Parenting and Social Media Systems With Job Search

By Chris Kulbaba

As I was sitting with one of my six children the other day, inevitably we started to discuss the fact of her going back to school to start Grade 11. “How can I figure out what I want to do?” I started to answer with some directions, and then thought better of it – I took off my parenting hat, and put on my facilitator visor instead – and asked her to let me think it through with her – can we just have some dialogue? What we came up with was a few ideas and points that I would like to share with you – I have highlighted the four best we came up with.

1. Teach them to ask intelligent questions from their research.

The best thing that we can do as parents is to help them use the tools they are familiar with to make some inquiries. By encouraging your child to gather information and then to come to you to discuss their findings, you are giving them the control of their journey, and then you can both learn about the potential choices and have a dialogue with them – instead of at them. More and more often, job seekers have to ask better questions, and this is where many potential employees fail. Phil Rosenberg of reCareered.com has a great article here about asking questions to succeed. Further, on my own blog I have posted a useful grid to determine the four important facts of a career choice and a free download of the grid as well.

2. In the world of Social Media – you are immortal.

One thing that many of today’s youth forget is that their words will live forever – storage of digital information is cheap and plentiful. What happens on Facebook stays on the Web forever – even if it is on a server in mainland China, it lives there and can be recalled at a later time. You can install a free product like the Social Media Sobriety Test – and turn off your Social Media at certain times (6 standard channels, and one custom URL like a blog). Remember, if you wouldn’t want it to go onto a billboard in your home’s downtown core, it is not material that should be shared on Social Media channels.

3. Find a mentor – and then start a conversation.

Using Social Media is a free and easy way to connect with some of the most elite people in the world. Never be afraid to reach out to others, the worst that will happen is you will be ignored – but if you start with no expectations, and simply try to start a conversation, you will have more success. James Clear from Passive Panda has 9 free tips here for getting emails to the right people, the right way. You can also reach out to individuals on LinkedIn. For example – check out my profile on LinkedIn.

4. Personal accountability should be a habit – and then set new goals from the process.

There are three simple questions you can ask at the end of the day, and as Eiji Morishita has posted here, they are simple yet powerful:

1) What did I learn? – You are either growing or dying. Progress and happiness comes from growth. Growth comes from being outside your comfort zone.

2) What did I accomplish today to further my cause? – You are either moving forwards or backwards. There is no such thing is standing still.

3) What did I do to make someone’s life better today? – We are here to contribute and make a difference.

A final question you can ask is “Who should I thank tomorrow for helping me today?”

Remember that it is “social” media, so sharing is a huge key to success. Leave comments with your favourite activities as well. How will you help your child going forward, is it a point here or one you came up with from listening to them as you spoke?

Chris Kulbaba C.D.P. is a Career Development Practitioner (C.D.P.) helping others to discover their inner genius, and then find work that matches with them and their personal values working with the London Employment Health Centre.