The , is helping his little brother Tommy's job search by doing one simple thing: re-tweeting Tommy's post about seeking employment.
Tommy Collison already has a significant following on Twitter, but John sharing Tommy's tweet— in which Tommy says, "Hi! I'm graduating journalism school in May. I'm in full job-search mode; if you're hiring or know somewhere who is, I'd love to chat," and which Tommy has also pinned to the top of his feed to keep it visible — lets a still larger network know that the youngest Collison sibling is available.
Replies include links to job posts and even connections to people at media corporations.
Job searching in public using social media, and not just specific career-building tools like LinkedIn, is increasingly common. It can be more effective than submitting a resume and cover letter into the black hole of an online portal, especially if you have a portfolio available for view online, like Tommy does.
If you're job hunting, it's also a smart idea to check social media to see who's hiring. According to a survey done by CareerBuilder, about 60% of employers use social networking to find potential candidates these days.
Social media has become so integral in employment seeking processes now that there are even classes now on how to use it properly to land a job.
Just like Tommy, I was well into my job search before graduation. During the span of five months, I applied to over 150 jobs via career portals. Out of the jobs I applied to, I secured a few interviews, but only with companies where I already knew people through my college alumni network or my social media network.
Ultimately, I took a job in my desired field that I found through a Facebook post. I didn't even submit a cover letter, just a resume to the person who posted the opportunity and her friend, the employer.
Twitter is useful if you have a large network or friends with large networks, or a connection who can amplify your voice. Facebook can be more broadly useful, though, because you can join groups that are associated with opportunities in your field and monitor posts in groups you are already affiliated with. I found my current job listed in a Facebook group for alumni of a program I was a part of in high school.
Millennials pay attention to the details of our online presence. We use social media as tool to brand ourselves and to network, so it makes perfect sense to use it to try to get jobs, too. And it works.