Social networking

During a serious job hunt you do need to be a little careful what is posted on some social networking sites. In particular Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. These are the three main sites a few employers will check when they are checking you out. You don't want someone to see photos of you on a drinking binge or postings that can be taken negatively. Your rants about something actually does need to be on a blog like this one your looking at (though you will probably never see me ranting).

The particular employers that will check what is posted are government employers more than most. There are a few others also that will check also but they far and few. Most won't let anyone know that they checked, here in the US that would invite a lawsuit. Governments on the other hand can't usually be sued so it is usually they that will look at your profiles.

In general, the higher the wages the greater the possibility of a social network check occurring. So, I wouldn't worry too much about it for most employers. It won't be a part of the process like the employer that I am working for at present. However, I did work at Comcast and on the US postal service help desk which did check what was posted. My recommendation is that you delete anything the most stringent employer would have an issue with. That's what I did and it paid off, I had a couple of really good paying jobs for a while.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone, powered by Cricket.

Hiring plans

It looks like the best numbers since 2008 on Manpowers hiring intentions survey. 9% of employers in the US are planning to hire in the first quarter of 2012. This is a really good sign for the economy as a whole and some of the best hiring news if you're looking for a job. The only industry that is not hiring at all based on the survey is the construction industry. My viewpoint on the construction industry is that it will many more years before it recovers.

Mining, leisure and hospitality are the largest areas that are planning on hiring. In my own personal survey motels and hotels seem to be doing very well this winter compared to the last two years. It was nice to see agreement between Manpowers nationwide and my local survey done here in Colorado Springs. In my present retail field the outlook is in the average of 9% new openings. Manufacturing was at a 4% of all employers having hiring plans. It looks like based on what I see in the survey my primary employment targets would be nearby hotels and motels.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone, powered by Cricket.

Unemployment headed lower

Into 2012 unemployment will continue to head lower and it will be easier to find a job. I also have noticed that mortgage rates have started increase a bit, so has loan rates. Personally, I feel that the two go hand in hand, loans and employment. Taking a look at the economics most people borrow based on how much their house is worth. Since housing prices dropped so much the average persons net worth also dropped which lowered the amount they could borrow. This reduced the amount of total money in the economy and the amount to employ someone.

Late in 2007 our credit system actually came to a halt for a bit. How I found this out was getting a job at a new Apple help desk. I went through all three interviews successfully, received a job offer and had a start date set. About a week before I was to begin work though the position fell through because Apple was unable to get credit. When a large company like Apple can't get credit you have some serious economic issues and you will have a period of high unemployment. This also occurred during the 1930's so I do correlate the two together.

Since 2007 mortgage rates have dropped a lot along with home prices and it appears they have both bottomed out. This is good for the employment market with the ability for employers to get credit improved. What this will mean is that in 2012 and beyond your chances of finding a job and keeping it. So take heart, everything will be getting better on your chances in the job market.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone, powered by Cricket.

Some jobs

What I'm about to write about only affects a very few in the job market. My present job is in a porn store which is not kindly looked upon by quite a few managers. My recommendation is to not use the word "porn" during an interview. Only call attention to the retail and customer service aspects of the job. You want them focusing on your communication skills, your ability to get along well with others. The interview will go well that way and you will be successful.

This is something that I put into practice a few months ago during an interview. There was a job that I was interviewing for that a recruiter connected with. Having done so much job hunting the last few years I have many online profiles set up. There's almost too many of them to remember though I will say I was called based on my CareerBuilder profile. Nonetheless, keep on track and offer what they are looking for during an interview. You can greatly increase your chances of success.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone, powered by Cricket.

Short and sweet

When it comes to writing a resume, cover letter or application you always need to keep it simple. The fewer the words, the better off you are. This is always the case no matter what the job market is like. Employers don't have a lot of time to go through resumes which is why simple is best always. Long resumes do not have a tendency to get read because of this unless it's a management resume. The higher up into the organization the longer the resume needs to be.

There is also a second factor at play and that is the effect television has had on society. Most of the shows on TV are chopped up into little scenes which has affected many things. Reading resumes is among the things that have been affected. Numerous studies have shown that watching TV shortens attention spans. I'll admit that texting has also had an effect on attention spans to and has probably affected the amount of time that someone will spend reading. With all of these factors keeping it simple is always best with applications at all times.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone, powered by Cricket.

Job openings

Some of what I base my predictions on is the quantity of openings that are available. Years ago I set up email notifications with Beyond, Monster and Careerbuilder. In fact I receive multiple from each job board some days. These emails cover the entire front range of Colorado and some of the mountains. In June I remember only 1-2 jobs posted in each email. Now there are 6-7 postings per day. This tells me that the job market is improving dramatically this year compared to earlier in the year.

Of the jobs I'm seeing posted there is a definite change also. In June most of the postings were for commission only sales positions. Presently, about half of the postings are for full time permanent employment, another roughly 25%-35% are for part time temp positions. The rest needless to say are for commissioned sales positions. Yes, the job market is getting better which I'm very happy about.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone, powered by Cricket.

Customer retention

One thing that will be an important consideration for employers is can you help retain their customers. They have begun to realize it's better to keep a customer than to lose one. While many companies gave lip service to this they didn't really believe it and they showed it in many ways. It was interesting for me to read a job description the other day for a job I used to do. At least half of the posting had to do with retention, keeping a customer. Just a personal observation here but if they had always been paying attention to retention it wouldn't be an issue now. Nonetheless, you will need to show that you can retain a customer when you are applying for job.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone, powered by Cricket.