Take control online, land the gig offline

Hi friends!

I hope you've been enjoying my summer blogging thus far. I decided to take a quick break from the videos but no need to worry! I'll be back with my goofball self very soon. For now, I'd like to write up my response to an interesting question posed by the community manager at Webucator:  

What skill do you think is essential for success in today's job market? 

Image via College Times

*Full disclosure: Webucator is an online learning company. They asked me to contribute to their "Most Marketable Skill" blogging campaign for current and future job seekers. While I've never used the company's services, I absolutely commend anyone looking to expand their skillset, particularly in the technology sector. Besides, I'll be diving full force into the job hunt very soon, so this couldn't have come at a better time. Please note that I did not receive any sort of compensation for this post. Not even cookies! ^_^ 

Of course, I have to answer this question in the context of the video game industry, since it's where I personally plan to make a living. However, I think my answer is applicable to just about any other field. To abruptly break the suspense, I would have to go with a strong online presence. Big surprise coming from me, right? I literally eat, sleep and breathe social media. So let's go ahead and explore why I think your online identity is so important, particularly in the realm of gaming. 

My first argument is sort of generic but fairly obvious when it comes to the job search. Whether you chose to believe it or not, employers will be looking for you online once you begin to show interest. It's painfully easy to do a quick Google search and find out if 1) the person on your resume and cover letter actually exists in the way that you have written them and 2) your past behavior or current activity falls in line with company values (i.e. time to dump the Facebook party photos or at least use the appropriate privacy settings). And these are just the bare minimum of what an employer might investigate using the internet. We can say it's not right but that doesn't mean it's not going to happen.

Do you really just want to be an egg?

So if someone is looking for you online, why not give them the absolute best impression possible? I think this is insanely important if you aim to work in any creative or media-related industry. Especially when many openings now call for "social media" on the list of required or preferred skills. As Schawbel with Forbes points out, your online profile might soon replace a resume altogether. I've already seen moves toward this trend. For example, many applicant systems allow users to pull information from various social media platforms. It's one reason that I use my LinkedIn profile as a pseudo-digital portfolio. I've heard others argue that simply having zero presence is sufficient, but I have to respectfully disagree. Actually, I have to adamantly disagree.

Image via Kotaku

It all comes down to opportunity, and this is where things really tie back to the industry in which a potential job candidate plans to work. Without a well-crafted online identity, you miss out on the chance to share your voice and become a subject-matter expert. As an individual who hopes to leave a big mark in games, I've really had to develop a thick skin. From a small argument (maybe the best installment in the Final Fantasy series) to serious issues that get your blood boiling (just read the comments on any article covering gender representation in games), people are going to disagree with you. Despite this, I've actually felt empowered by sharing my thoughts or joining the conversation via social media. I know that my voice is valid, and I can hold my own with people in this industry. In many cases, this online confidence actually makes offline interactions, such as a job interview or networking event, feel much more natural.

While I think people are increasingly starting to recognize that taking control of your online self is a worthwhile cause, they forget that it can also be an enjoyable experience. Recently, I attended a gaming panel on "breaking into the industry" where one of the speakers mentioned that hopefuls should be "making" something every single day (note: I believe it was Ed Fries at Momocon, but my memory is a little fuzzy since he was a guest at both this convention and the DICE Summit). If you're not a game developer or artist like me, social media is the ideal place to turn. You can write, you can share and you can show your passion in a vibrant space with like-minded individuals. I can guarantee that this enthusiasm will give you an edge in the hiring process.  

Big thanks again to Bob at Webucator for the bit of blogging inspiration! It's quite an interesting campaign they've got going, and I encourage you to check out the other contributions on Twitter. You can also hop on over to their site for free tutorials. According to my conversation with Bob, these tutorials feature some of the most important aspects of the company's self-paced and instructer-led courses. Plus, the company runs an ongoing free course promotion focused on different programs within Microsoft Office. Again, I can't personally testify to these services, but the courses appear to be very thorough and free is always awesome!

Until next time,
-Girl Informer