How a blog can jump start your career

Jump start your career

Why you should blog

Does the thought of starting a blog scare you? Like most people thinking about starting a blog, I didn’t think anyone but my dog and I would see the content. I am unfamiliar with SEO and how to promote content on Twitter. My reasons for starting a blog are not to show I can generate traffic or be popular. Blogs can show a side of you that others would be interested in working with as an employer, employee, vendor, customer, or subject matter expert.

I recently got my hair cut. I was talking with the owner about why she should start a blog. She had worked for 10 years at a high-end salon that is very well-known in the city and is a preferred stylist for one of the landmark wedding locations in our area. She’s got chops.  She has a lot of insight to share on how to get the best haircut from your stylist.  Think of her as a much hotter version of Anthony Bourdain and his book Kitchen Confidential.  He gives you a behind-the-scenes look at the restaurant business. With this information, you can leverage a better dining experience.   With her insight, you can leverage a better hairstyle.

I have listed several reasons for starting a blog below. Until I started posting, I didn’t realize how much of a difference it would make.

What is a brand?

In the past, I thought of the positives listed below as literally one-word descriptions. “Brand” and “identity,” for instance. I knew writing a blog would help my “brand,” but I wasn’t exactly sure how. I used to think a brand was something you burned into the ass of a cow. Now, I am the cow, and it is my ass that is burning.

Blogs don’t have to be about work. They can be your hobby, your cause, your family. I have a good friend, a fishing guide with a Master’s degree. His blog EvoAngler.com helps him guide business. If he ever gives up his dream job and goes 9-5, the blog’s longevity and writing style will help differentiate him from other candidates. His experience is what most would view as living an extreme lifestyle.

This Grumpy Old Man is a good friend and a recruiter and blogs about whatever is on his mind.   Sometimes, it is about hiring, but most times, it is not. Articulate, thought-provoking, and funny.  Yes, I would want to work with this guy.

What do I get?

I started a blog to have a place to categorize thoughts and a resource for the candidates I work with who are looking for a job. I used to help one person every couple of weeks with advice. This blog has pushed that number to a point where a day doesn’t go by, and I am asked about HR, and this is from strangers. Here is what I think I am getting from writing a blog, and I hope it encourages you to do the same:

Branding

Street cred, thought leadership, call it what you want.  I am still working on street cred, but my theory is that anytime you write something, it has more staying power than verbalizing it. Publish it on the web, and the potential for readership is unlimited. Anytime someone sees a stack of notes and ideas on a single topic authored by one person, it lends credibility.  Being right is relative, but an opinion that can be backed up by logic always helps. Recruiters and managers look for these qualities.

Education

Writing a topic new to your audience forces you to think about how you will get your point across clearly and engagingly.  Writing here has reinforced my ideas and helped me discover my own set of practices I take for granted in my daily life.

Dedication

I post once a week, maybe 3 times in 2 weeks. From a recruiter’s or a manager’s standpoint, anytime you do something for an extended period consistently, it shows “another level of maturity.”  It shows that you are NOT someone who tries something out for 2 weeks and then quits. Remember the tennis racket your parents bought you?  The roller skates?  The skis?  All these expensive toys are sitting in the closet, waiting to be documented on Craigslist. You were excited and then, 2 months later, bored.  What do your parents think every time they see those expensive toys?

Showing support for your company

Using your blog as a vehicle for supporting your company is always a good thing. Some companies don’t allow posts related to the company. You can still post about the industry and not mention your company.  If I think I have anything controversial to post, I will run it by our Marketing department. Most managers want folks on their team who eat their own dog food. Employees who are so excited about what they do and who they do it for that they tell the entire world.

Communication/writing style

As a way to teach others, this blog was originally going to be a rant based on all the dumb ass things I see in interviews and the workplace.  But no one is going to take me seriously with that type of attitude. It isn’t an attitude I would want to hire or work with. A blog can show that you have a brain and have ideas, and it is a pretty good indication of how you will write and think on behalf of a business. 

Industry Knowledge

A blog is an excellent way to show industry knowledge. This is especially important if you are unemployed.  Many recruiters will shy away from someone unemployed because the stereotype is that they have lost touch.  A blog can show you are staying current on the latest issues, technologies, concerns, etc. Bloggers can point to specific posts in your interviews and cover letters to show this is not the case.

Recruiters do go to Facebook and LinkedIn to check your social graph.  Show them a much more articulate side of yourself with a blog.

See you at the after party,
HRNasty

nasty: an unreal maneuver of incredible technique, something that is ridiculously good, tricky, and manipulative but with a result that can’t help but be admired, a phrase used to describe someone good at something. “He has a nasty forkball”.

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