Change Your Life

COVID has been and continues to be a stressful period for everyone.

People, for some reason, do not want to show their passion or what they are capable of. So, if the last 3 months has not been fruitful for you to actually find out who you are or where your passion lies, do not be afraid to explore and fail.

Keep going! This has been a good time for people to find out what they really love to do.

LinkedIn is a great opportunity to publish articles and you do get a great audience. Look for opportunities from those who reach out to help you and accept their advice.

This may sound a little controversial; just because you have your diplomas or credits or a management title at the end of your degree, it does not mean you will get a management role when you go into the real world without passion, determination, good experience and a drive to do something with yourself.

The employment market is potentially different now compared to what it was in January. So you need to be sure you can walk the walk and that is really important!

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Your Best Offense is Research

“The best RESEARCH you can do is TALK to people.”

There are certain traditional things that are taught to us, right from the time we leave school until university, that needs to change. The lens that our institutions were looking from, is very narrow and not very inclusive as it should be.

This pandemic has given us an opportunity to really think about who we want to be, going forward, and which organizations are best on our career list. There are a lot of people out there who choose careers and work for organizations, where they think they don't have a choice.

This is your perfect opportunity to do as much research as you can. There are lots of virtual communities, influencers, coaches, who do lots of free webinars. Nothing should stop you from reaching out to these people on LinkedIn and asking them if you can attend.

It definitely goes a long way to show your interest and that you are not waiting for opportunities to come to you, but you are creating an opportunity for yourself.

Be brave and think about how you can get close to your target organization and your dream job.

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Stand Out

🌎 The current environment has become so unprecedented and especially during this lifetime, who would have expected it?

🤔 Moreover, will employers be expected to be empathetic towards graduates/ jobseekers?

🤔 What are you doing to stand apart from the rest of the competition?

These are questions to ponder over and take action.

✳️ Use your time constructively and differently.

❓ What have you done during the Covid19 lockdown?

1️⃣ Have you been upskilling?

2️⃣ Have you taken up a new skill set, or a new course or a new language?

3️⃣ Have you joined webinars or career counseling seminars?

4️⃣ Have you made your LinkedIn account stand out?

5️⃣ Have you made contacts with your network?

⏩ A lot of employers will be assessing how active you have been in upskilling yourself, during this crucial time.

⏩ There is still a lot more out there as companies look towards upgrading themselves.

⏩ All you need to do is reach out and make yourself available to learn and develop yourself.

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The Miracle of Networking

"Every day, do something that will inch you closer, to a better tomorrow."

👥 It has been just over a month that I have constantly started networking, engaging and posting on LinkedIn.

I spend a total of 3️⃣ hours maximum on LinkedIn every day.

✔️ I look at

➡️ potential,

➡️ inspirational,

➡️ motivational,

➡️ like-minded,

➡️ engaging individuals.

🔀 I connect with them.

🔁 I engage with others.

✍🏻 And I post my own material so others can learn and benefit from it.

🏆 My profile viewership has jumped by 186%.

🏆 I have connected with over 350 valued individuals.

🏆 And my posts, in the last one month. ranged from 1200 views to 3500 views.

🥇🥇🥇 The record-breaking was 30,952 views on the "Double-tap I _ LinkedIn" which in fact is still gaining interaction.

🥇🥇🥇 Another win for me is, I have had 4️⃣ hashtags trending in less than two weeks. Thanks to my network!

🎯 Now that's the MIRACLE of NETWORKING!

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Networking Etiquette: What Not To Do?

Networking and building your connections takes a lot of work, time and effort.

Recruiters and your peers will definitely spend time looking at your LinkedIn profile, so it is important to make that great online impression.

LinkedIn is growing and evolving, so build your network without ruining your persona.

Listed below are some of the DON’TS of networking.

Do you have any more to add?

Are you able to relate to the below points?

Please feel free to share the message as this can help others in the community.

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Networking Etiquette: What To Do?

Every day I see people making mistakes on LinkedIn. I am not an expert but these are common mistakes that can be avoided to save time and most importantly your credibility.

It is necessary to understand the proper use of LinkedIn and its etiquette when networking.

The way you connect, the way you engage, the way you communicate are all factors that can easily make or break your credibility in terms of networking and applying for jobs.

Listed below are a few dos of networking.

Do you have anything to add?

Please feel free to share the message as this can help others in the community.

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Your Net Worth

🤔 Do you prefer quality or do you prefer quantity?

👍🏻 It all depends on your networking goals.

Here are 3️⃣ important questions that you need to be aware of:

▶️ Who do you connect with?

✔️ Professionals you already know (Co-workers, ex-colleagues, bosses, etc)

✔️ Professionals you don't know, but would like to meet. (Recruiters, coaches, mentors)

✔️ People from your extended background (school and university friends, teachers and professors, family members)

✔️ People with a lot of connections (influencers, constant engaging LinkedIn-ers)

➡️ Why do you connect?

✅ To build your brand or professional identity?

✅ To get a job?

✅ To find business partners?

✅ To broaden your reach?

✅ To generate sales opportunities for your business?

✅ To help others?

✔️ How do you connect?

👉🏻 Remember to be Polite and Professional.

🗣️ Your language, communication presence and online tone matters.

✳️ Example (for teaching purpose only):

Good morning/afternoon/evening ABC

My name is Acel. I am a Customer Experience Professional and a writer/coach by passion. I greatly enjoyed your recent webinar on Customer Marketing Intelligence. And I thought it would be nice to connect and engage on LinkedIn, with our common interests.

Best wishes,

Acel Fortes

CEO, Freelance Company

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Build The Right Networks

Networking is not about collecting contacts. Networking is about planting relationships."

Now, isn't that true?

Of course, it is!

The best platform to network is: LinkedIn.

To ensure that you have everlasting power contacts in your network, you need to make networking a regular activity. Know who you are reaching out to and always remember to use positive language.

Having the right contacts and engaging effectively, may land you, your DREAM JOB!

Watch my video for insight on Networking!

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Specificity

🎯 What are hard skills?

❗ Hard skills are teachable skills or abilities. They are job-specific and can be learnt through formal training in classrooms, through books or any other training material.

❗ Hard skills are important because they increase employee efficiency, productivity and satisfaction. This is one of the most important skills listed in your resume, as this determines your level of proficiency.

💢 Both soft skills and hard skills are equally important. They are codependent. Soft skills are the driving force behind hard skills. No job can be done without some expertise in a field.

Top 5️⃣ Hard Skills of 2020 (LinkedIn Learning)

🔹 Blockchain

🔹 Cloud Computing

🔹 Analytical Reasoning

🔹 Artificial Intelligence

🔹 UX Design

⚒️ Remember

➕ Include the skills the employer is seeking, in your resume and job applications

➕ Highlight the skills that are the closest match to the job.

➕ Check the employer’s website for any additional information.

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Actions vs. Words

📌 Today we look at interpersonal skills.

➡️ These are soft skills related to the way you communicate and interact with others. Interpersonal skills are one of the top criteria used to evaluate candidates. It is important to get along well with your co-workers, managers and customers.

Types of Interpersonal skills

🗣️ Communication (verbal, non-verbal, public speaking)

👊🏻 Conflict management (conflict resolution, constructive criticism, problem-solving)

😔 Empathy (diversity, respect, sympathy)

🤴🏻 Leadership (encourage, inspire, motivate)

👂🏻 Listening (active listening, focus, understanding)

🤝🏻 Negotiation (negotiating, research, persuasion)

😇 Positive attitude (networking, social skills, developing rapport)

👥 Teamwork (team building, collaboration, group facilitating)

🎯 How do you make Your Skills Stand Out

☑️ SHOW, DON'T TELL

Be sure to use your interpersonal skills to make a good impression.

☑️ BRUSH UP YOUR SKILLS

There are online courses, webinars or seminars that you can take to give your skills a boost.

☑️ BE NICE

Try to remain calm and civil, even in stressful situations.

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Soft Skills

🤔 Did you know that your soft skills are not job-specific? 🤔

👉🏻 Well, they aren’t. 👈🏻

👍🏻 You can use your soft skills anywhere. They are yours to keep. Soft skills are transferable skills.

❓ What are transferable skills?

🔃 Transferable skills are skills that you can transfer from one occupation to another. These are skills which can work in every type of job and that is why they are so important.

*️⃣ So, an excellent point to note here is, if you are lacking experience in the field you are looking for, then transferable skills is a great way to highlight why you are the perfect fit for the role.

Some examples of transferable skills

✅ Leadership

✅ Teamwork

✅ Time Management

✅ Communication

✅ Listening

✅ Prioritization

✅ Delegation

✅ Research & analysis

🎬 Here is a short video that might help you with another transferable soft skill - Problem Solving.

Join us on our FB page Dubai Jobs Hunt https://lnkd.in/dXEFxJu where you can benefit from the insights that are shared or probably you could benefit someone too.

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People. People. People.

People Skills

Your technical skills may get your foot in the door, but your people skills are what matters the most. Your attitude, your communication skills, your emotional intelligence and a whole lot of other personal attributes are the soft skills that are crucial for your career success.

Listen to my video below on the Top 5 most in-demand soft skills rated by LinkedIn Learning.

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Developing Skills

⚠️ What are skills?

Skills are abilities that you develop over time, through life and experiences.

Types of skills

🤝🏻 Soft skills are personal skills that relate to you as a person which includes your personality and behaviour. Soft skills can help you gain confidence. It is useful across all industries and it enhances your chances of achieving your DREAM JOB!

💪🏻 Hard skills are technical skills or teachable skills that are learnt through books or classroom facilities or through various courses and certifications. These are industry-specific and work-related skills that can increase your productivity and efficiency.

There is a whole list of soft skills, but the most common ones are

✅ Communication

✅ Leadership

✅ Teamwork

✅ Time management

✅ Organization

✅ Decision-making

✅ Planning

✅ Networking

Developing soft skills is not an easy task but it is definitely necessary. Most recruiters look for top-notch soft skills and it is important to showcase them for getting the job you want. Hard skills can reveal your experience but soft skills define you as a person.

➕ Refer to job descriptions for required soft skills.

➕ Ask others for constructive feedback on you.

➕ Take online behaviour tests.

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Engage-ability

Boost Your Visibility on LinkedIn

You can only get the results you want by actively selling yourself & engaging.

* Introduction

Your headline is the first thing people see when they view your profile. This section must display information that describes your unique selling points in your professional career. It must showcase key points that will make people want to know you at a glance.

First impressions are lasting impressions! Use a professional image where you are dressed professionally, smiling & looking straight into the camera with a neutral background.

A cover image conveys who you are, professionally. It could be designed to describe your area of work or industry or interests. This will help your profile stand out.

* Share Posts

This is an excellent way to increase your visibility. If your connections find your posts valuable, they might want to check your profile. Posting regularly will help you get noticed. Your first connections could probably engage with a reaction or a comment - which would lead to your post being displayed on their feed.

Engage

It shouldn't be a one-way street where only your network engages. You need to engage too! This will automatically increase your visibility & expand your network.

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S! M! A! R! T! Gooo SMART!

Have you set your goals yet? How S.M.A.R.T are your goals?

What is S.M.A.R.T?

S.M.A.R.T is simply an acronym that helps you to create a successful plan for achieving your goal.

S = SPECIFIC

Your goal needs to be specific, clear and focussed. Example: My goal is to find a job. Now that's very vague! So let's make my goal more specific. Apply for Customer Management related jobs.

M = Measurable

So now I have a specific goal. But I need to measure my progress towards success. So we need to do some research. This means I need to find at least 5 Customer Management related jobs that would interest me.

A = Achievable

Does my goal make sense? Yes! My goal may be challenging but I know I can achieve it. I may need to consider any barriers that I might face, and how to overcome them.

R = Realistic

Considering my skills and experience, my goal is realistic. I believe in myself and I am capable of meeting the job requirements. I am not at an entry-level, applying for a higher post.

T = Timely

All goals require a timeline to achieve success. So set a date. By 20/06/20, I have to find and apply for at least 5 Customer Management related jobs that will interest me.

>REMEMBER<

Define your goals

Write them down

Keep them S.M.A.R.T

Set goals that motivate you

Review them frequently

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Set Your Goals!

Set Your Goals! ⚽️⚽️⚽️🥅

"You can, You should, and if you are brave enough to start, You will."

Before you can begin your job search, you need to spare some time for reflecting on yourself.

What is your goal? 🏋️‍♂️🏋️‍♂️

What do you want? 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️

What is your dream job? 🏆🏆

What do you need to do to achieve the above? 🎉🎉

It is a difficult phase in a job seeker’s life. They are confused and bewildered as to how they are going to make their job search worthwhile.

Am I doing the right thing? 🤔

Will there be someone to help me? 🤔

Will my application be accepted? 🤔

Am I going to be successful at the interview? 🤔

So many questions and no answers.

My suggestion to all job seekers out there:

DEFINE YOUR GOAL. 🏆🏆🏆

SET YOUR TARGETS. 🏆🏆🏆

ACHIEVE YOUR DREAM JOB. 🏆🏆🏆

I have not yet been successful in finding my dream job yet, but I have the faith and belief that it is out there and I just have to keep knocking until my door of opportunity opens for me. 🤗🤗🤗

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Opportunity Comes a-Knockin'

"If Opportunity doesn't knock, then build a door."

Thank you my LinkedIn family for your continuous support.

As mentioned earlier, My book, The ABCs Of Being A Jobseeker, is filled with insights, personal experiences and advice on what a jobseeker's journey is like and what can be done to make a better you. Check out my Courses page to know more.

I maintain a positive approach as we move on from alphabet to alphabet covering experiences, advice, inspiration and motivation. I hope you would be able to understand and acknowledge it. I have kept my material light-hearted through pictures, hoping you could share a laugh as well.

I will cover a piece of advice or motivational tip to help jobseekers sail through their journey of job search.

Are you ready to embark on this journey with me?

Are you ready for a transformation?

Stay tuned as the excitement builds...

Kindly comment, share and tag anyone and everyone who could benefit from this information.

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