Established Professionals: They Were Once in Our Shoes!

By Trish Vega, Toppel Peer Advisor

Have you ever come across a successful individual and thought to yourself, “Man, they work so hard and are doing so well! They must have superpowers or something.” Well, I’ve definitely been there. But even though someone’s current position may be awe-inspiring, it’s important to remember that they too were once in our shoes!

I had the chance to interview Mary Anne Viegelmann, the Global Employee Experience Manager within the Human Resources department at LinkedIn, and she shared with me her best career advice for college students like us.

Ready? Let’s go!

Mary Anne Viegelmann/via LinkedIn

What can college students do to prepare for their careers while they are in school?

"You don’t really know exactly what you’re gonna do in life, but you generally know the things you like doing. Be aware of those passions and skills that you have and try to find the intersection between those two." 

"Talk to as many people as possible no matter what they do! Learn about people from all different backgrounds, it doesn’t even have to be “formal networking”. You never know what those conversations might bring. Most people don’t have a figured out plan for their work but a lot of times it

starts with a simple conversation. People are so willing to talk to college students because they want to help you succeed. Take advantage of that now!"

What qualities do you believe makes a career-ready individual?

"Especially with college students, it’s so important that you are coming into the workplace with fresh new eyes. Your viewpoints and actions are not jaded, you’re not stuck in the mentality of 'that’s the way we’ve always done it'. You’re more open and willing to see things differently and you should use that to your advantage. Employers like people who are positive and willing to take on anything. Saying yes to almost anything and trying almost anything will get you pretty far. And when I mean 'saying yes' I mean being willing to take on projects you may not even know a lot about, because it is all a learning experience. Also, be willing to ask a lot of questions! All this helps build new skills too."

"This is huge especially in the tech world. In the four years that I’ve been in Silicon Valley, I’ve seen constant change. So adapting to that and figuring out how to change your programs quickly is so important."

Shift happens throughout careers and throughout life. How have you learned to deal with unanticipated changes in your career journey?

"When I deal with change, I try not to dwell on it too long. As long as the change does not interfere with my values, I think, 'Okay, there is probably a change for a reason.' Some change you obviously can’t control, like when a company is growing, but I try to look at the pros and cons of the change and work with it. If there’s a change that you think is bad, you should still question it and bring your opinion to the table but do it with an open mind. And I think that comes with a certain attitude of positivity and

openness. It’s better to do it with a positive attitude than with a negative attitude, because you have to do it anyway! So why be a grump about it?"

Any other advice?

"One of the biggest reasons of why I’ve been able to be successful in my work is because I’ve taken to heart one of our core values at LinkedIn, which is that relationships matter. And so the way I always approach every situation is to always think about the people first. It doesn’t matter what my motive is, they’re people first. Usually people are more willing to help you out if you have a strong relationship, so by focusing on the person, I almost won’t even have to ask if I need something because they already want to help you. That’s been hugely important for me, building on the relationships without any expectations, because it’s important to know the people you are affecting. And even if there’s nothing they can do for you, that’s okay. You’ve built a relationship and maybe you’ll get to work with them later on. If you can adopt that trait in college, your network will be huge."

"I think college is such a great time to explore and see what’s out there. I don’t think you have to have it figured out. I’ve been working for 15 years in different kinds of roles, and I’m still learning a bunch of different things. Always be learning, always find different opportunities to build your skills. Volunteering is such a huge part of that. You create such great relationships. And showing your skills in something other than schoolwork will help you too. Employers like to see that you are well-rounded, and they especially like to see volunteer experience, especially good employers. Those companies who care about people first will ask those types of questions and notice that type of thing on your resume or LinkedIn profile.

"Lastly, just have fun!"

~~~~~~~~~

Thanks Mary Anne! So what do you think? In what ways have you experienced that relationships matter?

The Art of LinkedIn

By Kelly Martin, Toppel Peer Advisor

Our generation is incredibly social media savvy, but one of those most common questions I get during walk-in advising besides resume help is how to build a LinkedIn profile and then how to utilize it. While there isn’t necessarily a way to beat the system and guarantee that you’ll find a job on LinkedIn, or that a recruiter will find you, there are things you can be doing to make sure your name is getting out there.

While the average LinkedIn user doesn’t have to pay to use the site (unless you choose to upgrade), there are companies that pay serious amounts of money to search through the around 300 million users on LinkedIn. So make sure your profile is as detailed as possible, with all of the sections filled out, because you never know what search criteria or keywords are going to get you noticed by your dream company.

Usually the first section on your LinkedIn account is your summary. This can be tough because if it’s the first thing that somebody sees on your profile, obviously you want it to be unique, well-written, and an accurate summary of your skills and qualifications. A great example of a summary can be found on the profile of Toppel’s own Carly Smith, who supervises us Peer Advisors: “I am a new career services professional, working at the University of Miami Toppel Career Center as the Assistant Director of Campus Outreach. One of my favorite parts of my job is helping others to create and build connections, whether it be student to employer, student to alumni, or student to student. I love what I do and am excited to continue gaining experience in the field.” She clearly and concisely explains what she does and what she is passionate about, creating a great introduction to the rest of her profile.

From there, you can copy and paste a lot of the text from your resume, particularly in the experience section. Your education section will be similar as well, and be sure to include any study abroad experiences. With resumes, we recommend not including any information from high school, but my high school happens to have an alumni network on LinkedIn, so in this case I am connected with that network and have my high school listed on my profile. There are also sections on LinkedIn for organizations you’re a part of, courses you’ve taken, honors and awards you’ve received, skills, certifications, and languages, and you can also connect with various groups and organizations on LinkedIn. It’s best to fill in all of these sections as much as you can, as long as the information is as relevant to your field as possible. For example, as a marine science major I follow companies like Oceana, Ocean Conservancy, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, and more.

The next step after building your profile is to connect with other people on LinkedIn; you never know what people within your close network may know other people at a company you apply to one day. Once you start making connections and following different companies and organizations, you’ll get updates about job postings, current events in your field, and more great information that will put you ahead of the pack when it comes to using social media to search for a job.

After EXPO

By Maura Gergerich, Toppel Peer Advisor

Many of you attended our Career fair last week to find jobs/internships or network with employers. You’re probably now ready to sit back and relax and let the job offers appear in front of you. Unfortunately, you’re not done yet, but the work still to be done is probably not quite as stressful for you than talking to dozens of companies in one day. Here’s how to get started:

1.Get organized

You want to try to sort out everything that happened at Expo. Make lists of the recruiters that you talked to. Include any business cards you may have received. Spreadsheets are a great organizational tool for this kind of thing. Also, make sure to take notes on conversations you may have had if you didn’t do this earlier. This will be important for when you reach out to the employers so you are able to jog their memories as to who you are and where you met because they more than likely talked to tons of students. 

2. Make sure your LinkedIn is up to date

Linkedin is a fundamental stop for companies that want to research future employees. In your busy life however, you might not always remember to update it regularly. Once it’s up to date and ready  to go, Linkedin is an easy way to connect with recruiters and employers you may have spoken to or been referred to. 

3. Follow up with employers

Definitely reach out to the contacts you have made. You can send an email, message on LinkedIn or a phone call. The mode is less important than the action itself. This should be done 1-2 days after the career fair so you can make as memorable of an impression as possible. Also, don’t be super casual about it. Know what positions you could potentially be hired for at this company and make sure you tie in your skills to this specific position and let them know what sets this company apart to you.

4. Continue practicing your interview skills

You want to make sure you don’t mess up your opportunities if you are given an interview by a company. The more practiced you are, the less nervous you will be. Think up answers to traditional interview questions or schedule a practice interview at Toppel. 

5. Reflect on your experience

This is an important step for determining what to do for the next career fair you attend. Ask yourself what you did well and what you could improve upon. Did you network well? Did you take the right steps to prepare? All of this information will help you be even better the next time you interact with an employer.