LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Myspace. These seem to be the top social networking sites used by people around the world. The Today Show did a segment this morning called Online Etiquette. There is some good information here. Take a look at the video and let me know what you think! Scroll down and leave a comment.

Video Credit: MSNBC

This has to be one of the most phenomenal stories I have heard in a long time about networking your way into a job. Blogging of all things! Great idea! Here is the podcast from Secrets of the Job Hunt. Take a listen, leave a comment. I will share more of my thoughts later.Find more videos like this on Secrets of the Job Hunt Network

Here is the balance of the first 12 hours of the Great Blog Off Gina and I did on Friday June 20th. I apologize for the delay.

Here’s the list:

Hour 7: Video Instruction: Don’t Underestimate the Power of Your Smile - Check out this one minute video from collegegrad.com. People do prefer to meet pleasant people during the interview process. Your smile might be the one thing that separates you from the other strong candidates. But, watch the video.

Hour 8: Behavioral Interviewing: Assessing Customer Focus Skills - can’t think of a single organization or business that isn’t concerned with customer service. Customer service is not just important in retail where there are obvious customers. Where I work, our customers are patients and even doctors and nurses. Read more>>>

Hour 9: Enhance Your LinkedIn Profile for Job Seeking - In light of the fact that linkedin has become and looks to be a continued source of choice for people who love to hire passive job seekers (those who may not actually be seeking a new job), I thought it would be a good idea to remind readers to pay attention to your Linkedin profile! Read more>>>

Hour 10: How One Environmental Services Startup Uses Social Networking To Recruit - We don’t use traditional recruiting methods. Why would we when we are a non-traditional company? We find people to join our team via personal word of mouth. We network and market through social media, like blogs, Facebook, LinkedIn, and our own www.brighterplanet.com. We have yet to use a search firm and don’t anticipate doing so any time soon. Read more>>>

Hour 11: Baby Boomers Face Hiring Hurdles - When Baby Boomers claim “experience” and “reliability” in interviews, they are reinforcing the hiring hurdles faced by older workers. There, instead, needs to be a new focus to interviews. Read more>>>

Hour 12: Behavioral Interviewing: Assessing Problem Solving and Analysis Skills - From my experience, the behavior interview questions around problem solving are the hardest for candidates to answer. Problem solving is tricky but even though candidates struggle with these questions, they can be the most important ones to ask, especially if you are interviewing candidates for leadership positions. Read more>>>

To see the remaining 12 hours. Click the this link! Thank you to all who participated and visited Interview Chatter!

Check out this one minute video from collegegrad.com. People do prefer to meet pleasant people during the interview process. Your smile might be the one thing that separates you from the other strong candidates. But, watch the video. Let me know what you think!

_________________________________________Thank you for taking the time to join us for the The Great Blog Off. Feel free to donate to the Business Channel Charity Accion. Accion helps small businesses all over the world to become established through small, manageable loans and business advice. This concept of microlending is fabulous and their payback record is impressive. Click here to make a donation>>>

This is a great video, a unique video about interviewing at Google. I would say that there are key things to take away from this video. But, I am getting ahead of myself. Watch the video and then finish my post.

Keys you can use whether you are interviewing with Google or some other cutting edge organization.

1. Look at your interview as a dialog, a conversation. Not an interrogation
2. Your ability to communicate your problem-solving abilities is key to a successful interview.
3. Get to know the people as you are interviewing with them.
4. Assess the organization - is it the right place for you? Can you work with these people?
5. Relax and have fun!
6. Maintain your professional demeanor

My husband sent this video to me at work a couple of days ago. I laughed a lot while watching it because I needed to laugh. Mostly because I was frustrated with a colleague at work in the same moment the email arrived. That moment has come and gone, and I thought there may be some lessons we could learn. Here’s your assignment: Watch the video and enjoy it. LAUGH! It really is funny.

Now that you have seen it, watch it again and think about what happens in the course of your day at work. Can you see anyone in your office in this video? How about you? What needs to happen differently in the workplace to ensure that something like this doesn’t happen? After watching this video and laughing about this video, I began to think about the frustration people feel on their jobs - DAILY. I await your thoughts! Have a Good Day!

Back in the mid 80’s when I began working as an adult, it took me less than 90 days to get decent paying job when I needed a job. I didn’t know a lot about getting hired, but I knew that if I presented myself well, had enthusiasm, and could demonstrate relative competency to do the job I was interviewing for, I would get the job.

Today, you can be in the job market for a year and still not get a decent offer. I am talking about qualified candidates. Valuable people, looking for work and struggling to get the phone to ring. So, what do you do?

Here are a few things to keep in mind during your job search:

1. Retool your resume

2. Get feedback about your resume from an expert

3. Write a cover letter

4. Proofread your resume, and then proofread it again

Video Instruction: Cover Letter & Resume Secrets Revealed by Kevin Donlan

Your Resume and Cover Letter is your key to entry into an organization. There are no guarantees, no matter how good your resume and cover letter are - it only gives you access to get in the front door. Once you are in the door, the resume and cover letter become a guide to the hiring manager. The rest is up to you! You are the product!

Video Credit: Kevin Donlan from YouTube

Here is an interesting video I found on youtube tonight. For hiring managers, here are some simple principles that are geared toward small businesses. I believe these principles are good for any segment of the business world you may find yourself. Principles are transferable.

Summary - Microsoft - Hiring the Right People

1. Do business with people you like

2. Look in their eyes and their heart and see if they believe in what you are trying to accomplish

3. Develop a list of outstanding people

4. Build relationships with outstanding people

Resume and cover letters are great ways to find talent, but don’t rely on those two data points to make your decisions. Your success depends on the people you hire and bring into your organization.