Want To Get Hired Faster? You Need To Work On Your Employability Skills

Stella Da Silva, International Trainer and LinkedIn Coach, and Annette Richmond, Personal Brand Strategist, career intelligence Resume Writing,  discussed all things employability skills.     

Known for providing a-ha! moments, Stella has worked with educators and learners around the globe, delivering accredited CPD courses and train-the-trainer workshops. Stella also coaches clients on LinkedIn strategies and CV development. Don't miss this session if you’re even thinking about looking for a new job. 

Topics included:

✅ Creating a compelling LinkedIn profile

✅ Why having a LinkedIn profile banner is essential

✅ Gaining visibility on LinkedIn ( consistency is key)

✅ Being your authentic self on LinkedIn (why it's important)

✅ Advice for a winning resume

Smarter Career Moves LinkedIn Live Show (Previously Recorded) 

Follow career intelligence Resume Writing on media and social media: 

👋 Smarter Career Moves Club on Clubhouse
YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCw7L2jtuuwEULjoYDNy4mDA
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annetterichmond/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/careerintell 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/careerintell/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/careerintelligenceresumes/ 
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/annetterichmond/ 
Visit our website https://careerintelligenceresumewriting.com/

📌 NEW Podcast: Content Marketing School.

Thank you for listening, I hope you found this episode insightful and relevant. If you're a coach, consultant, or entrepreneur, or just want to dive more deeply into content marketing. I hope you'll join me on my new podcast, Content Marketing School.

Available on your favorite podcast platform.

(Previously recorded, Live Show)

Follow Black Dog Marketing Strategies on social media

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@blackdogmarketingstrategies
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annetterichmond/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@annetteadvises
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annetteadvises/
Visit our website https://blackdogmarketingstrategies.com/

Transcript

[00:00:03.590] - Annette 

So hello out there. It's Tuesday morning for me and almost Tuesday evening for my guest. We're so happy to have you with us today. For the Smarter Career Moves LinkedIn live show. Please do let us know where you are joining from and if you have any questions, please do put them in the chat. We are able to see them backstage and I'm sure that Stella would be happy to answer them for you. So I'm Annette Richmond. I am really working primarily with executives on creating their brands. Starts with a resume, LinkedIn profile, et cetera. But let's talk about you, Stella. For anyone who does not know you, tell us about you and what you do.

[00:00:50.970] - Stella

Oh, my gosh, that almost feels like an interview question that I just wrote about the other day.

[00:00:59.910] - Annette 

Well, if I start sleeping, you'll know, that it's gone too long.

 
[00:01:05.610] - Stella

And again, it's one of those really common questions that we struggle to answer so well in a way that, as you said, doesn't make you fall asleep. So in short, Annette, you know who I am. I'm Stella. I'm a career coach. I work in the vocational education space, which is really big here in the UK and also internationally. I deliver different types of courses. I was based in Oman in 2019 and literally relocated back to cold and wet London in the middle of January. So I'm just adjusting to London life and just enjoying having some time with my family and friends. And of course, I collaborate with you on Clubhouse on the online Business Academy group, as well as on another group where we talk all things employability skills. So there you have it, me in a little nutshell.

[00:02:24.330] - Annette 

Well, you know, there's so many things that fall under that employability skills. I mean, it's the LinkedIn profile and the resume and the interviews. But I have to tell you, I was looking at your profile carefully as I was sort of putting together and prepping for this. And I saw something on your banner which I thought was really interesting. And although obviously you are a trainer, but I think this can apply to sort of all of us in our lives. And at the top, you have learning unlearning and relearning. So tell me about that, because I'm intrigued and I think it can help other people as well.

[00:03:14.650] - Stella

You know what? Let me start talking about actual banner because again, I got a very good friend of mine and she's brilliant who did my banner. And I kind of wanted something to really depict who I was as an educator. And all she asked me when she was when we're trying to come up with a theme to my banner was what three words really best describes who you are, what you're about. And that's where those three words came in. Because again, I walk the talk, both professionally and personally in terms of learning new things, learning from others, learning bad habits and relearning and putting into practice what it is I've just learned. So it just made sense to me. And as an educator, I'm sure this will resonate with you in it. This is something we aspire to do when we are delivering training to our learners, to whoever we're delivering training to, or your one to one coaching. So it encompasses my personal and my professional life.

[00:04:50.150] - Annette 

You broke up a little bit at the end there. So it sort of like you're saying it's part of my personal end professional and then it broke up a little bit.

[00:05:02.730] - Stella

Oh, I'm sorry.

[00:05:04.080] - Annette

Can you hear me now? Yes.

[00:05:09.850] - Stella

Right. So basically I was just saying that these are three words that I work with daily, both in my personal and in my personal life.

[00:05:23.630] - Annette 

And I hope that I tried to do this myself is that you learn things, but as you learn other things, you kind of reevaluate as you go. Is that a fair interpretation?

[00:05:41.190] - Stella

Spot on. Spot on. Because in terms of reevaluating, it's always questioning what went right and what things can I improve on. So even if I get positive feedback, I'm always still reevaluating those positive feedback because I know I can do better. It's like when we deliver a class well, I do I always give an evaluation form to my learners so that I know that even though they enjoyed the session, it all went well. What things can I do better the next time I deliver that same training? So those are the kind of things that I feel I do when it comes to learning relearning and unlearning. Absolutely spot on in it.

[00:06:33.330] - Annette 

And it's so true. And I love that you talk about learning and I know that you attend yourself, I'm sure professional development, you have certifications and you're on clubhouse and other places sharing your knowledge, but also listening for other things. And I try to do that as well. I'm always trying to take a webinar or program or something and learn from other people so that I can better serve my clients. So I appreciate that. And one of the things, too, since you talked about the banner, and I do want to talk about LinkedIn because that's one of the things that you and I don't talk as much about. We do in some rooms but not in others. But I think a lot of job seekers and also entrepreneurs solopreneurs, they think that they put up that LinkedIn profile and that's it. They're good. And even the best profile that I can create for them, that you can work with them to create is not enough. I mean, you do have to have engagement and I want to get into that. But when it comes to the profile to begin with, because I always think of LinkedIn as like Google for people.

[00:07:50.880] - Annette 

You have a website with no content. You're not coming up very high in the search. Same thing with the LinkedIn profile before I was resume writing full time. I spent some time, a couple of years as a recruiter, and I would spend kind of days on LinkedIn looking for candidates to fill the positions. We could talk about this for hours. I know, and we don't have that long. But what would you say is with the profile sort of the most important areas for people to really work on?

[00:08:37.830] - Stella

Great question. And I'm pretty sure you know what I say when it comes to this, because I say this on our rooms, when we're on Clubhouse, when we're delivering employability skills training, when it comes to CVs and resumes. And for me, it starts off with your LinkedIn profile being fit for purpose, right? So if your LinkedIn is not fit for purpose, then should anybody come to your profile, why should anybody want to connect with you? That's the way I always start off with when we're talking about LinkedIn profiles. So it's making sure that your LinkedIn profile is fit for purpose. And given the information, especially for maybe job seekers, given information that will warrant recruiters, hiring managers who want to connect with you and to engage with you. So these are the kind of things that I talk about when you're talking about your LinkedIn profile. And I think what a lot of people need to understand is this. LinkedIn is just a tool. LinkedIn is not actually what is going to get you your interview or your job, but it's a tool to getting you the interview or the job and use that tool. Well, then magic happens on LinkedIn.

[00:10:08.130] - Stella

Otherwise, like so many people, you can spend hours and hours on LinkedIn, just scrolling through stuff, just liking, not engaging. And then you come to people like me or to people like you. And then I always say, yeah, I spend X amount of hours on LinkedIn a day and nothing happens. Well, if you don't have a proper LinkedIn strategy, if you don't have a proper strategy job, then the chances are very small that anything is going to happen for you. It's just as simple as that. And I always say this for those people who come onto LinkedIn and see people who are writing about their successes, trust me when I say it takes absolute time for you to be an overnight success. It doesn't happen overnight. It takes years for some people to be that overnight success. So when you see people with their thousands of views and thousands of engagement, trust me, they started from zero connections, zero views to where they are because they were consistent, because they were adding value, because they were supporting others. This is what LinkedIn can do for you. So treat LinkedIn with respect. And trust me, LinkedIn will treat you back with as much respect that you deserve.

[00:11:41.590] - Stella

That's the way I see that platform.

[00:11:45.330] - Annette 

You know what? I love that about the successes. And there are people talking about their success all the time on LinkedIn. I know that you share things that haven't quite worked for you. I try to do that as well if I think they can help other people. And I love our friend Lavidia. She had shared something. I don't know if you were in clubhouse that day where she said there's a saying that everyone on LinkedIn is successful and everyone on Facebook is happy and everyone on Instagram is beautiful. And I think the last one is everyone on TikTok is like fun or exciting or something like that. It's so true. I mean, people often are not eager to share. Well, I did this and it didn't work out for me. So it's always nice when you see only success. I always take that with a little bit of a grain of salt, as you said. And I think that's something that they talked about with actors that burst on the scene from nowhere. Well, they've been plugging at it for like ten years. And then after something hit. So one of the things that changed for me and I was one of those people, I put out my articles, post the article, and I worked on my profile course, I was an entrepreneur.

[00:13:09.510] - Annette 

And then during the pandemic, I sort of turned to LinkedIn because there weren't local networking events and things to go to. And I had this kind of what you talk about in your about section, this AHA moment that LinkedIn is not just connections for me, it's people. It's all about that human to human interaction and not just going on there and looking for who can I connect with, who's going to help me.

[00:13:47.650] - Stella

I think again, you've hit it on the nail, Annette. I always say behind every number, behind every number of followers, behind every number of connections that you have, there is a person, there is a net behind it. So even when you go around saying, oh, I've got X amount of followers, they are people. It's not the term follower. You don't go around when you meet them in person and go, hello, dear follower, do you will engage with them by their names. Right. Because there are human beings behind these names of followers and connections and trim. Right. And trust me, you will get the support that you need on LinkedIn. It really is about that human connection. And this is where again, you mentioned about being authentic on LinkedIn, on any platform. To be honest with you, my days are not happy every single day. That's not my reality. And whoever is leading that reality, please let me come to your club. Right. I have good days. I have really bad days. And again, if someone is talking about being authentic, that's what being authentic means. It's about really sharing the triumph, the challenges, what is not going right in my life right now because other people, believe it or not, are feeling the same.

[00:15:29.510] - Stella

But again, we're so caught up on that filter life of putting filters on my face and making me seem not what I am. And then I meet you in person and you're totally different to what you are online. And this is why I'm so opposed to filters. I don't use them. I refuse to use them. The only filter I have is what do you call it? The light. That's about the most filter that I will ever use. Because what I like to believe is what you see online is what you're going to get offline. I can't filter my face for when I'm going to meet you in person, can I? Yes. Now, why am I spending so much time on social media playing around with filters and even forgetting the real value, the real message that I want to put out? Because I'm so concerned about what I look like and what people perceive of me. I don't need people's validations. I really don't. I love myself enough to think that I'm okay. I do what I do. I'm not there on LinkedIn for everybody to like what I do. You like it? Come with me.

[00:16:57.230] - Stella

Let's go. Let's have some fun. Let's learn. Let's unlearn. Let's relearn. You don't like me. That is absolutely fine. And I think once we stop seeking so much validation, some of which really don't matter, the better our lives will be.

[00:17:16.000] - Annette 

Yeah, I appreciate that. I just want to say hello to we have some people somebody saying hello from Brazil. We can't see your name probably because you have your profile photo set to maybe only your connections or something. So you might want to check that out. And someone I am so bad with name pronunciations, but I'm going to try and maybe you can help me with this to show to shout out to. What is that? Ohan, I'm guessing.

[00:17:46.480] - Stella

Ohanas.

[00:17:47.510] - Annette 

Ohanas, okay. Well, hello, and thank you for joining us. We so appreciate you being here. And I want to say Hi to our friend Tina, who is joining us from Belgium. Hi, Tina. I know, Tina. We're so happy to see you. And again, if you're out there and you have questions, please do put them in the chat because you don't always get the opportunity to ask somebody like Stella about this information. And I'm so glad that you brought up the filters because I see people on LinkedIn, of course, some that don't have a photo at all, but others that have an old photo. I was guilty of that for years. They have an old photo or they have it taken by a professional photographer who photoshops it. And when you get to meet somebody in person, you can't I mean, they see you. And if you're a job seeker or if you're someone like me that clients would be hiring, they're going to see you. And so you're really just doing yourself a disservice by putting those filters or whatever on there. So I appreciate that. I want to ask you just briefly about this whole cover story, which is now profile video.

[00:19:18.050] - Annette 

I have been an advocate for people to have a face, them talking, Hi, this is what I do. I'd like to get to know you, but there are, of course, the platforms that you can use that don't show your face. But right now, first of all, what do you think about that? Are you an advocate for face or is it cool to just have photos or something for the video?

[00:19:48.710] - Stella

I'm very much in the hashtag what you feel is right for you. That's where I'm really at. And I say this because I haven't got a video profile. And again, although there's so many people going on about, oh, you need to put video content out. You need to do this. You need to do that. I always say to people, don't get overwhelmed with all the information of what you need to do on LinkedIn. Don't get sucked into that noise. Right. Because especially when videos for me cause me real anxiety. I could lose sleep over somebody telling me, can you prepare two minute video presentation? It's my dread in life. A lot of people who know me know what my fears are when it comes to video. So I've just decided, you know what, I'm not putting that on myself. If people want to have a go at me not putting a video and not then go on to reading my content and what I do on LinkedIn, then that's on them. I can't control what other people's feelings are of me, but I can control and manage my anxiety the best way I see fit. So again, if you are confident in putting out a video, in doing it, knock yourself out.

[00:21:29.180] - Stella

I've seen some amazing videos out there, and I always think, oh, my gosh, I wish I could do it. I've had a couple of calls with people who are always telling me, Stella, oh, my God, you are a natural. I have no issues doing alive. I have no issues being a guest with somebody. But tell me right now, Annette, go and do a 32nd video. Just send it to me. Don't make me do that. Please don't make me do that. So again, what I say to people, especially those who are new to LinkedIn, you're going to get so many tips. You're going to get so much advice. But take each day as it comes, take each day on LinkedIn as it comes and do what makes you happy. Do what makes you feel. You know what? I've achieved something today. My goal is to get a few videos out. I'm just not in that headspace just yet. And when I am, trust me, it'll be okay.

[00:22:30.530] - Annette 

Well, and it's so funny because we were talking before we went live that this is the first time we are seeing each other face to face. And yet I feel that. I know you not only because we're on audio events all the time together, audio platforms, but also because you do post a lot of photos of yourself doing different things. And so that is something that really shows you and your personality. And you are right. I mean, I am an advocate for people that are looking for a job that I do think having a video can help them, because I was talking to Tina about this recently, and she was saying that so few people, job seekers do have them, then it's a good way for you to stand out. But I agree with you 100% about doing what you want. And I know there's a lot of LinkedIn experts out there. I mean, it's kind of like me being a resume writer. I have some certifications and stuff, but I don't have a license for that. So it's very simple for people. There's a lot of people that decide I'm selling insurance today. Tomorrow I'm going to be a resume writer.

[00:23:42.680] - Annette 

And, you know, there are people that do that with like LinkedIn, too, all kinds of things. We all know that.

[00:23:54.270] - Stella

I just wanted to say this again, Tina. I love Tina and I love learning from her as a headhunter recruiter, because again, she passes on the information that I can pass on to job seekers when I'm delivering employability skills. But I also say this, when it comes to videos, there are some people who just don't come across well on video and that you meet them in person and they're totally different. So again, you've got to gauge where your strengths lie. If you know that I've seen some people on video and oh, my gosh, I want to go and slip my wrist because they just don't shine confidence. These are the kind of things that, again, if I'm talking to a job seeker and I feel that they have that confidence, there's something about them that I know would translate really well on video. By all means, do a video. But when I'm talking to other job seekers where I know video is not going to be that strong point. It is actually going to be a disservice in terms of trying to demonstrate communication skills. If they put that on their resume and yet they come on video and they're not demonstrating good communication skills.

[00:25:19.210] - Stella

So these are the kind of things that you really need to think about when people are more or less forcing you to do something that you may not be really good at.

[00:25:31.230] - Annette 

No, I appreciate that. I may have misspoken. What I meant to say was that she had mentioned if somebody has that they will stand out because other people don't. She didn't say that people should absolutely do that.

[00:25:46.240] - Stella

No, again, I was just talking generally.

[00:25:49.430] - Annette 

And I should get away from that as well, because I only push you people to do it. But I push my colleagues to do it because they are working with clients. And so the people that are resume writers, a lot of our clients are primarily job seekers. I'm glad that you said that. And it is true. And I do hear people a couple of things that I think we can kind of bust that myth. You hear people saying, well, if you want to have visibility on LinkedIn, you must post every day or you must post at least five days a week. And it depends on your strategy, what you're trying to do. But I think it scares people if they come and they listen to us talking or they're on Clubhouse or wherever talking about LinkedIn and they have a profile that they put up and it's pretty good and they want to start and they hear, oh, I have to post every day. And they're like, I can't do that. So they just do nothing. So what's your advice for people that are that's them. I have my profile, I'm looking for a job or I'm looking for clients.

[00:27:17.930] - Annette 

And I hear Susan told me, oh, God, you have to post every single day, and I can't do that. So what do you tell them?

[00:27:28.550] - Stella

Hashtag consistency. What LinkedIn absolutely loves is that you are consistent. So if you choose to put out five posts a day, five posts a week, do you choose to put out do that consistently. Okay. Because that's what you must train the LinkedIn algorithm into, how consistent you are on LinkedIn. Now for those who post two posts a day, this is what I say if I'm on LinkedIn, because believe it or not, we all have other jobs to do. I think some people really think that LinkedIn is a full time job, right? So if people post twice a day, my question to them is, or what I try and tell them is I haven't got time to engage on your second post when I've got other people to engage with. It's almost been selfish when you're looking for me to come and engage on your post twice a day, every single day. Well, what about my other connections? What about me putting up my content out? So again, I always say when people have a LinkedIn strategy, you've got to find a LinkedIn strategy that works for you. If putting out two posts a day is your strategy and it's working for you, good for you.

[00:29:05.330] - Stella

Hashtag, knock yourself out. Okay. For me, I know that I haven't generally got the time to put out a post every single day, but what I have got the time for is to be on LinkedIn every single day and to engage with people every single day. So if I don't put content out right, then I'm engaging with my network. I'm engaging with new people who are coming into my network. And that is where the hashtag consistency comes up. So again, there shouldn't be any pressure on anybody putting out a post, be it once a day, every single day, once a month, once a week. But there should be some sort of pressure that you do need to put on yourself is you need to be consistent. That's the only that link on us is that we need to be consistent.

[00:30:08.250] - Annette 

Yeah, I love that. And it's like anything else, it's even like exercise. It's great. People start at the beginning of the year, okay, I'm going to work out five days a week and they do that for two months, and then that's it. They never go back to the gym or on their peloton or whatever they have. I love what you said about the comments, too, because I have friends and colleagues that say to me, I don't know how you do it. You're just on LinkedIn all the time. Well, I'm not on LinkedIn all the time, but I'm commenting on other people's posts. And while I try to post maybe five times a week, I'm on there. And the thing is that for me, it's like engaging with my friends. It's not like a chore that I have to go on to LinkedIn and find something. Because once you have that mindset of the human to human, I think that's what really changed everything sort of for me. So we have a question from our friend Tina, and I'm guessing this is referring to LinkedIn pivoting to a new industry. I'm going to go with that. You can clarify that if I'm incorrect, Tina.

[00:31:20.750] - Annette 

So what do you say for LinkedIn if you want to pivot to a new industry?

[00:31:26.250] - Stella

For me, I just think the very first thing that comes to mind as soon as I saw that is transferable skills. What are your transferable skills? Because when you are able to identify that is the moment you decide this is a new industry that I can actually go into. There's no point in just coming up and coming to us career coaches or headhunters like Tina and say, yeah, I want to work in this industry and you've got nothing in terms of experience or any skills. Right? So you've got to really do your research, you've got to do your due diligence, because by doing that, you are going to be able to identify what your transferable skills are to give you and for you to make an informed decision as to whether or not this is a new industry to move to. Just because you want to move into it doesn't mean that you can. Let's be honest here. I do want to sell the dream of there are possibilities out there. You just have to keep going. At what point? Keep going. When it's not working for you, you have to change your strategy. So these are the kind of things that I work with people, especially people who want to transition into a new industry.

[00:32:55.320] - Stella

Let's identify what your transferable skills are. Once you're able to identify it, we can then go and look at the industry and see whether there's a fit. If there isn't a fit, it's time to reevaluate. It really is just that simple for me. It's not about sugarcoating anything. In my world. The moment you sugarcoat is the moment you really are doing a disservice to your clients and to your learners.

[00:33:22.670] - Annette 

I feel well, I agree with you. And one thing that I hear career coaches say and write about, I may get some Flack for saying this, but I hear people say, well, just do what you love and the money will follow. And I think that that is a terrible thing to say to people because that's not necessarily true. I used to draw in high school and I took art class and I loved art class because, my goodness, my work was so bad compared to everyone else's. And just because I think I might want to do something and I love it, it doesn't mean that I'm going to be able to make a living at it. And once you get a job as well, once that turns into a job, it's still work. It may be something you enjoy, but it's still work. I don't know anyone. Maybe you do who just would keep doing their work every single day, just as they do if they were independently wealthy. What do you think about that? I can't hear you. I'm sorry.

[00:34:43.090] - Stella

And again, it's a myth when people say that. And again, I'm so put off by yes.

[00:34:52.610] - Annette 

I hear you now.

[00:35:08.110] - Stella

Can you hear me now?

[00:35:10.750] - Annette 

I see you a little bit frozen.

[00:35:12.350] - Stella

But I don't know why. Okay. I don't know why. I think we've got Internet problems around my end. But what I'm trying to say is that a bit like you, I get very irritated by career coaches, especially career coaches. They should know better when they're given that type of advice. Because I'm all for people chasing their dreams, chasing their passions and trying to make money out of it. Okay. I'm an advocate of that. But also, I'm a realist and for me, it's at what point do I say, stop, sit down, let's reevaluate, and let's see what the next steps are. Because clearly what we're doing now is not working. But for people to just keep encouraging people to join courses, spend thousands on all sorts of workshops that is not going to do anything for them, then that really great. Me. So again, it's really looking about what it is. You are good at what it is. What are your real strengths? Because again, there are things that you can do that is not necessarily your passion, but can become a passion because you're now earning money from it. Trust me, when you're earning good money, it's amazing how quickly become how quickly things become your passion.

[00:36:45.800] - Stella

Right? So those are the kind of things that I think about. I'm passionate about employability skills. I'm passionate about delivering training. I'm passionate about being in front of an audience and talking about motivation and about employability skills and about vocational education and training. And I'm even in a more fortunate position because I'm earning money from those passions. But not only am I passionate about it, I'm skilled at it. I know my job right. So again, I've still had to go and be accredited and be qualified to be able to do those jobs. So these are the kinds of things that we need to encourage people, you know, job seekers the same thing. If I see a job seeker who just wants me to do all the action in, then for me, that job seeker is not ready for work. You got to be ready to work with the tools that we career coaches give you. I never, ever guarantee any of my clients that they'll get an interview or they'll get a job. I just don't do that because again, I'm being realistic. You are the one who is going to go and sit in front of those people who you have to go and make a good impression of, not me.

[00:38:18.130] - Stella

But what I can do is to help you and give you the tools to get you into that space.

[00:38:25.490] - Annette 

I agree with you completely. I never guarantee anyone. And I make sure every client who was talking to me about working with me knows that it's a partnership. There's work on both sides. It's not just me. And particularly with resume writing, I don't write fiction. So it's a partnership. And I love the whole idea of not guaranteeing. And I always recommend that people talk to a few different coaches, resume writers, before they hire somebody, see if they click and everything. But I have told people and I always say, if somebody tells you if you hire me, I guarantee you get a job that you should just run from them because there is no guarantee. And as you say, the person has to go in and do the interviews and apply for jobs that they're actually qualified for, et cetera. So.

[00:39:26.730] - Stella

How many times, Annette, have we seen as in physically seen resumes from people who've gone to resume writers or all these Mickey Mouse? That's what I call them, Mickey Mouse career coaches who have guaranteed them a job interview. And we look at the CVs and we look at the resumes and literally we are then shot again because they now tell us how much they've spent trying to get these resumes. And we look at it and it's a horror show, it's a disaster. And these are the kind of people that they do a disservice to us who have gone and spoken to countless recruiters like Tina Headhunters, hiring managers who've gone off to go and be accredited. And you have all these again, like I keep saying, Mickey Mouse bodies, who are pushing out all these rubbish CVs and resumes and giving false hope to so many job seekers that by the time they come to us, they're demotivated, they're demoralized. So on top of trying to work with them on their CVs and resumes, we're having to work with them on everything else that comes with it.

[00:40:52.370] - Annette 

Yeah. No, it's so true. It's so true. And I know people as I said, I'm people that I would not consider my colleagues, but people that I have met and known along the way who it's true. One day they're selling insurance and the next day they're a resume writer or a career coach or whatever. So things like credentials and all that are important as well. So our time is just like flying by. We are nearing the end of our time together. Is there something that you think that we should have been talking about that you think would be helpful for people watching now or on the replay? So many people watch on the replay that you think we should talk about or that you would particularly like to share?

[00:41:52.150] - Stella

I think for people out there and especially those who are using social media in terms of leveraging their business or trying to look for work, I know this word is always banded about, but really, authenticity is key. Authenticity is what is going to make you stand out from the crowd. Being yourself is so important. And again, being yourself, being vulnerable is also important. Portraying this happy clappy, everything is rosy in your life when it's not really will actually come out in real life when I meet you offline. And for me, I just think it's so disingenuous for people who do that where they really portrayed this lifestyle that so many people then want to aspire to. But it's a false lifestyle. It's fake. So again, I'm just saying be you do you do what works for you, do things that make you happy. Don't always seek validation from people who don't even know you like that. Seek validation from people who are going to be constructive, who are going to give you real positive feedback. Those are the people I pray for. Validation for anybody else, to me, just doesn't matter. So that is what I think is a good tip in all honesty.

[00:43:32.320] - Annette 

No, I agree. And as I'm looking off to the site, I'm seeing the live playing and you are getting applause for your statements. I can see the little applause coming up. Yes. And I think that's so true. And one of the things that I think about it and I'm sure you will agree with me is people who misrepresent themselves, not only just who they are on LinkedIn, but they misrepresent themselves because they want to get a job. So they are keyword stuff in their resume. They are sharing information. That's not true. And one of the things that I have heard occasionally is the idea of even on a resume putting skills and things in white ink or white. Because if you look at the resume, you don't see it, but the ATS picks it up. But to my understanding, when the ATS prints it out, it comes out print anyway. And there's so many things that people talk about. Let's game the ATS. And I think it's such a waste of your time and the interviewers time as well because you're not going to get the job anyway.

[00:44:59.050] - Stella

So let me just say this about ATS. Ats is applicant tracking system. And it's a piece of software, right. That a lot of organizations across the world use when you download your CV or resume through employment portals or their website. That's what ATS is. And ATS really does focus on two things. Ats focuses on format of your CV or resume and keywords. And when we talk about keywords, it is so important that you really study the job application, the posting the job description, because there are certain keywords that ATS wants to see and wants to track when you've applied for that role. So if you don't focus on the job description and you're being very, very generic, the ATS is going to literally throw out your CV resume regardless of whether or not you are the perfect person for that job, regardless of not whether you've got all the years experience and you are totally competent at that job. So again, that is the only way we can sort of fight the system if you like, if I had the codes for ATS, trust me, I'll be a very rich woman right now. We will be rolling in the millions, right.

[00:46:41.950] - Annette 

Or the LinkedIn algorithm, right.

[00:46:45.430] - Stella

All the LinkedIn algorithm. Trust me, that's where my money is at. But we don't know what these key words are. We can only guess. And this is where your career coaches will come in, your experts will come in because we anticipate we can only guess what keywords through reading the job description, through reading the posts that we think you need to put onto your resume. And that's why it's also important. And Amin who was on our clubhouse spotlight earlier on, she said this so brilliantly, I was flashing my mic going, Preach girl, Hallelujah.

[00:47:28.310] - Annette 

Yeah, she was fabulous.

[00:47:29.510] - Stella

Master class for sure in terms of really studying what the job posting is, what the job description is, and then tweak your resume and CV accordingly. You cannot use the same CV or resume to apply for all the jobs you apply for. It just won't work. The chances of you getting an interview using that strategy is very small. But once you really focus on certain keywords of the job posting the job description and you tweak your CV and or resume accordingly, then you have got a higher chance of getting one getting through the ATS and two, hopefully you get in that interview. So that is the way to play the ATS game. But all trying to second guess and put white ink and put board and all this kind of nonsense that again, these Mickey mouse people are telling you is all false. It's a mess.

[00:48:37.630] - Annette 

We're I thank you for that and I love what you had talked about is being authentic and that comes in with the headshot and the things that you post that you want when they do meet you that you are the you they are expecting, not filters. Right. So as we are closing down, are you open to connecting with anyone who is watching us now or on our replay?

[00:49:10.070] - Stella

I would love people to connect. Follow. Please engage. I love people who really comment on my content because I'm able to then engage. I'm almost a prolific essay writer when I'm commenting on other people's content because if it resonates then I feel I can bring something of value to your content. So yes, please connect with me on LinkedIn again. Annette and myself, we mud on clubhouse as well. We talk everything LinkedIn. I'm also always honored to come on our next show to support her with her employability rooms as well. So yeah, I'm all over the place on LinkedIn so come on in.

[00:50:08.210] - Annette 

If you're not following Stella, do because she puts out fabulous fabulous content. So I want to just thank everyone so much for being here. If you are watching now or you are watching on the replay, please do put your comments in the comments and we will check back and respond to you and with that I have to say thank you so much for being here and have a great rest of your day.

[00:50:38.050] - Stella

Thank you so much, Annette