The downside to this tool, though, is its possibility as a distraction. Walk by the cubicle of many young adults at work or at their internships, and you often find them twittering about their job, browsing Facebook because they can’t on their work computer, or simply chatting away on instant messaging programs. Or worse, the one that constantly checks and replies to other emails. As much as a BlackBerry can enhance your job search, it can just as easily cost you a job.

Look to Grace for:

• Anecdotal advice from this Gen-Y’er
• Thoughts on work and social media
• Musings on interesting workplace articles
• Advice on balancing that new career and personal life
• Opinions from those that she respects and admires
• Ways to convince you that Colorado isn’t such a boring place to live

Set a time line for your goals; divide them into what you will achieve within certain time frames (such as one month, six months, and one year). By doing so, you are motivating yourself and setting deadlines for when you will complete a task or achieve something. In addition to setting time frames, be sure to divide your goals and strive for balance. Far too often may you find yourself concentrating your goals all in one particular aspect of your life (e.g. in my case, I focus a lot on my career) and neglect the others (i.e. personal and health goals). Be sure to spread out your goals. And lastly, write down the goals you have set yourself. You’ve heard it so many times: those that write down their goals are far more likely to succeed in achieving them. Think about it: if you write them down, there’s visible documentation of your thoughts, which will make you more inclined to want to do them, especially if you can see them on a frequent basis (e.g. I keep mine on a bulletin board by my computer).

With so many bright people competing for the same positions, how you make your resume and qualifications come to life is essential if you hope to secure a desirable position? One way to do this is by creating a memorable, personal brand statement (PBS). A successful personal brand statement makes an emotional connection with the people they come into contact with. It makes them say things like – “WOW, “Interesting”, or simply, “I like him/her.” Your resume and cover letter is not going to have this kind of impact. Only YOU can – and you do this in the form of a story.  Stories are memorable. Stories create connections for people. A good story allows the person doing the hiring to clearly see the benefits of extending you an offer.

To begin, jot down a couple of adjectives that best describes who you are. For example, are you energetic, very organized, or maybe a team player? There are dozens of words to choose from. If you have a tough time being introspective and honest with yourself, ask your friends, co-workers, a boss or teacher.

Now think about a story that supports one or a combination of these words. The story should be no more than 1-3 minutes in length and should give an example of what the words you’ve chosen actually mean to you. For example, a college senior recently used the word resilient at one of my events. She described how she made over 750 phone calls, over a 6 month period, to arrange a family reunion where many relatives had not spoken to one another for decades. The result – more than 75 people reunited in Florida! Talk about not taking no for an answer (BTW – This story landed her a job.).

Some final thoughts…Companies are looking for people that exemplify: good communication and people skills, leadership skills, a positive attitude, a team player, and people who are adaptable and can handle unexpected challenges. Knowing this, do your best to build your personal brand story to satisfy these appetites. I’m not saying be phony or make up stories. Just make sure your PBS is relevant and transferable to the needs of the workplace.

Lastly, they don’t want to hear your, “life story”. Keep it simple and concise. Most importantly, practice, practice, practice. Your story should be said with confidence, passion, and a smile on your face!

Want more? Send an e-mail to events@jointap.com and bring Eric Barron, TAP’s president, to your institution for a 90 minute presentation on creating a memorable Personal Brand Story.

Rebecca Thorman

I couldn’t think of anyone better to start off this category than Rebecca.  Not only is she an exemplary representative for Gen Y and young professionals, she’s smart as a whip and writes very well.  Rebecca writes about social media, Gen Y, career, and offers her style and design opinions as well (I hope the rest of Madison, WI is as stylish).  Her posts fall somewhere between general musings, cultural reporting and personal reflection, and tend to be conservative – not politically, but in the sense that Rebecca is often cautioning (or railing) against what she perceives as inequities or rampant mis-behaviour in the digital realm.  This could easily come off as patronizing or finger-pointing, but what elevates Modite far above petty bickering is Rebecca’s obvious good intentions.  She is earnest and “authentic” (she may kill me for using that word) and her reprimands are motivated by a sincere desire to see more humanity and decorum in the digital iteration of our society.

Look to Rebecca for:

- Etiquette and manners online and in social media

- Intelligent analysis of social media trends/happenings

- Anecdotal advice from a hard-working, motivated female Gen Y’er

- Pictures of pretty and stylish things

- Social media start-up gossip (She’s dating Ryan Healy – founder of Brazen Careerist – a site everyone should be on!)

- Advice on toilet paper

Check her out at Modite and show some love!

The bottom line is that there are people that LOVE to write and have valuable things to say. That’s why you are going to see a variety of guest bloggers who will not only enrich the content of this blog, but will make me a much happier person. Do what you do best and you will see your productivity go through the roof!

In order to get a feel of what you want to do and to be sure of what you like and dislike, try things out. Whether it is through volunteering or through internships, experiencing the environment is the way to know for sure. If it turns out that you don’t like a certain path after all, then that’s also great. You won’t have to spend the rest of your college years working toward a field that you weren’t interested in at all. And when opportunities present themselves, always try to take them. Even if you might not have an interest in that particular opportunity, you are bound to learn something from that experience so just give things a try.

I feel that when an interviewer asks me where do I see myself in five years, it is a trick question. Being unemployed at the moment, I would have never of guessed a year ago or even two that I would be unemployed today.  I don’t answer their question in the conventional way – I merely tell them there is only one today, and I want to make the most of the position I am interviewing for. Life has unfolded in a way I would have never of guessed, and I am making the most of my free time to set goals and do things I would have never of dreamed of. Setting goals may sometimes seem daunting, and it’s easy for a procrastinator to, well, procrastinate. The saying is true – you are your toughest critic. With that being said, you can make your own goals as attainable as you want them to be.

With certain goals, it’s easy to see the finish line.  Say you want to paint your room. Well, either you paint your room or you don’t. The goal is either completed or not.

If you tend to be hard on yourself, you may want to set goals that have a little more wiggle room so you don’t disappoint yourself and can keep on moving. You might decide you want to start a new hobby. You have a list of things you want to try. This doesn’t mean that you have to be an expert in 60 seconds flat. But trying is believing. And when you believe in yourself, you set your own limits, and in turn never fail.

One of your hobbies to try may be to learn how to knit. You take a class, learn the basics, but decide you aren’t passionate about knitting. Since you are a creative and thrifty person, you may say, well – now I’m going to try sewing. You take a class and love it. You learn to sew, buy a machine on eBay, and start making novelty items for friends and family. With a new hobby in hand, you have also figured out how to set a goal, accomplish it, and make your friends and family birthday/holiday gifts for a lifetime (or until they get sick of your homemade gifts).

OK guys, I know what you’re saying, I don’t want to learn to sew or knit, all I care about is winning my fantasy football league. Now if I had the tips on which quarterback, running back or tight end for you to pick, well, I’d be in Vegas and not writing this article. You may want to become a better golfer. So you decide to get out to the course or driving range once a week. Your schedule and bank account may not allow you such weekly luxuries (especially since it is also football season, and your QB is now on the DL). So you have to rework this goal, you decide to try to play golf once or twice a month, take a lesson, and challenge your friends to the occasional Wii game. Before you know it, you are par-ing each hole by Spring.

Accomplishing goals can come in many different packages, they can be wrapped in a box that is goal set- goal accomplished, goal set- goal reworked - reworked goal accomplished, goal set- goal didn’t like- goal now known not your cup of tea. I firmly believe you never fail until you stop trying. It is OK to learn you don’t like something – at least  you tried and you don’t have to bother with it again. If there is one thing I have learned about setting goals, it is to create a list. My list gets reworked everyday with new things that come up. I might not accomplish everything, but I keep trying.

Rachel is the founder and blogger at Kicked Forward – a great place for daily inspirations in goal-setting and the job hunt.

Preferred environment is more than just office dress code. It’s about matching your personal work habits to the culture and operations of the company you’re considering.

Eric sat down with Jennifer Patterson, Director of Human Resources at Screenvision to discuss some tips for determining your preferred environment in your job search.

In addition to Elizabeth’s tip, we got great response from students. We’ve posted a few below. As a reminder, we will be selecting another winner in December. So keep the tips coming!

Be flexible and learn to adapt. If you come into the year with a specific mind-set and intend to stick to precisely that, you’re going to have a terrible year. Learn as you go and change your approaches. You’re not going to stay the same person but the change you will experience will be for the better.

- Kate from University of Akron

Don’t get too attached to maintaining a friendship that otherwise isn’t working out. Freshman year is a time to meet new people and find your group, and holding on longer only prevents you from meeting your real friends who matter.

- Lisa from University of Pennsylvania

Get to know your professors. If you visit them during their office hours, they will most likely invest more time in you. When it comes down to grades at the end of the semester and you are on the borderline, a professor will likely give you the benefit of the doubt if you sought out help from him or her. Professors also talk amongst themselves. A good reference from one professor to another will make for a delightful college experience.

- Noelle from University of Akron

Learn how to power nap. 30 minute naps between classes can get you through yet another day.

- Akshay from Stanford University

One of the best things I did for myself freshman year was set a four year plan; after talking to my advisors, I sat down and scheduled out my four years at Akron. When my plan was altered somehow, for example when I did not get into a class, I would sit down and edit the plan; I always wanted to know what was ahead. I also set short and long-term goals to keep myself motivated, because I learned that to succeed you need to stay motivated and interested in what you are doing. Also, get a planner; it will save your life, when you start getting involved and deep into the semester it is awesome to know what needs to be done every day. With that, get involved, enjoying and succeeding in college is best achieved when you have people around to support, encourage, motivate, and excite you. Lastly, be in control of your college experience, make sure you are doing what you want to, and not following the crowd, be yourself, study, but always remember to have fun, it only lasts four (or five) years.

- Elizabeth from University of Akron