Career Crossroads

I went to this simply amazing workshop last night: Crossroads Career Network. It was held at Elmbrook Church in Brookfield WI (www.elmbrook.org/resources/crossroad.asp). I don't know how I've missed this resource -- it's exactly what I need. The workshop reignited the faith in myself that YES, I can actually do this -- with some help.

In Crossroads we get the opportunity to network with like individuals in different phases of their journey as well as hear from speakers who have successfully managed a career crosswords in their life, and learn about relevant topics such as resume development, interview tips, networking, changing career paths, and much more. Breakout sessions after the main presentation allow career explorers to ask questions in a small group setting and learn more about a variety of career related subjects.

Last night's workshop was on LinkedIn -- the phenomonal social networking site. The presenter was Wayne C. Breitbarth (http://www.mmmoffice.com/), he was introduced as the LinkedIn guru for Southeastern Wisconsin. I can certainly see why!! He was energetic, engaging, funny, knowledgeable, and many additional adjectives that I can't seem to come up with right now. I was impressed with myself when he asked how many in the room were on LinkedIn and I raised my hand -- along with about 75% of the attendees. OK, so maybe I'm not so much of a trend setter afterall . . . when he asked how many people have over 500 connections I quickly realized that this guy travels on a different cyberspace highway than I . . . when he asked for 100 connections about 3/4 of the LinkedIn group raised their hands . . . 50, some more. I was hoping that he'd get to my level of exposure (25) but he passed on that.

So, what did I learn?

- Cool, my profile is 100% complete (hooray)

- I should try and get at least 60+ connections to get the value of my network

- Need to review my home page often to see who's looking at my profile (build hope)

- Join some more groups and be active in them

- Research, try, research some more

So, once I figure out this whole SN thing: blog, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter I'll be on my way to being totally plugged in, right? Here I come . . .