During the Personal Brand seminar, the first thing Beverly told us to do was to google ourselves and to see what pops up.  I was surprised to learn that recruiters may just google your name to get more information about you.

“Make sure nothing inappropriate comes up, so keep your social platforms clean and professional for the most part,” she said as we whipped out our phones to google ourselves.   It’s amazing how much information one can grasp about a potential employee online.  Therefore, Beverly stressed the importance of regularly updating our resumes, Linkedin profiles, Handshake profiles, cover letters, etc.

To be honest, I don’t follow this advice quite well, and often end up scrambling to touch up and fix my resume right before the career fair or submitting an application for a potential internship.  These times are often stressful and makes the whole application process longer than it needs to be.  I’m going to try to update my profiles and resumes more frequently as I gain more experience.  Also, she mentioned that you can adapt your resume when applying to different types of jobs.  For example, if you’re applying to intern at a pediatric office, you can include experiences involving working with children or in similar setting, and omit the experiences that don’t directly relate to this field.

This was quite valuable to me, because I often send the same resume when applying to different jobs.  Nonetheless, now I know how to customize to fit the company’s requirements for a potential job.

Additionally, another thing that Beverly emphasized is the fact that you should have a loose idea of what your personal pitch should be.  She explained that you shouldn’t have a set script of what you’re going to say, because then it sounds like you’re giving a presentation instead of having a conversation with the recruiter.  This especially struck me, since I went into the fall 2018 career fair using the script method.  Now, I know how I can improve for next time, by using the personal pitch as a springboard for greater conversation with the recruiter.

I’m pleasantly surprised about how much stuff I learned during this seminar; I feel like having someone physically tell us some tips and tricks makes me remember and learn more than from just reading some tips online.

I recently attended SA Beverly’s Personal Branding presentation, where she discussed how to make yourself appear more desirable to potential employers, both in-person and on a resume. This mini-seminar was both informative and rewarding. Although I knew what an elevator pitch was, I didn’t know how to apply it to a conversation. During the presentation, I learned that sometimes you weren’t supposed to ramble on about your experience while the employer just stands there. You need to actively engage in conversation, not become a TV commercial. This explanation definitely helped me in my understanding of how to interact with employers. I look forward to applying my newfound knowledge at future career fairs.

I’ve always known that how you present yourself to the world is important, especially to the professional world. As a professional, there’s rules about what you do, how you dress, and what you say, which I think our generation has simply forgotten about it.

SA Beverly Balasu mentioned during the seminar that employers “google” potential employees to see whether or not this candidate is a right fit for the company. My parents always told me to keep at a minimum what I post on my social media because they’re always thinking about my future, whereas I only realized that my career could be made or broken by a single tweet once I started my college career.

I learned a lot in this seminar about how to make yourself seem like the perfect candidate for a job and I hope to put it to good use soon.

On October 11, 2018, I attended SA Beverly’s professional workshop on personal branding. I learned about the different ways of branding yourself, including through a resume, on employment websites like LinkedIn and Handshake, and with a personal pitch. For example, I learned that a curriculum vitae is different from a standard resume because it is mainly used in research and education fields and is expected to be longer than a page. Also, I learned that I should take about two to three weeks before sending follow up emails to recruiters who I meet at a career fair. This gives the recruiters sufficient time to work through the chaos of career fairs and organize themselves.

Until I started college, I thought that personal branding was silly; the idea of needing to essentially “sell” yourself seemed ridiculous and not genuine, and I shied away from and largely disregarded the concept of personal branding. However, I now recognize the importance of differentiating and effectively marketing yourself. Personal branding is actually a way of allowing my personality and unique experiences to shine through amidst all of the black and white numbers. When I was a child in elementary or middle school, I used to Google myself with my friends and giggle as images of complete strangers popped up on the screen. Back then, I never considered that employers would actually search for me through Google. SA Beverly recommended that I take the time to Google myself every so often and see what pops up. Likewise, she stressed the value of keeping professional websites constantly updated to demonstrate proactivity and diligence. Googling myself no longer seems to be a big joke.

Especially as a business student, the need to take initiative and put myself out there seems more crucial than ever before. Small details can appear inconsequential at first but can completely alter how someone perceives you. As I begin to apply for internships that could affect my professional development and future livelihood, I will do my best to keep these intricacies in mind.

I thought SA Beverly’s talk on Personal Branding came at a very opportune time, as I’ve been starting to reach out to people for internships and her advice came as a reminder for all the things I still need to do (like update my LinkedIn Profile). I’ve never given the idea of a “personal pitch” much thought, but after she talked about it, I can see why it’s extremely necessary when talking to potential employers at career events. Last year, I went to IFT 18, a conference/food expo for food scientists, and I didn’t think I did enough to market myself to all the companies whose booths I visited. This next summer when I attend again, I’ll definitely keep Beverly’s tips in mind and go a lot more prepared with print-outs of my resume, a list of my top ten companies I need to visit, and prepared questions and my personal pitch.

As someone who is not really active on social media, I’m glad that I don’t really have to worry about embarrassing or damaging stuff on my Facebook or other platforms. Still, I think it was a good reminder that anything put on social media is something that can follow you into your professional life.

Last Thursday I attended SA Beverly’s presentation on building a personal brand. This presentation was definitely very informative, and I’m glad I went. On the surface level, it was very useful because it was all about how to market yourself to employers and to land an internship or a job. I was slightly skeptical going in because, having been to a few similar events with different organizations, I was worried that I would simply be hearing the same information again though. I was happily proved wrong however, because Beverly’s presentation was much more about personal experience and what has worked for her.

For example, I can’t even count how many times I’ve had the concept of an “elevator pitch” explained to me. And conceptually, it seems simple—have a short, sixty second long blurb about yourself and all your relevant experience. But I’ve always had a lot of trouble figuring out how to use my elevator pitch in conversation with employers at career fairs and other events. Beverly was the first person to explain it in a way that really clicked with me. You’re not supposed to walk up to an employer and just start reciting your elevator pitch like it’s some sort of shopping list; it’s meant to be a jumping off point for the recruiter to ask you some questions about your experience and what you’re looking for. Most of the time, you can expect to not even get through the entirety of the elevator pitch. This explanation really clarified for me what a career fair is supposed to be like. Until hearing this, career fairs always felt so formulaic and robotic to me, but this explanation really helped me see how to make our interactions feel human in this setting.

This was just one example of the many ways this event helped me view the recruitment process in a new light. I genuinely hope to see more events like this one in the future!

Last week I had the pleasure of attending the mini seminar on Personal Brand. It was so helpful! I learned great tips on improving my resume, mainly in terms of quantifying the things we have done. I see how important is it to include metrics in you resume because it highlights your ability to deal with many different things at once. Furthermore, I learned of helpful websites for writing a CV and a cover letter depending on what I am applying to. I was surprised by how we have to keep our LinkedIn updated, I must admit I had not really though about it until this seminar. The personal pitch idea was great because it gave me a system to follow in starting a conversation. Of course it must be flexible in order to keep the conversation going. Finally, in terms of when the time to look for jobs comes, like studying for classes, we need to stretch everything out in order for it to not pile up on us when we start applying. We can update LinkedIn and our resumes now and then worry about the other stuff when the time comes. Overall, this seminar was extremely helpful and I am making sure to take advantage of what I learned in planning for my job search!

In the seminar on Personal Branding, it was very helpful to learn about how we should present ourselves online. For instance, one of the things we discussed was how we should speak during Career Fairs and information sessions. I have only gone to one Career Fair and I did not really have the opportunity to speak to many employers. Thus, it was useful to learn that the next time I go, I should list out 10 employers that I definitely want to go to so that I am not just walking around and deciding on the spot which company’s booth I will visit. In addition, Beverly suggested that we google ourselves to find out what comes up when our names are typed in. When I did this, I expected to see my LinkedIn profile come up but it turns out that there are several people who graduated from Cornell (or who are still at Cornell) who have my first and last name. I was surprised to learn that employers would actually search up employees just because there are typically many candidates vying for a single position. All in all, this seminar reminded me to be cautious about what kinds of information I put on the internet and to fully prepare myself before professional events.

This past Thursday I attended the seminar on Personal Brand. The seminar touched on subjects or resources that I have had exposure to before, such as Linkedin or resume drafting, but provided a new approach to enhancing them. For example, while most people now have a Linkedin account it is not simply enough to create one and let it sit there. Instead, you need to maintain your site by updating it whenever a new achievement or position is obtained. Additionally, it is beneficial to engage with the site by posting or connecting with others at a similar frequency. This advice is what will stick with me from this seminar as it adds another depth to my brand by enhancing me engagement and increasing my exposure.

On Thursday night, I attended the seminar series on building your personal brand. This seminar taught me many valuable tips that I hope to employ when seeking a job!

For instance, I learned that it is good to prepare a general “elevator pitch” and to practice it in front of a mirror. This will relieve some stress during the actual interview, as you will not stumble over what to say next. I also learned that your Resume should be tailored appropriately for the job you are applying for. When you attend career fair, you should have a list of top 10 companies and several resumes, each highlighting your distinct skills and interests that are most relevant to that company.

After all, it is all about presenting your best self to employers.

This Thursday, I went to the mini seminar on personal branding (how to present yourself). I thought that this seminar was particularly useful for all undergraduates because SA Beverly gave tips on different ways to represent ourselves. She talked about basic rules for writing a resume and when the curriculum vitae (CV) and cover letters are useful. Her examples were especially helpful. She also addressed some steps that we should prepare before attending career fairs. Now, I think that I would be more prepared when I visit the next career fairs and be able to spend my time more efficiently. Lastly, she also talked about updating/creating LinkedIn, which is another way to advocate oneself.

I recently attended the Branding event in the Rose Seminar Room. I learned so many new things about how to present myself to potential employers. One of the most helpful tips was to keep my LinkedIn updated. The spokesperson stressed how important this was because so many opportunities are posted on there. It is also important to ask people you meet. For example, if you go to a table at the career fair and meet one of the employees for that company, ask them to connect with you on LinkedIn. This will allow the company to remember you and realize that you are actually interested.

Another helpful thing I learned is that you can create your own website and share the url with employers via your resume. Unfortunately, I am not very knowledgeable on coding but if I was, I would be sure to do this.

The talk by SA Beverley was extremely helpful. She highlighted some of the key things that you need while building your brand, including your resume and your personal pitch. I always knew the importance about these items, and that I needed them while I applied to jobs, but I was never taught the proper method of building a resume or making my personal pitch. SA Beverly also highlighted the need to have pre-formulated responses to the typical interview questions. For example, “Why are you applying to this job?”, “Tell us about a leadership experience.” Although many times I feel that I sound extremely formulated when I prepare my responses, SA Beverley reminded me that only when you prepare will you be able to deliver the best responses. SA Beverley’s insider advice and tips on how do build the best resume and how to master networking and interviews was extremely helpful.

Now I am off to fix my resume…

It’s that stressful time of the school year when prelims, homework, and club commitments are piling up. In addition to that, there is also the responsibility to attend career fairs to network. I attended my first career fair today with no idea how to present myself. Later that day, I attended a Rose seminar about how to properly brand yourself and realized I didn’t have the right approach. My takeaway from the seminar was that there are three ways to present yourself to a company: resume, professional site (something like LinkedIn), or an elevator pitch. Additionally, I learned that companies tend to google you, so if you don’t have a mug shot as the first result when your name is entered into the search engine, you’re in good shape. By far the most important takeaway is it’s imperative to be yourself. In order to really stand out, you should be yourself and not what the company wants you to be since that’s the strategy most people will take. I feel very lucky to attend Cornell because Cornell provides its students with so many resources to not only brand yourself properly, but also to network and find the right internship for you. Next time I attend a career fair I’ll be ready to as the right questions and let myself stand out.