Using Lean and ToC in unconventional ways: 2-Social Media

Added Klout for your Job search - LinkedIn (It might just be the ONLY one needed for job search).

LinkedIn is THE social network for professionals and a great way to connect with people in the industry. You can use LinkedIn to find out more about people (a lot more in fact) and companies. You can see profiles, photos, their LinkedIn connections and their blog posts - and their comments and reactions to things as well as their skills (hey, just like your skills - look at that we're skill buddies).

Chances are if you have a few hundred or more connections, even in other industries, you can use the multiplying effect (6 degrees of Kevin Bacon) of your social network to either find jobs, find a person in a similar role at another company (who has their finger on the pulse as to where to look), or even someone who is posting a job because they want people just like YOU to work with them.

If you follow the companies you are interested in, then they will each be added to your profile and your "feed" according to the algorithm. You can then also search for people in the company profiles as well as relevant job openings (LinkedIn job search is fairly robust, especially if you have a paid tier - it will tell you if you would be a TOP applicant).

If you use LinkedIn correctly AND actively (not passively), you will also be able connect with many people in the industry. You can then use their connections to get your foot in the door or even a warm intro. You can connect with people who work in the same industry as you want to freelance for or people within companies you want to work for. Speaking of freelancing, you can also just connect with people and when they ask you, just help them with problems that you know how to solve and they could pay you for it. If they need someone desperately, they may even book you a flight, interview you at a bar, and basically hire you on the spot - you don't even need to know the solution, just the steps needed to come up with a viable option that might not require a big expenditure! Of course they want to hire you, you just saved them a ton of money.

Once you have connected to lots of people, you can invite these people to help you - many people on social networks do this just because they feel happy helping (no really - hear me out). I actually try to take a few minutes every day now to assist people new to 3D printing to figure things out - and it keeps MY troubleshooting skills sharp as well. If you have some extra time, you can also write guest blog posts, do a video with someone in your industry that wants to do a deep dive on something you are an expert on, and share it in your profile for everyone to see - including others who are actively looking for someone just like you! This is like a free billboard, and you get to test your skills and knowledge and keep sharpening that axe.

This leads to my last point about social media, which is the direct and often real-time connection. You may be chatting with a former employee, a current employee or contractor, or even someone in the c-suite directly. How cool is that? If it seems that you fit the bill, you are dealing directly and could land a fast-tracked interview or contract, perhaps even virtually! Do you think in the future they will refer to this part of the human timeline AC/DC (After Covid / During Covid)? I can't wait for the AC to kick in.....

Conversely, if the real-time research indicates a number of red flags as far as work environment, morale, or other negative effects of a badly managed workplace (Wait I can interview THEM?), you can probably eliminate these from your search unless you think you may have a shot at improving these things with the roles available - you never know unless you try. Sometimes as Marcus Aurelius said, "The obstacle is the way."

The last point about using social media is somewhat counterintuitive; come up with a system that limits your time. Make an artificial "constraint" and compress the work part of social media with a specific goal in mind - throughput. Some call this the Pomodoro Technique. It may be an hour before and after lunch or late at night and in the early AM when things are quiet and you can think. That's the great thing about the internet - it has many time zones. The same thing that you do with production line constraints is establish QC ahead of the bottleneck and make sure you are only working with "good" companies and people so that the people and companies you actively engage with are going to contribute to YOUR throughput, which is measured in connections who are willing to help or actively suggest roles in their company or companies they are very familiar with.

I know it took me a few seconds one time to send one of my contacts a Lean SOP/Thinking process document (DRAFT!) from one industry and they, being the go-getter they are, immediately started to implement it in their industry which was completely different! Sometimes you can help by just pointing out a direction to go towards throughput.

What tools do you use that carry over from ToC or a Lean methodology to connect?

Do you practice kindness by helping others? Do you mentor/help?

Do you look for connections that can possibly help you now or at some point in the future?

Do you have a timesaving technique that helps you to focus on what is important?

Do you use some sort of automation or system to connect or do job searches on social media platforms?

I'm interested to know more about what you do AND how you do it - please reach out to connect, and tell me a bit more about your processes and goals.