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I've done some extraordinary things last year. I've gotten a volunteer gig in April. I went to a Smith College networking event in October. I'm networking with people at my volunteer gig. I am learning what it takes to be a leader and trailblazer. But those were just small steps to my plan of world domination. I am still not financially stable. I am still looking for a job. I still don't have my own place. Yet these things will come in due time.
2011 is the breaking point of my post-college career . If I don't elevate myself to new heights, I am pretty much screwed. So my 2011 motto is standing out in the world. I believe in the power of good karma and doing good deeds. I believe that if I help more people through my talents, I can prove to myself and to others that I am someone worthy of their time, energy, and commitment. I did not do enough last year to get companies and recruiters to notice me and this year I will.
1. Network: Networking will become an even more pivotal part of my life in 2011. It is who you know that will take you to the top of your industry or field. I plan on finding a job, but I will not use networking to get me a job directly and I say this with brute honesty because people will see me as desperate. Networking will improve my self-esteem and leadership skills and give my contacts enough optimism and trust in me to possibly connect me to others, which can lead me to job prospects. Big difference. 2010 was all about online job hunting which resulted in possible online frauds, dead ins, and ineffective recruiting. My New Years Resolution is about building my connections and knowledge of schmoozing and marketing. This is how I am going to network in 2011:
Offline Networking:
- Network with people I know through my volunteer gig, college, networking events,etc.
- Use Meetup.com, Twitter, and the Smith College Club of New York as resources to attend networking events and connect with individuals there.
Online Networking:
- Revisit my favorite Twitter chats weekly and get my name and brand out there from the grassroots level.
- #GenYChat
- #ForbesChat
- #u30pro
- #jobhuntchat
2. Travel: I thought long and hard about this. I currently don't have a lot of money, but I want to travel the world and see new places and cultures. By the summer of 2011, I hope to save enough money to take part in an AmeriCorp or PeaceCorp fellowship. I know basic Spanish, French, and Japanese and it would be fitting to actually relearn these languages and others in their natural environments than in classrooms. I do not know where I would like to go but I am thinking of heading down to Asia first, particularly China or Japan.
World travel has its benefits. It fuels creativity and new ideas. Currently my creativity is running dry. Not in the sense that I am losing my genius, but the energy and thought process are at a standstill at the moment. One of the major ways that I can fuel more creativity is to travel outside my comfort zone.
3. Acquire New Skills: Earlier I said that I know basic Spanish, French, and Japanese. I've taken language classes during most of my academic life. The problem? I have not been to France, Japan, or any of the Spanish speaking countries to improve my language skills. That is why I want to travel outside the U.S. I will continue to use LiveMocha and possibly Rosetta Stone for the time being to broaden and strengthen my skills. But hopefully by this year, I will actually visit these places. I am also at a disadvantage. I'm interested in pursuing a career in marketing and new media. Pursuing a MBA degree and start-up later down the road are also dreams of mine. If I ever want to work at a place like Google or Apple for example, I have to learn more technical skills. I am in the process of searching for affordable Adobe Dreamweaver and Photoshop courses this spring. With these new skills, I hope to stand out from the rest of the applicant pool. Do you see the connections here?Through the power of networking, travel, and education, I will create new ideas and spread those ideas to the world. As Seth Godin said, the only way you will get noticed by others, especially in this day in age, is to be heard. As I retrospect on the times I applied to jobs, I should have pushed myself harder to get that extra phone call or email from the employer. I cannot just send a resume and cover letter and hope that someone will contact me. I cannot do that anymore. I must charge and make things happen. A new job. A new place to live. A way to pay back my loans. You see those things are the ends, not the means of hard work. Patience is a virtue, but being a go-getter triumphs all.
What are your New Year's resolutions this year? How will you stay committed to your goals?
Good afternoon everyone! Happy New Years! Lets keep it moving. 2010 was the best and worst of times. I want to sincerely apologize to all my readers. I felt that I have abandoned you towards the end of the year. I came out with infrequent blog posts and on some weeks, no blog posts at all. I promised you that I will connect with you more in 2010 and I want to expand that promise in 2011.
Starting this week, I will promise to write at least one blog post every week. Seal. In 2009, I had more time to blog because I just came out of school. In 2010, I had less time to blog because of my volunteer work. Now in 2011, I will be even more busy and productive with volunteer work and other potential freelance endeavors on the side. But I will promise in 2011 my voice and my ideas and I also look forward from hearing about you and your new years resolutions and ways I can motivate you to empower yourself and others. You are always welcome to email me at christinabrown2009@gmail.com. YES WE CAN.
I also have interesting topics I want to talk about this year and to top the New Years with a bang, I have completed a guest blog for Nicole Crimaldi aka Ms. Career Girl. It will be posted very soon. I've been watching her blog for some time and I thought that my first blog post this year had to be special and awesome What a great opportunity to show the world that I am least a competent person (you will find out more about what I am talking about later). I will update this post in the next couple of days with an actual link to my guest blog. This one is quite special to me because it's my New Years Resolution. I am not going to going to give you a sneak peek, but if you have read my 2010 resolution, it can only get better!
If you have any questions, feel free to comment below. I am anxiously waiting! :)
So what is a linchpin? A linchpin, according to marketing guru Seth Godin, is someone that you should aspire to be. Linchpins stand out by creating ‘art’ (meaningful work) through emotional work and are not afraid to challenge the status quo. With this economic recession, a lot of people including myself, are reevaluating our career choices. People are leaving their jobs to launch start-ups and other ventures. If this had happened 50 years ago, these people would have been outcasts. Why would they leave their secure jobs with good 401K plans, health insurance, and retirement pensions to start a company? Now answer this question. How many current “jobs” have these same financial benefits? Very few. Fast forward. So wait, Santa Claus performs meaningful work? Think about it.
Today, people create blogs and social profiles to leverage average consumers, future employers, and industry experts. Santa pretty much does need to use social media like we do because his brand has already developed through centuries of folklore, not YouTube. But if he were real and wanted to get with the times, a strong social media presence would be beneficial because he could connect with millions of his fellow admirers online. Do you know how many tweets and Facebook comments he would get from people? Trillions. Epic Twitter shut-down! But for Santa Claus, it would just be a day in the life of a linchpin, reinventing himself one character at a time.
What are your holiday plans for Christmas and New Years this year? How has Santa Claus change your life? And Happy Holidays everyone! :D
I have been writing for years. For weeks after a time. At work. At home. Inside my head at night. I write blog posts not only because I enjoy writing but because I want you, the follower, to gain access to what's going on in this amazing mind. This year, I have had some creative bouts of imagination and I want to honor five blog posts that channeled this creativity. I plan to write more bizarre and insightful posts over the next year. Here is what I think are the best blog posts of the year:
1. Alice in Twitterland: How to Tweet Like a Rockstar (March 15th)
2. Your Guide to Becoming a Socially, Relevant Blogger (April 8th)
3. The Tweetbag Wars (February 18th)
4. Every Movie Should be An Inception (August 23rd)
5. The Social Network: The Movie Behind the Brand (October 5th)
Relive these posts. Cherish them. You know I have. As a follower, I want to know what are your favorite blog posts this year and tell us why you liked them. I would like your feedback because I want my blog and this community to do bigger things in 2011. Tell me what you like about this blog and what things I should work on to better promote this platform. The art of branding never ends!
