Skip to main content

One Picture is Worth… (see www.SueMentors.blogspot.com)

Do you have a photo posted in your online profiles and web spaces?

 

I have been surprised to notice in the past few months how many of my colleagues and friends do NOT have a photo posted. In many cases, they are new to the website (e.g., just joined LinkedIn). It has made me wonder why.

 

I remember the early days of life online. I didn’t post my photo for several years but I finally got over my nervousness in 1999. (Those were also the years where the most common place to post a photo was in online dating sites.)

 

Nowadays, there is much more openness and comfort with our lives being lived online as well as in person. Many of you readers are online in multiple spaces – both professionally and personally.

 

I recommend that you post a photo in your various web spaces – and also that you use the same photo in all your professional sites. (I just changed my photo and made sure that LinkedIn, my SueMentors blog, and my SueMentors twitter profile all use the same photo.) Why?

 

Think about the power of an image. If a potential employer searches to see what you have done online, the employer will now see an image associated with your name and skills. (Often, LinkedIn is the first – or among the first – in the search results.) And if the employer keeps searching for results about you, the same image is seen over and over. Now do you get the picture?

 

A final thought about your picture to be posted. Make sure it is good quality and focuses mostly on your face. It is amazing how many photos posted in online professional sites are blurry, taken at too long a range (e.g., showing someone standing), or include children or pets along with the person. If you can’t afford to pay a professional to take a quality headshot for you, ask a camera-savvy friend to help you with a photo shoot and then work together to choose the best image. And remember to crop, fix the redeye, and otherwise make it the best photo you can.

Posted via email from sue griffey's posterous

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mentor: Anita Gibson, Deputy Director, MCSP (Maternal and Child Survival Program)

Another feature of this blog is bringing you advice and perspectives from people who mentor, by answering 3 questions.
Here are Anita Gibson's responses:
What are mentees looking for? A sense of different paths one can take in international health and strategies to reach both personal and professional goals. 

What 1 piece of advice do you give every mentee you work with? Solid field experience is invaluable. Learning how to work effectively with multiple stakeholders and colleagues with varying world views is not straightforward.  These skills come with experience - particularly field experience. 

Why are you interested in mentoring? Admittedly, I haven't sought out mentoring opportunities; rather, I sort of fell into them, particularly with more junior colleagues with whom I work.  After years of advancing my career while raising a family in the US and overseas, I find that colleagues are quite interested in how to achieve both job satisfaction and work-life balance.  I certainly d…
2 comments
Read more

Miley Cyrus and Me? Yes, Miley Cyrus and Me! ... or How The Voice Demonstrates #Mentoring

It’s always a surprise to people when they find out how much I love TV – and The Voice is in my top 10!
Let’s rewind to mid-2016 – when I noticed ads for The Voice as I was fast-forwarding through commercials. Imagine my surprise when the ads showed Miley Cyrus joining the team as a coach.
I thought: Really? As a Guest Coach – ? She has been so outrageous for the past couple years – and not exactly a good role model.
It didn’t seem a “good” choice to me.

But I love watching The Voice so that overrode my initial reactions.
In one of the first shows of Season 11, Miley had an intense look, as you can see in the photo. It struck me that this must be how I look when I’m on a telcon mentoring session (because suddenly I’ll realize I’ve been so focused on listening and the interaction that I haven’t taken a note or looked at the clock).
And then in the Knockouts (after Belle sang), she said, “I think I'll learn a lot and grow a lot in this experience too.”
My AHA moment (besides realizing my …
Post a Comment
Read more

Mentor: Dr. Pamela Lynam, Country Director, Jhpiego/Kenya (retired)

Another feature of this blog is bringing you advice and perspectives from people who mentor, by answering these questions:

What 1 piece of advice do you give every mentee you work with?
Be the master of your change, not a victim to it, since change is inevitable.Enjoy your work - you have to want to go to work every day.

Why are you interested in mentoring?

So I can help, not be a hindrance to other people. I like finding how to inspire people. It increases my satisfaction to see others' growth. 






Photo Source: DeathtoStock_IntotheLight-05




Post a Comment
Read more