Gettin' the Itch

I feel like I start to get itchy around this time every year. Usually the itch is to change something small - maybe my hair, my wardrobe, the furniture in my apt.

This year, I've started to get itchy about everything. Literally all of it. And I've been particularly itchy about my living situation. As in, do I want to continue living in Chicago.

To people who know me well this probably isn't a surprise. I moved to Chicago almost 3 years ago from New York to be closer to my family. And while I now am closer to my family, I'm also far away from my college friends - and to me these are the kind of friends that know me inside and out. I was back in New Jersey earlier this summer for a friend's wedding and my friends and I had one of the best weekends - no drama, lots of laughing, drinking and reminiscing.

After I got home all I wanted to do was be back out east. I immediately booked a trip to Boston in August to go visit everyone. And really started to consider if I wanted to move back east.

When I moved out here originally, the plan had always been to move back east eventually. Chicago was meant to be a re-centering of sorts - I wanted to get back on track financially, back on track with my family and friends from high school, and back to a good place of mind. And I feel as though I'm at that place now.

But does that warrant a move back to New England? I'm not sure.

But what I do know is that I'm ready to move on from my company. I've been at my current job now for almost 3 years. I love my co-workers to death. They are literally my best friends in Chicago. I love my boss. But I really think it's time I got my career moving forward instead of sideways and unfortunately I'm stuck sideways at this company right now.

So while I try and figure out if Boston is right for me, I've started the job search here in Chicago to help my job itches. Maybe all I need to help satisfy these urges is a new job and new challenges. Or maybe I'll find what I really need is a new city with old friends.

Being the Ex

by Working Girl One

Working at a company that rewards and promotes its employees is a great thing for Working Girls. It shows that your managers respect you and want you to succeed. Not to mention internal promotion keeps employees happy. When a job opens up and an internal candidate fits the bill, it makes the most sense to offer the position to the internal candidate.

On the flip side, interviewing at this type of company as an external candidate is not so great. That is of course, if you get in the door. Some companies don't even post job openings or reach out to external candidates. They go right to the internal candidate.

Others like to see what is out there. They bring you in, bring you back and maybe even bring you back again. Then they thank you for interviewing and tell you the position has been offered to an internal candidate.

This has happened to me once during my recent job search. It's happened to my boyfriend. It's happened to plenty of other Working Girls I know. And am I right that everyone's reaction is "C'mon, really?!"

Part of me understands why a hiring manager would like to see what is out there. Another part of me knows that much more often than not the company hires the internal person if it comes down to the internal candidate and external candidate. For the internal person it's great, but the flip side is so frustrating.

Social Media and the Job Hunt

by Social Media Working Girl

When I was a senior in college, I sent my resume everywhere. The last thing I wanted was to graduate and be jobless--and the idea of living at home was not an option. Thankfully, I had some PR contacts from my interning days and was able to use them to network and connect with others in the industry. But my personal experience was much different than today's job search.

In fact, with the advent of so many exciting social media tools, there are a variety of resources available online to take advantage of and using these sites throughout your job search can help you tremendously along the way. Two sites that I find particularly helpful are LinkedIn and Twitter. And here's why.

LinkedIn

We've all heard the spiel. LinkedIn is the "professional" social media outlet. Consider it your "online resume," if you will. And believe it or not, this is absolutely true.

By posting your resume on LinkedIn, prospective employers and contacts can search your qualifications, background, skill sets and knowledge base, and garner a basic understanding of who you are as a professional working woman. You can join discussion groups, network with professional associations and view job listings. It's a great resource for your career--before and after the job hunt.

Twitter

In addition to LinkedIn group discussions, there are a number of chats that occur regularly on Twitter. These are hosted by various moderators and are open for anyone to join. By participating in these online chats, you begin to engage a niche audience that will quickly recognize who you are and become familiar with what it is you are looking for and interested in. Check out the many great Twitter chats available.

Additionally, by actively participating on Twitter by posting relevant and interesting content--via chats or simply by tweeting regularly--you will most likely gain a following of some sort. Continue the conversation further and use these followers as potential resources on your job search.

A couple notes...

Maintaining professionalism while also staying personal is what makes for an effective social media experience. Sure, these tools are entertaining and can oftentimes be an outlet from our working girl lives, but it's important to think carefully about how you market yourself.

What kind of personal brand are you creating? How do you want to be perceived? What do you want people to know (or not know) about you? Remember to be mindful of how you want to be heard.

Lastly, I advise you to embrace these tools on your job search. The career world and business arena as we know it have drastically changed. And this is only the beginning.

Have you used social media tools to land a job? What was your experience?