News & Events

You are spending too much time online.

 Last month we looked at how you can do your surfing homework to get a job. This month we are looking at the opposite problem – too much Internet use.

There are two main problems for job-seekers:

Time Management

The Internet is great, brilliant for finding information, connecting with people, keeping up-to-date. But one drawback is that this source of fast information is making us less able to concentrate. We are seeing this more with younger people coming out of school, but it is affecting those of us who left a long time ago as well! Internet content is not as in-depth as you would find in other sources such as books, magazines and encyclopaedias. People get bored on lengthy web pages and click to the next, so those writing for the Internet know to keep articles short.

This is great when you are looking for a bit of information quickly but if you get into the Internet mentality you could find it hard to knuckle down to a 9-5 job. Let’s face it, jobs can be boring at times. Spending a few hours filing isn’t many people’s idea of fun, but it does have to be done. The trouble is, people are finding ordinary work very dull compared to the bright lights and constant updating of the Internet. If you spend a lot of time online, you will start to find the real world dull, slow and boring.

So you don’t get sucked into that, try these tips:

•  Limit the time you spend online – set a timer (there’s a good online  one at: http://www.online-stopwatch.com/)
•  Give yourself goals and stick to them. When we go online, or just to pick up our emails, we often have a specific thing in mind, but then we notice interesting links to other sites and end up following them. Before you know if, you’ve wasted an hour of aimless clicking, and not done the thing you sat down to do. It helps to have a ‘To Do’ list. Mine has things like: Check emails; Check bank account; Pay credit card bill. When I’ve done those I tick them off and then deliberately come away from the computer – even if I need to go back to it to do other things, the act of closing the web browser and moving away from the computer helps my brain to move on to the next task. There are lots of good ‘To Do’ things you can use – from a simple notebook to a mobile phone, apps and computer downloads. Toodledo is a great website that will sync with iphone apps and can be added to iGoogle as a widget. The site has a ‘scheduler’. You tell it how much time you have and it tells you which of your tasks you could do in that time. Really useful!
• Spend some time in libraries, reading the papers, browsing books and checking out job vacancy sites on their computers. It’s a slower pace and more like a work environment.

Being Seen

One of the unwritten rules about social media is that you shouldn’t be seen to be on it too much. LinkedIn in particular has a reputation for showing up the people who are on it too much. People who answer lots of questions, vote in multiple polls, put status updates on several times during the day. All this is done during working hours, when they should be doing their jobs. It is noticed. For job-seekers this is all the more important. Professional businesspeople tend to go on LinkedIn – and other social media – early in the morning, during lunch breaks and at night. Try to stick to this and you won’t appear to be less than engrossed in your work!

Facebook & Twitter are the same but to a lesser extent. Posting lots of updates all day, every day, can make you look like you don’t have time to work because of the demands of social media! Allocate yourself specific times when you will do your social media surfing and try not to be tempted to nip on several times a day.

So that’s the final episode of our 4-part series. To summarise:

•  Make an Internet presence for yourself – have a LinkedIn profile at least
•  Keep your social media footprints clean and tidy – untag yourself from any dubious photos, avoid swearing in posts, keep it clean and professional
•  Use the Internet wisely to research jobs, companies and your industry
• Utilise time management skills (more next month on this) so you don’t waste too much time in your online excursions and make the most of what you do on there

Book A Career Counselling Session:

If you are nearing the end of your course and are looking for a job, you might like to book a session with Roy or Maria. They will help you look at your CV and re-vamp it, do a mock job interview, share some job hunting and interview tips and build your confidence for getting out in the job market.