Come listen in on my conversation with Pete Kistler, the founder of Brand-Yourself.com, who was named one of Entrepreneur magazine’s Top 5 College Entrepreneur of 2009. He joins me to talk about personal branding as it relates to college students and young professionals.

In this podcast, we define personal branding, talk about Pete’s own personal branding process and explain why students and young professionals need to think about your personal brand — especially the image you’re projecting online.

For more on this topic, here are two great new resources that can help you create and enhance all aspects of your personal brand:

PricewaterhouseCoopers Personal Brand Week – a terrific collection of downloadable worksheets to help you create an elevator pitch, express your passion, build a network, promote yourself online and more. PwC has also collected free personal branding advice on Twitter with the hashtag #pwcpbw.

Student Branding Blog – a new resource expressly designed to help college students with personal branding. This site was created by Dan Schawbel, who also launched the Personal Branding Blog.

Click here to listen to this week’s podcast.

How have you approached personal branding in your career? As always, I welcome your comments below!

TAGS: career advice, Generation Y, personal branding

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about rights and privileges.  Needs and wants.  Obligations and choices.  And I’m hoping every parent will actively assume the responsibility of making sure their children understand and respect the differences. 

What I’ve been thinking is that we adults might be able to explain the differences to our children by drawing some parallels for them.  Parallels that encourage a thrifty, frugal, value-minded approach to growing up.  Parallels that connect them in a healthy way to the mentality of the post-Depression generation of some of our parents rather than the access (and excess) to everything of those of us who are from the Baby Boomer generation.  

I’m not indicting my generation.  I’m just indicating that we Baby Boomers support a positive and responsible financial direction and mindset for the generation we produced.   

Our modern day recession had all the sights and sounds of a depression; we just didn’t call it that.  As a result, I think it’s our obligation as parents to remind our children that nothing is promised, that life and security can be fragile and that stated bluntly – in business, you’re only worth what you are and produce today. 

It may be a sobering thought to them but I think all children should be taught from a very early age to understand that what they want is far less than what they need.  Teach them the mindset:  it’s your money so take it personally.   It will help them make better money choices.

I hope and believe that we Boomers have produced a generation that has the entrepreneurial spirit, independence and motivation of their grand and great-grandparents rather than a generation that will just work for somebody to sign their paycheck. 

Every time I read a post from my Thin Pink Line colleague Lindsey Pollack on Generation Y career and workplace issues – I celebrate.  She confirms my hope:  young adults are building successful careers.  She’s addressing my concern:  teaching/advising organizations on how to maximize the potential of the new workforce.   

Here’s to your health and wealth.

TAGS: Money needs versus money wants

There is a Facebook group called “I Judge You When You Use Poor Grammar.” It currently has over 460,000 members.

I am one of them.

Perhaps because I’m the daughter of an English teacher, I believe in the importance of proper spelling and grammar. Employers of recent college grads agree with me. In a 2007 survey, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas asked executives, “What skill do entry-level job seekers lack the most?” The number one answer by far was written communication.

This means that good writing skills can really help you stand out from the crowd. Good grammar is a competitive advantage. If your writing skills need some improvement, here are 7 quick tips to help you:

1. Lead with your main point. In professional writing, you are communicating in order to accomplish something, so get to the point. For instance, when you’re writing an email, state the purpose of your email in the first paragraph. When you’re writing a cover letter, state the exact job you’re applying for in the first sentence or two. Don’t make people wade through loads of details before they understand why you’re writing in the first place.

2. Be concise. Speaking of getting to the point, do it quickly and then wrap up. We live in a world of multi-taskers, so conciseness is the only way to keep people’s attention (140 characters is quickly becoming our average attention span). When I review resumes, cover letters and networking emails, my first piece of advice to the writer is almost always, “make it shorter.” When you write concise, powerful sentences and paragraphs, people are more likely to pay attention. Long, rambling communications get deleted.

3. Don’t trust spell check. Because you’re a generation that’s grown up with spell check, you tend to rely on it way too much. Spell check doesn’t catch errors like confusing “effect” and “affect” or “there,” “their” and “they’re.” And it never catches misspellings of the names of people, products or companies. When in doubt, have a human being check your work, not a computer.

4. Use proper capitalization and punctuation. my biggest pet peeve when it comes to emails i receive from college students is when everything is in lower case and there is very little punctuation if any at all trust me its not cute its really unprofessional so please dont do it thnx. AND NOTE THAT ALL CAPS MAKES IT LOOK LIKE YOU ARE YELLING.

5. Limit those exclamation points! This is another big pet peeve among the older professionals I meet!! Young people use way too many exclamation points!!!

6. Consult a writing manual. What do you do when you are unsure of a grammar or punctuation usage? If you’re like most people, you shrug your shoulders and say, “Well, hope I got that right!” This is not a wise strategy. Instead, consult a writing website or manual such as The Chicago Manual of Style or the Associated Press Style Guide. Taking a few extra seconds to look up a rule can land you a job or a promotion — it’s more than worth it.

7. Don’t hide behind your keyboard. Finally, don’t write when you should pick up the phone or talk to someone in person. Remember that the written word — especially in the form of an email — doesn’t always correctly convey the tone you intend. And, in situations like giving bad news, quitting a job or criticizing someone’s work, writing is simply a cop-out. Although it’s hard to have difficult conversations in person, you’ll thank yourself for doing the right thing.

What are your best writing tips? Please share!

Note: This blog post originally appeared on my “College to Career” blog on MyPath.com.

TAGS: Communication Skills, Generation Y

What are the major hiring trends on campus this year? What are the best strategies for finding an entry-level job? What are the biggest mistakes students make in the job search process?

To answer these questions and more, I spoke with with Trudy Steinfeld, Executive Director of the Wasserman Center for Career Development at New York University, and Manny Contomanolis, Associate Vice President and Director of Co-op and Career Services at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Don’t miss the opportunity to hear top tips from two of the best career services professionals in the country!

Listen to the podcast interview now.

Note: This post originally appeared on my “College to Career” blog at MyPath.com.

TAGS: career advice, Job Search

In addition to the fantastic financial advice Valerie provides on this blog, this week I’m excited to share a podcast interview I recently conducted with Manisha Thakor, financial literacy expert and co-author of two great books on personal finance, On My Own Two Feet and Get Financially Naked.

In this 15-minute segment, Manisha answers the questions on the minds of today’s college students and recent grads, such as:

- What are the most important financial steps to take in your 20s?

- What are the biggest mistakes to avoid in your 20s?

- How can college students make good decisions about how much student loan debt to take on?

- What are the best ways to save money and live on a budget?

- What are the important financial steps to take when starting a new job?

Don’t miss this essential information for you and your wallet! Listen to the podcast now.

TAGS: 20 to 29 year old women and money, Generation Y, Money Basics

Last Tuesday evening I gave a talk for students visiting New York City from American University. Besides the fact that I got to speak at a very cool venue – the stage of Caroline’s Comedy Club in Times Square – something else cool happened. When I asked how many students were on Twitter, almost half of the audience raised their hands.

Granted, it was a room of students seeking communications careers, who are more likely to enjoy the hyper-communication of Twitter. But, it was the first time I’ve seen so many college students involved in the three-year-old micro-blogging site.

If you haven’t yet checked out Twitter, you should. If you’re not familiar with Twitter, it’s a free social networking site that allows only 140 characters per announcement or “tweet.” Get rid of any preconceived notions you might have that Twitter is a waste of time where people post silly messages about their cats and what they had for breakfast. While some people do tweet about nonsense, there are many, many other people whose tweets can be incredibly valuable to your career.

My philosophy is that I follow people on Twitter for three reasons:

1. I follow people I admire or whom I want to work with someday, so I can learn what those people are thinking or talking about.

2. I follow people who tweet out great career advice and help me learn something new.

3. I follow people who share interesting news, articles and announcements that help me stay up-to-date in my industry or the world in general.

You can follow this same strategy by following professionals you admire, companies you’d like to work for someday, career advisors who provide free advice and news outlets that will keep you up-to-date on current events. While there are hundreds of people I could recommend, part of the fun of Twitter is making your own unique list of people to follow. To help get you started I’ve put together a list of 10 of my favorite college-to-career tweeters:

www.twitter.com/lindseypollak – that’s me!

http://twitter.com/MyPath_Manpower – Tweets, news and updates from all of my fellow bloggers at MyPath.

http://twitter.com/alevit – Alexandra Levit is the author of “They Don’t Teach Corporate in College” and many other career advice books for young professionals.

http://twitter.com/CAREEREALISM – Careerealism offers loads of advice from a variety of career experts, all in one Twitter feed.

http://twitter.com/DanSchawbel – Dan Schawbel is founder of the Student Branding Blog and tweets about personal branding for college students and recent grads.

http://twitter.com/InternQueen – InternQueen is a great resource for – you guessed it – internships.

http://twitter.com/SalaryExpert – SalaryExpert’s tweets help you answer that dreaded question, “What are your salary requirements?”

http://twitter.com/Under30CEO – Under 30 CEO offers inspiring tweets that motivate you to go for your biggest career goals.

http://twitter.com/willyf – Willy Franzen is the founder of One Day, One Job and One Day, One Internship – sites that share information about one potential employer every day.

http://twitter.com/WSJcareers – Wise advice from contributors to the Wall Street Journal Career Journal.

Who else do you recommend for career-minded college students to follow on Twitter? Please share in the comments section below!

This post originally appeared on Lindsey’s College to Career Blog at www.mypath.com.

TAGS: career advice, Generation Y, social networking

I’ve always loved new beginnings — the first day of a new month, the turning of a new season, even the sunrise of a new day (on the rare occasion I’m up early enough to see it). Of course there is no bigger new beginning than the turning of the calendar to January 1.

This year in particular, the New Year feels like a crucial fresh start. 2009 will go down in the books as one of the hardest years ever for job seekers, especially those looking for entry-level work. If you’ve had a tough time in 2009, or even if it’s been a great year for you, here are some tips for starting 2010 on a successful note.

1. Out With the Old. To make room for new things in your life (a great job, fresh ideas, more money, a strong network, etc.) you need to get rid of any clutter that is weighing you down. This might include critical people, a job that drains your energy, college junk piled in your closet or self-defeating thoughts like “I’ll never get a job in this economy.” For inspiration, check out two of my favorite resources on the topic of simplifying and decluttering: the Zen Habits Blog and Julie Morgenstern’s book, Shed Your Stuff, Change Your Life.

2. Set Quality (not Quantity) Goals. We all know that New Year’s resolutions are generally forgotten by February. So, instead of making a long list of “rules” for my year, I prefer to declare three to five big goals or priorities. I keep them in a little note file on my computer and on a little card pasted on the inside cover of the notebook I use every day. I peek at my list constantly to remind myself what my priorities are, how I want to spend my time and what opportunities I should not pursue. If you need help clarifying your goals, check out Your Best Year Yet! Ten Questions for Making the Next Twelve Months Your Most Successful Ever.

Read the rest of this blog post on my “College to Career” blog on MyPath.com — a great new career resource for college students and recent grads…

TAGS: career advice, Job Search

Many thanks to William Arruda, founder of Reach Personal Branding and author of Career Distinction: Stand Out by Building Your Brand, for interviewing me recently. Our topic was “Getting from College to Career in Tough Times” and here is an overview of the topics we covered:

- Why careers for Gen Y are fundamentally different than previous generations’ careers
- How college students and recent grads can avoid the biggest mistake in job hunting
- What parents can do to help
- What universities can do to help
- Why social media is changing job hunting/career development forever

Download and listen to our conversation.

TAGS: personal branding

It’s no secret that 2009 has not been the easiest of years for most college students and young professionals; however, over the past year there have certainly been bright spots. Today, in honor of Thanksgiving and the start of the holiday season, I wanted to share some of the positive trends I’ve noticed this year.

More resources to help students and recent grads. While we’ve lost some bloggers and websites this year, we’ve also welcomed many helpful new resources for young professionals. I’m particularly grateful for the resources I find myself recommending over and over again, such as UrbanInterns.com, LinkedIn’s Grad Guide and Twitter lists (check out my list of career/workplace experts to follow).

University career centers serving more alumni. Resources for more experienced job seekers are growing as well — and some of that growth is coming from college career centers, which traditionally only served students. Almost every career services professional I spoke with this year mentioned the influx of alumni calling for their help. One career director at an Ivy League university told me that, for the first time ever, they’ve added a dedicated staff person to service alumni.

I think this is a great thing: as people face more career changes and job hunts, they need more resources to turn to. While I do suspect that career centers will begin charging their alums (currently the vast majority serve alumni for free), I believe this trend is here to stay. Perhaps in the future university career services will become more of a lifelong resource rather than a one-time stopover.

Students getting smarter about the pros and cons of social media. As the campus spokesperson for LinkedIn, I have a unique insight into this topic. Student participation on LinkedIn, the professional social network, is growing exponentially, and many students are learning for the first time that social networking can help them professionally. For many students, this is carrying over into the way they use Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social sites. Many of these sites are still primarily social, but I’ve noticed more awareness among students that recruiters are Googling them, which means they need to be smart about what they’re putting on the web. I hope that in 2010 we see more tools that help all professionals better separate the personal from the professional online.

Ditto for employers. At the same time, recruiters are paying far more attention to social sites and trying to figure out how to use them to find entry-level candidates. Over the past year, I’ve seen companies making more strategic decisions about which social media sites to use and what policies to implement when it comes to connecting with students, vetting students and retaining young employees. We certainly have a long way to go, but 2009 should go down in the books as the first year social media became part of HR manuals and recruiting guidelines.

Wider definitions of “job” and “career.” I recently wrote a blog post that generated a lot of discussion. It was about the way careers are now more pyramid-shaped than ladder-shaped. In 2009, I’ve observed so many young people creating unique career paths through various combinations of part-time work, virtual work, freelancing, entrepreneurship, paid interning, volunteer-to-temp-to-perm and beyond. The economy is in a huge state of flux right now and the people who get creative are the ones who will get ahead.

Finally, I am so grateful to all of you who read our blog, share your comments and keep me inspired every day. Happy holiday season and thank you for your ongoing support!

This post originally appeared on the Lindsey Pollak Career Blog.

TAGS: career advice, Generation Y, trends

At Thanksgiving dinner this week, parents and other relatives are bound to ask their Gen Y children, “How’s that job search coming along?”

While some people fear this question, I encourage job seekers to embrace it. Why not use your family’s interest as an opportunity? If you’re comfortable asking your loved ones for help, there are several ways you can enlist their support — appropriately — in your job search efforts.

Listen to some tips on this topic in my new podcast.

TAGS: Generation Y, Job Search