket list of riding a motorcycle when she turned 75.

Mom and Motorcycle

Now, your homework! Try one new thing this weekend whether it’s eating at a different restaurant or doing something new and adventurous with the fam. You can do it!!!

In the end, life’s too short to eat meatloaf every Wednesday!

Check out this hangout with the @Gozaik team discussing the new Twitter Resume and Job Posting product Gozaik

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gozaikA few weeks ago I came across a new product for both sides of the hiring line – job seekers looking to find jobs and connect with recruiters online and for the recruiter and companies looking for prime candidates! I’m talking about a new kind of Google filtering within Twitter that narrows the job search for the above mentioned folks.

I immediately connected with the founder Joe Budzienski and asked if he would join me in a hangout to discuss it further, which we did. Here is the recording – it’s only around 30 mins!

I love anything that has to do with social and new technology! Check out the cool ways this is going to help you as Employers, Recruiters and Hiring Managers:

Promote Your Job Tweets

  • Gozaik job search displays job tweets to job seekers. Sign up now to validate your Twitter handle and drive more traffic to your Twitter job posts.

Search Candidates (COMING SOON!)

  • Identify active job seekers that meet your criteria. Review rich multimedia resumes. Watch video introductions.

Spot Trending Talent (COMING SOON!)

  • We spotlight ‘trending’ job seekers. Individuals with the most activity trend within your dashboard, highlighting job seekers you may be interested in.

Tweet Job Announcements (COMING SOON!)

  • Increase your job tweet response by delivering your job announcements through our ‘Job Announcement’ service. We structure tweets to optimize candidate response.

If you’re a job seeker or someone wanting to hire the best talent – do yourself a favor and check out Gozaik. Make sure to connect with them online. Get in on the ground floor!

 

Keepin it Real – A closeup of my California Vacation

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ikeepsitrealHey nerds! I just got back from Southern California and I thought I’d show you a close up into my trip. YEAH that’s right, I’m making you watch my video slideshow presentation. Just pretend you’re in my living room.

I had a blast with my BFF Lorrie and the weather was fantastic.

Enjoy a look into my world and have an amazing weekend.

Social Media ROI – Perhaps it’s not what we Thought

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yomamaI recently came across a fantastic article titled “The New ROI for Social Media Recruiting” which not only gave great insight into this year’s ERE Recruiting Conference & Expo but shared a little of why folks still are not jumping on the social media bandwagaon, especially executives. Perhaps we are trying to measure the wrong things.

This article talks of discussions that took place at the Conference that even big named brand representatives are still having a hard time getting their senior corporate managers and leaders involved or even understanding the ROI of social media and how it affects their organizations. We’re still looking at it as an end all, cure all as opposed to a valuable tool and channel of influence to our overall efforts. Perhaps that’s because of how it’s been presented to us.

Social is a grand tool for getting your brand out there and as this article surmises you can’t not be there.

You can’t not be on social because candidates, potential candidates, and those whom you hope to attract and someday hire will see your absence from the social media landscape as a negative. Doing it poorly is equally negative.

When a company fails to post regularly, and especially when comments and questions go unanswered for days or never, or when a company indiscriminately dumps all its job postings into Facebook’s news feed, it says, in the words of one recruiter, “This is a lame company that has no idea what social media is all about. Who wants to work for a company people think is lame?

The great thing that social enables us to do, and especially for brands and organizations, is telling the employer story and building its brand. Things such as the culture of the organization and what to expect in the hiring process on through to the day to day “what it’s like to work there” kind of things. These are the very particulars potential candidates are looking for when deciding whether or not to even begin the hiring process.

We may never be able to obtain ROI in how many folks we’ve hired through Facebook or Twitter (social in general). Instead, we should be looking at the value in branding and reputation building.

What does your company brand look like online? Are you a ghost town?

If you’re looking into a few easy ways to start, check out Glassdoor’s free resources.

Looking for a Job is like looking for your Soul Mate

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Hey guys and gals – I’m on vacation still, in sunny California. Here’s a great post (or so I thought) from the archives. Enjoy and see you next week!

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Many years ago I dated this fantastic guy.  He was funny, charming, said all the right things, wined and dined me. We dated for several months.

The great thing was that he lived about 12 hours from me and we would see one another when he was in town for business, we’d meet in Orlando for a fun weekend or I would fly to see him. It seemed like the perfect match.

Then things started getting a little serious and I found myself saying “This sh#$ just got real.”

I found myself babysitting his five-year-old while he went darting off to work leaving me to cook, clean and babysit. As if that wasn’t enough to make me run he started asking questions like “Whose car was that at your house on such and such night?” And saying things like “My Mom doesn’t even know where I live. You can never tell anyone where I live.”

It wound up that we had a little sit down conversation and it came to a head that he worked for some secret government agency and that was why no one was to know where he lived – not even my parents if we were to marry. And then he started talking about me becoming his five-year-old’s mother and I was all….”Wait now, lets back up.”

Here’s the thing – I had only been divorced two years and was enjoying time by myself and taking care of  my daughter who was around 17 years of age. I did not want to get into a relationship where I was now taking care of a five-year-old and having to parent all over again when my kid was about to turn 18, graduate and fly the coop.

I know, that sounds horrible. But it’s just a fact and a frame of mind I was in. And I was not ready to settle and / or compromise.  And I shouldn’t have to, no one should unless they choose to.

Now stay with me ………

My point in all this is that sometimes we don’t look into the culture of an organization and we rush into something because it “appears” to be the perfect fit. It’s not until after a little time that we realize we’ve screwed the pooch! Then we feel stuck and feel as if there is no way out. Just like we do in our relationships.

Sometimes it just makes sense to find out about an organization (Google them if you have to), look them up on Glassdoor.com. Find out what employees are saying about their culture and take some time to really determine if it’s really a good fit for you. If it’s where you want to burn the midnight oil.

And lastly, go with your gut. If you feel weird vibrations during an interview just be bold enough to say “You know what? I’m not ready to take care of your five-year-old” and walk away.

It’s always better in the long run to do what’s right for you. Heck, they’re doing it about you!

Photo Credit: Creativity4Us

Review and Demo of @SlideKlowd – a Game-changer app for Events, Conferences and Training

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slideklowd

I’m on vacation in sunny California so I thought I would pull a few of my favorites from the archives. Check these folks out. 

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You never know who you’re going to connect with on the Twitters.

Back a few months I had tweeted a post in regard to me preparing for my SHRM Work/Flex presentation and happened to mention my Powerpoint. I received a follow from @SlideKlowd and checked into who they were – as I often do before simply clicking the ole “follow” button.

Upon my investigation I found out more about their amazing mobile and desktop app that allows greater engagement between presenters and their audiences whether it’s at conferences or events, online hangouts or training. I was so excited about the possibility of doing away with “the way we’ve always done it” and having to fill out those paper surveys after a conference session or keynote, for one. Secondly, I see how this can tremendously affect the way we communicate and present future events and / or training for HR and beyond.

Just think about the possibilities of having real-time engagement with your audience and being able to walk away with REAL data. I guess it could be terrifying to presenters who are boring and those who can’t engage an audience and the like.

My next step was to follow them back online and hear more about their product and services so I did just that. I was hoping to use SlideKlowd at my presentation in October but it was cutting it short.

I sat in with my new-found connection > Justin Foster, one of the founders of SlideKlowd, in a private one-on-one Webinar to share more about what they offered and I fell head over hills with this product. I like it so much, in fact, that I told several of my HR buds about it and scheduled a Google+ hangout for Justin to present the demo to them.

hangout with SlideKlowd

Here is the hangout >

Thanks Justin, for a superb job and for the fantastic job you guys are doing at creating a greater way to drive engagement.

Oh, you’ll want to check them out at SlideKlowd.com and connect with them on Facebook and Twitter. I can’t recommend them enough.

Here is their latest video introduction.