Prepping for Great Day Houston

From a recent segment I did for Great Day Houston on using social media to find a job:

To start:

Looking for a job is a full-time job, treat it as such. Plan to spend time on your efforts and be consistent with those efforts.

Know what you want going in, a general idea is ok but some idea – what industry, what position, what location, what salary.

Do your homework, Google that industry, position, location, salary as well as the person doing the interview and the competition.

Google yourself and make sure nothing negative comes up. If so, spend some time cleaning up that link/post.

Clean up your pages – posts, pictures, videos, anything inappropriate friends have tagged you in.  Don’t rush, spend some time doing this. This could be the number one reason you don’t get that job.

Then and only then:

LinkedIn: Your online resume and headhunter resource, many using this platform to fill positions

LinkedIn: Professional picture

LinkedIn: This is your resume.  Make it look sharp and professional

Twitter: More like an industry happy hour with co-workers and acquaintances, mingle, listen, meet, contribute

Twitter: Position yourself as a leader/expert in your field.

Twitter: Share interesting articles/blogs/information in your field.

Twitter: Follow people in the industry/company you want to work for, ‘re-tweet’ them occasionally, develop a relationship

Facebook: More like a friend or neighbor’s party or even a party at your house. You can be more personable and these should be the people you can ask for advice and help

Facebook: Ask for what you need, what you are looking for.

Facebook: Let friends/family know you are looking, be clear on what you are looking for, ask for introductions/contacts

Facebook: Be very appreciative of any efforts on your behalf

Don’t:

Misspell words and use bad grammar.

Type in all caps.

Use abbreviations like WTF and LOL

Be negative.

Be smarmy.

Be mean or rude.

Use foul language.

Complain.

Say it isn’t fair you don’t have a job.

Have questions?

Happy to help. Email me at dayna@daynasteele.com

It’s early in the morning as I sit with a cup of coffee on this first day of January 2012 trying to figure out how to explain to others who will inevitably ask what I did for New Year’s Eve.  They always expect such an entertaining answer from a former rock diva and seem so disappointed when I say “nothing.”

Oh, I try. I went down the street to a neighbor’s perfectly great party last night.  I lasted until 9:00.  Only a few times in my life have I made it to midnight on New Year’s Eve, usually when I was being paid to do so.  Money can be a wonderful motivator for ringing in the New Year.

I just don’t get excited about New Year’s Eve.  Or anniversaries, birthdays, the 4th of July, St. Patrick’s Day and, here in Texas, Cinco de Mayo.  Yep.  All just another day to me filled with forced celebrations.

Lest you think I am an unfeeling monster like Showtime’s Dexter, allow me to explain.

I treat EVERY DAY as if it were special and worth celebrating.  I don’t need a date on a calendar to vow to be better. I don’t need a date on the calendar to profess my undying love to Charlie the Wonder Husband.  I don’t need a date on a calendar to celebrate the fact I am alive for another year.  I don’t need a date on the calendar to start being healthy. I don’t need a date on a calendar to let others know they are special.

When you live your life and run your business this way, every day is filled with celebratory fireworks. So, I challenge you. How will you spend every day celebrating?

Happy Every Day.

The Only New Year’s Resolution You Need
5 Things To Do Every Day For Success

Whenever possible, always say yes to an invitation to do just about anything – a lunch, a meeting, anything with anyone.  It is always a great way to grow your network.  Speaker and author Craig Price took me up on a Facebook invitation posting and ended up on this podcast. www.speakercraigprice.com

Click here to listen: Speaker Craig Price

For those of us who spend days, weeks, months on the road – standing in security lines, squeezing into too tiny airline seats, eating bad road food, trying to remember what color car we rented, what tonight’s hotel room number is and wondering how long the meeting will go on – I have some suggestions to make it just a little bit better:

• Do a little research ahead of time and give yourself the right to explore or visit a landmark.  I’ve walked the deck of the USS Lexington, driven the world’s most crooked street (and alley), visited the largest mall in the US, and posed in front of the American Gothic House, just to name a few. Make it a part of your plan and see something. Allow yourself to have a bit of fun.
• Mingle with the participants, not just business networking.  Learn who they are, what they do, where they are from, what they like. Your next big client or best friend could be in that crowd.  You never know.  By the way, I highly suggest staying away from alcohol and having a soft drink or juice for this.
• Talk to the locals, like the waitress or the person at the front desk. Ask about the area, what they like about it, what it is like to live there.  I gained a whole new appreciation for the farmers in America’s Heartland, Iowa, just talking to the employees in the restaurant the night before a speech.
• Make a plan ahead of time to exercise each day even if it’s just for 15 minutes.  Walk outside, walk the stairs in the hotel or office building, find a fitness center, just get it moving.   I promise you’ll feel better for doing it later in the day. And you’ll have more energy.
• Eat and drink right.  Stay away from the rich foods and alcohol. Moderation is okay, but again, you’ll feel better and have more energy to do what it is you came to do making you look like the pro and expert you are.
• Read a book, rent a movie, watch a TV show – something not work related. Give your brain a chance to rest and reload.  I have recently become a ‘Gleek” – a huge fan of Glee.  My last trip, I downloaded all the episodes I had missed and watched them on the plane.  The flight went faster, I barely noticed the seat size and bad food, and I had a smile on my face when I got off the plane.
• Close your eyes. Breathe.  Unhunch your shoulders. Just for a moment.

Now go get’em Road Warrior!

We hit Noah’s Ark in Bacliff, Texas yesterday for a beer and burger. OK, Nick’s 11 years old, he had a Sprite.

Gorgeous weather, an amazing view of the bay with all the boats out for a Saturday afternoon, a restaurant/dive dripping withpersonality, the best burgers, coldest beer and a patio full of members of the Gypsy MC.  Bikers.  They are probably all dentists, doctors, lawyers and the such on weekdays but yesterday they were bikers having a good time on a great day.

As we left, an older couple, probably in their late 80′s, walked out of the bar. They were dressed like your Grandma and Grandpa but had their biker vests over that.  They were holding hands and had the most contented stride to their walk and smiles on their faces. I wish I could have gotten a picture for you.  I woke up with that image in my head today. It made me smile.  This couple gets it. They are true to themselves and true to each other.

Can you say that about yourself?  Are you true to yourself, following your heart, your passion? And are you true to your partner?  Can you smile that contented smile and walk that walk?

If not, figure out why. Today.

Jimmy Fallon, host of NBC’s Late Night, was recently asked about hosting his hit evening talk show. He had a great observation, that it’s like throwing a party. When you have a party, you can have fun but ultimately it is your responsibility to make sure everyone else is having fun, that there is plenty to eat and drink.  That’s the key to a successful party.

That is also a great definition of networking. It may be your party but you need to make sure everyone else is taken care of and having a good time. That’s what makes for the best party…or networking.

Dayna is the author of Rock to the Top: What I Learned about Success from the World’s Greatest Rock Stars. Her next book “I’m With the Band: Network Your Way into Anything, Anywhere, Anytime” is scheduled for release in January 2011.

In the September 2010 issue of Southwest Airlines Spirit magazine, there is a great tidbit of information about cows. I know because I have read it six times this month already.  Seems that cows with names produce 68 more gallons of milk every 10 months than cows without names.  Farmers who referred to their cows by name saw a spike in production. That made me think of Martha…..who is not a cow by the way.

I walk into the same post office in the same small town at the same time and say hello to the same cleaning woman almost every weekday morning.  It wasn’t long after I started this routine that I introduced myself and asked the woman her name. Martha. Her name is Martha.

This morning ritual had been going on for almost two years when I decided one holiday season that I needed to get Martha a Christmas present. Excited to be playing Santa Claus, I arrived, as I had done for hundreds of mornings, unable to find Martha. This went on for a couple of days and I got worried. So I rang the package doorbell which is there to be rung for packages but inevitably always makes whoever has to answer it disagreeable.  But I digress.

A postal employee, who has been at this particular post office longer than I have been checking my P O Box, ‘cheerfully’ opened the window and said “what do you want?” I inquired as to where Martha had been the last couple of days to which Ms. Happy replied, “who’s Martha?” I explained that Martha had been sweeping around her feet for the past few years as the post office cleaning lady. “Oh, well I don’t know her name. And I think her car is broken. She should be back tomorrow.”

Martha returned, I was able to play Santa Claus and I have since told people in my neighborhood this story, many of whom pick up their mail at the same post office and now give a cheery hello to Martha, by name, each time they go.

The moral of the story? Is there a Martha in your office or somewhere in your life? Do you know his or her name? Well, what are you waiting for? 

By the way, I’ve always wondered if Martha ever wonders how all these people know her by name.

We may be bringing troops home but there are still plenty of brave men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan in the US military. Let’s use the power of social media to do some good today.  Here is a list of items they could use. My friend Scott is over there in intelligence – he will share with the rest.

Fill a USPS Medium Flat Rate Box with some of the items listed and use the address below.  Yes, you will have to go to the post office, stand in line to get this done and pay for the postage (they do discount to APO addresses.) However, you are not in a tent in the heat and sand nor are you in a Humvee driving across land mines with people shooting at you. So, no whining allowed. Stand in line, pay the money and know that Scott and company are over there doing the dirty work for us over here.

Jerky
Trail mix
Energy bars/Protein bars
Hard candy
Tuna packs
Salmon packs
Toothpaste
Toothbrush
Deodorant –Right Guard Gel
Shaving Cream-Edge
Razors- For Mach 3
Lotion
Shampoo
Body soap
Wash cloths/puffs
Lip Balm
Face wash-Neutrogena
Baby wipes
Q-tips
Sunscreen
Playing cards
Card games
Magazines- men’s health, Maxium, car magazines, hunting, fishing, etc
USA Today newspapers
Greeting cards to send home to loved ones

Remember it needs to be mailed Priority mail to:

Scott Nell
UNIT 931003/TFTPT
APO-AE 09391

thanks. Let’s show Scott what the power of Steeleworkers can actually accomplish!

As an author and a speaker, I am often called upon to talk about networking — like there’s a big secret to how it’s done.  It’s actually quite simple.  Networking is not about getting out and meeting people. Networking is about what you do after you meet people, the follow-through and keeping in touch.

Speaker, author and Help A Reporter creator Peter Shankman likes to tell the story of Paramount Pictures executive Barry Diller. Barry used to go through his Rolodex every day and call 10 different filmmakers and others, just to touch base and find out what they were working on and how they were doing. These filmmakers and others often thought of Barry first when they had a hot project. Many credit the huge success of Paramount Pictures during this time to Barry’s daily calls.

You may not be Barry Diller, but there is no reason you can’t do the same thing he did. Successful relationships, business or personal, take time and nurturing.

Here are just a few things that should be a part of your networking repertoire:

• Write a personal note after an in-person meeting – either to say thank you or a simple, “It was nice to meet you (or see you).” An email is fine, but a handwritten note stands out more.
• On Facebook? Check each morning to see who is having a birthday and leave a message on their wall or actually make a personal call.
• See an article or blog post that makes you think of someone? Copy the URL and send it to that person with a note: “This made me think of you.” We ALL like to know others are thinking about us.
• ALWAYS write a thank-you   note when anyone does something nice for you – an introduction, a client lead, free tickets to something, a meal, whatever.  If you are doing things right, you should be writing at least five thank-you notes a week — if not more.
• Did you talk about a specific thing or information the other person needed that you had?  Follow through with that promised information or item within 48 hours, even if it’s just to say you are still gathering the information.
• Go through your network – your address book, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter – and touch base with several people each day. This keeps you top of mind just like the aforementioned Mr. Diller.

Here’s a recent example of how I work.  Earlier this week, a local food critic invited me to join her at one of Houston’s newest restaurants.  Management wined and dined us thoroughly. (It’s always nice to go to a restaurant with a food critic).  I followed up with a thank-you note and a copy of my book to the restaurant manager. The food critic and I had talked about my husband’s new novel, so she got a thank-you note and a copy of the book, Specific Impulse.  I posted the pictures of the food and information on the new restaurant on Facebook, with links to the establishment and the chef.  Not to mention, I’ll be back – the food was amazing!

Networking is not for sissies. It takes work and it takes work on a regular, daily basis. Who have you networked with today?

*Originally posted on The Vollmer Voice from Vollmer Public Relations.

My iPhone died. I never saw it coming. One minute it was fine and the next – the black screen of death. No amount of begging, pleading or wishing would bring it back last night.

All night I tossed and turned worrying about my life line. What would I do? How would i get anything done? How would anyone reach me?  I had an early flight for a speech so the Apple store was out of the question. I left it behind with Charlie the Wonder Husband to try to work his techie magic.

I felt strangely light leaving the house, as if a tether had been released. On the way to the airport I probably paid more attention to the road and cars around me than I have in a long, long time. Standing in line to check a bag and books, I had to entertain myself by watching people and actually engaging in pleasant conversations with other humans in the line. We smiled, we talked, we laughed. And, there was one less thing to worry about in the security line. Once at the gate, I was able to email on the iPad (and write this blog), letting people know here I was and how best to communicate with me until the crisis is solved.

Crisis? Is that the correct word? I don’t think so. I haven’t talked much for hours, I’ve had a ball people watching, I’m oddly relaxed and I have been extremely productive this morning.

I do want my phone back. Eventually.

However, I think I’ll start leaving it behind occasionally. I’ve realized I don’t need it as bad as I thought.

Oh and you can always email me at dayna@daynasteele.com, get me on Twitter @daynasteele or leave a message on Facebook. It’s not like I am that disconnected….

PS:  Got the phone back before I had a chance to post this. Apparently when you have 76 apps open, it will shut down your iPhone. Oh.