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Getting Laid Off? Searching for a Job? Get Going with LinkedIn

By: Marijean Jaggers | 03/09/2009

At this point, it's becoming an epidemic. Everyone knows someone facing the reality of corporate downsizing. We groaned, collectively, when someone shared at a Standing Partnership team meeting, the new buzz-term "reducing liveware" -- a more disgusting spin on laying people off, I've never heard. I prefer the way the English put it; "being made redundant." It's a bit gentler, but you get the point. Others, not facing a job elimination may be searching, encouraged, somewhat unintentionally, by salary freezes, shrinking benefits and a changing culture.

The advice I've given again and again, to those approaching me to keep them in mind for work or job opportunities, is get on LinkedIn (and Facebook, if you're not already there) and get your network working for you. For those who haven't searched for a job in quite some time, or maybe not ever (as some I know are getting booted from companies they've served for more than 20 years), social networking is the way the job search is done today. Yes, the rest of the process is the same as you remember it; it's all about who you know. The addendum to this is: "it's all about who you know, and who THEY know." The way to find that out is to join LinkedIn, upload the contacts you have saved in your Outlook, your Gmail, your Hotmail, your Yahoo e-mail accounts, update your profile (or completely fill it out, including a recent photo. Start mining your contacts by reviewing those to whom they're connected. Identify the "connectors" in your network -- often those who have more than 200 contacts or so. Who in your network can help you find a new job? Don't be afraid to ask; it's definitely how the job search works in this age, and it's as important to know that, as it is to know what kind of opportunity you're looking for.

Here are some helpful posts about using LinkedIn to help your job search:

Guy Kawasaki offers Ten Ways to Use LinkedIn to Find a Job

Dave Taylor shares Best Practices for a LinkedIn Job Search

Posted in Digital Communications