Check Facebook. Update Status. Like. Check Twitter. RT. Check Blackberry. BBM. Check NYTimes.com. Check WSJ.com. Shake Head (or smile). Check Email. Reply. Check Blog Feed Reader. Post Comment.
This is a daily digital routine that may not be a far cry from your own. Sit back for one moment and ask yourself: What do I do every day that involves checking something online?
A large part of our daily lives have gone digital. Times Magazine author, Lev Grossman, observed this in an interview with Aaron Sorkin and David Fincher for The Social Network, when the movie was coming out. He wrote, “Doing things on Facebook, friending people, checking your news feed — these are so much a part of our daily routines now.” (Click here for the interview.)
I read that article and knew he was right. Frankly, it’s becoming hard to disagree. I have a daily digital routine, so do the majority of people I know. This is a shift in society that the film drew attention to – not just Facebook, but how we’ve gone digital. The question becomes, for a career services professional like myself, how can you move your daily digital routine in a direction that will help your career? That is, if you are not already.
This might seem overwhelming at first. You may think, “I already have so much to do, how can I add checking and interacting on LinkedIn to my routine?” The answer is – do what works best for you. There are so many platforms online today that you can leverage to build your network and help develop your career. You just have to do some research to identify those platforms and see if they could benefit your professional development. LinkedIn is not for everyone. Twitter isn’t for everyone. Facebook isn’t for everyone. But, are the companies you want to work for on there? Is a leader in your field on there? If so, then think about when and how you can incorporate those platforms into your daily digital routine.
For example, every Sunday will be professional digital day. Write a blog post. Check LinkedIn. Make a comment (or not). Check the company’s Facebook page.
These are tools to help you and you have control over them. You determine how frequently you log-on and what information you provide. Try incorporating more career building into your daily digital routine. If you don’t like it or it’s not worth it – then stop.
For resources to get started with platforms, go to our homepage http://www.vpul.upenn.edu/careerservices/ and select the icons on the right for Vimeo, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.