I receive an email three times every day that includes reporters requests for input to stories - anecdotes, expert speakers, has this ever happened to you? And I pitch to them. Lately I've seen a number of queries on the same topic - how does Facebook help you find a job? This is my answer: Facebook on its own won't help you get a job. Facebook will however help you stay connected to your network. And it is via your network that you'll find your next job.
However, what I have been hearing is that Facebook (and your blog) can cost you a job. Here are a few of the stories I've heard. One hiring manager told me that she'd interviewed a very eager candidate - bright, well educated and probably a little too experienced for the job. But she needed the help and she wasn't about to tell someone in this economy that they were over qualified. Until she checked out his Facebook page. And there in his Facebook page where he had been posting all the details of his job search was the line - I've got this job in the bag. I'm just going to use it to get some money and then as soon as I find something else I'm outa here. Suffice it to say he didn't get the job.
Or the woman who was hiring and was able to get a look at her oh so serious candidate's facebook page which was filled with pictures of the candidate drinking, partying and posts about how she was so wasted. Not exactly what you want your potential boss to see. She moved on to the next candidate. And yes, it's true, everyone has fun on the weekends. You just need to take a moment and stop and think about what you are putting online. While we'd all like to think that our potential bosses only know what we tell them - our resume, our interview, our oh so carefully screened references - in fact our online life is pretty open to the universe.
So my suggestion - stop and think before your post whether you would want your potential hiring manager to see this.
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