Graduation Time

Graduation is in about 2 weeks for most college students. I cam across this post on the Creative Career titled: Graduation is approaching – Still looking for a job? I found this post very useful not only for graduates, but for all college students.

One thing that the post talks about is the power of networking. The post says to give the online job sites a rest and get to know real professionals. Get on twitter, comment on other blogs, go out to coffee, go to networking opportunities and set up informational interviews. This advice is useful for all students and is something that Clemson PRSSA and Dr. V have stressed here at Clemson University. Myles Golden, a career strategist, was a guest speaker in my negotiation class and he said that 85% of jobs are found through networking. This is so true. you need to be more than just a piece of paper. Meet professionals and give them a face to put with a name.

Another useful tip for all students, not just graduates is to pump up your digital knowledge. Many employees expect younger generations to know the latest technologies and want us to teach them. Sharpen your skills and familiarize yourself with a variety of online sites like blogs, microblogging sites, and other social media sites. Delve into it and teach yourself.

I definitely recommend this post to anyone wanting to know how to better market themselves in today’s job market.

Good luck to all the 2009 graduates!

Comment on Social Media: Time-Wasted or Time- Saver

One of my classmates, Brittany Beran, wrote a post that I found very interesting about social media saving or wasting time. After reflecting on my own social media experience, I came to the conclusion that social media is definitely not a waste of time. If used correctly social media is a way to build lasting relationships with people. Personally, I use social media as a learning tool. I use social media to build connections and relationships with PR students, professors and professionals.

I have learned a lot from social media and I believe that anything you can learn from is not a waste of time. However, I do think that social media can consume a lot of time. I have to be very conscious of the time I spend reading blogs and surfing various social media sites. Social media is just like any other relationship in this sense. Relationships take time to form and maintain.

There are many sites that can help you manage social media. I personally love Google Reader. Google Reader saves me a lot of time and effort. What are your favorite bookmarking or time-saving sites?

Comment on In Your Face

Check out my comment on Erin Sander’s post about social media and the social responsibility that comes along with it.

Social media gives the little dog a big bark

After speaking with Laura Fitton, better known as @pistachio (twitter) I started to think about social media in a more in depth manner. 

Social media is revolutionizing the power structures around the world and changing the way that we receive news.  Social media gives power to the people.  No longer does one have to be in a high organizational position to be heard and make a difference. As Dr. V said “the golden wall is coming down.” That is the thing that seperates us (the public) from the elite. This drastic change is turning PR upside down.  The role of boundary spanner is changing.  A PR practitioner is not the only direct voice between an organization and the publics important to its success.  PR practitioners must listen to the public and learn from them.  According to Laura Fitton, the most important lesson to learn from social media is to learn how to listen.  Listen to your publics and be genuine.  Social media is not merely a way to push product or services, it is a means to form relationships with others.  It is through these relationships that conversations arise and then the work of the PR practitioner has truly started.  Offer your publics information that will benefit them, not only the organization you represent.  After good PR is two way symmetrical, meaning that the organization and the publics are open to change. 

This dynamic change in power scares the once powerful decision makers of organizations.  One voice can not harm a large company, but masses of voices can.  Social media gives the little dog a big bark.  My voice matters and it can be heard. 

 Another change due to social media is the way that news is received.  The news industry is the only media required by democracy.  It was established to be a forum for discussion.  The notion of news as a media conglomerate challenges this notion of a place for the people to discuss their thoughts and opinions.  News has become a business, and because of this the people have found ways to discuss topics through other means, now known as blogging.  This just goes to show that discussion and conversations are necessities in society and if the news doesnt provide a forum for discussion, people will find other means.

Over all, social media is revolutionizing PR, news, and even communication as we know it.  The most important task is to stay up-to-date with the current media trends and us them in a genuine manner.

Technology

This youtube video was shown in my organizational communication class and I thought it was very funny.  In Dr. V’s PR Principles class we have spent a great deal of time talking about the importance of social media and learning how to use new types of social media.  Our class has had pieces of advice from various guest speakers about how important the use of social media is and how it develops relationships with people in the world of PR. 

This video protrays a monk having trouble opening a book.  It made me laugh, because a book does not seem like a piece of technology in our very high-tech world today.  However, at one point in history a book was a piece of technology and a very important one at that.  It increased literacy, gave us a way to transmit history, and became one of the most essential forms of communication. 

In comparison to the monk, I hope I don’t seem as lost learning new forms of social media.  Our class has been told repeatedly, “Don’t be scared, just jump right in.” As a new blogger and twitter user, sometimes I find myself feeling a little lost like this monk.  I hope when you get frustrated about learning how to use social media and technology, this will give you a laugh.