As the years roll by like water rushing under a bridge – the people we know change; and especially their locations and contact info. This creates a problem; if ever the need arises for you to job hunt. Having past references to give; from bosses to co-workers; is something that will eventually come up toward the end of the interviewing/hiring process.
Lets face it; most of us will call and say hi to a former co-worker a few times – but as time passes; so does this random action. Eventually we lose contact altogether. Phone numbers have changed; companies have changed; so have the cities. The only real way to counter this loss is to realize the importance of at least scheduling annual; if not biannual; "Contact Days". A day or two dedicated to followup with old comrades and bosses.
It doesn't have to be all done the same way. You can call some to verify their number works; and email or send a card to the others.
But most important - always verify at least annually that contact info for future use is still good.
When you do get in touch with them; learn every thing you can. You can have a great and charming conversation with past friends and co-workers that is also informative. Get their full info; and contact info from them of others you mutually knew.
Use Facebook And LinkedIn
Facebook and LinkedIn could also help. So definitely take the time to fully fill out everything in the profiles they have online of you; and use their search functions to try and find people.
Be sure to use your full real name. Fill in former jobs and schools. Then go searching for people by name; search cities you lived for groups; former companies for groups, etc..
I was actually shocked a few months ago; when I finally started paying attention to Facbook . Within four days, I was connected again to nearly thirty people I haven't seen in twenty years or more!
I was shocked!
These were great friends over the course of years. College; Grade School; High School; various old jobs;……..WOW!
But somewhere along the way we all took different turns in Albuquerque.
Tweeter And StumbleUpon
Tweeter has finally come along and caught fire. Its great for maintaining contact with the people you know today – and if everyone catches on to this; you'll be able to give that occasional impromptu shout out to people. It has the ability to serve as an alternative type of contacts list. Again use your real name. This makes it so much easier to hook up with people.
StumbleUpon is another billboard for yourself to be contacted; and a means by which to possibly find other people. StumbleUpon is really a no-brainer – surf the net and create an online findable presence at the same time with no effort. You'll be surfing the net oblivious to any work happening to your benefit as by-product. Just be sure not to surf adult material that might make you look bad. Don't "Thumbs Up" to favorites anything NSFW.
How To Keep In Touch With You
All these profiles; email addresses; and GoogleVoice numbers should be printed on a personal business card along with your name and street address. These you can give out to people you want to have it. Something separate from your professional company cards.
Having a blog with a domain that is your real name; is another way to keep a search engine optimized billboard of yourself to the world. Getting a free one to start and advancing to your own stand alone site is how most people start.
Do all this asap. I have friends of late who found their ass out in the cold – due to no contact info for the people who would have given them glowing references.
The very people who remember you well must be kept up with before you actually need them as references.
So don't screw yourself; get started today.
4 Trackbacks/Pingbacks
[...] See original here: Keeping Up With Job References Over The Years [...]
[...] the original post: Keeping Up With Job References Over The Years VN:F [1.4.5_712]please wait…Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes [...]
Post a Comment