How to track your content on Twitter

It came as a surprise to me when I realized just how many people are missing a huge opportunity to track their content and to engage with a new audience. 

When in content marketing and social media Twitter chats in the last few weeks, I’ve noticed that my most retweeted and favorited tweets are my tips on how to track content on Twitter.  And when I met up with other social pros at an event this week, I heard about all the hashtags and key terms they search for. But they forget one of the most vital things to track: the URL. 

That’s right, you want to have a Twitter search set up for your URL. Why? Because every time someone links to your content, they won’t necessary use your hashtag or mention you.  In fact, most of the time they won’t!

#CareerBookChat Starts Monday October 5 at 8pm

#CareerBookChat is a Twitter chat where we talk about all those career books we’ve been meaning to read.  We all have The List—career-related books written by our favorite speakers, mentioned by a friend, or recommended to us at a networking event—but we never have the time to read it or group of friends to talk about it.

This is how #CareerBookChat was born. We’re going to tackle that list together, every first Monday at 8pm Central.  We’ll have 10 questions during the 1-hour chat to discuss the book and its career advice.

Our first #CareerBookChat will be Monday, October 5 at 8pm Central.

Our first book will be Leave Your Mark by Aliza Licht. If you don’t have enough time to read, still come to the chat to see what others have learned and to recommend our next read.

Have a suggestion for a book to read? Leave it in the comments or tweet it with the hashtag #CareerBookChat.

Freestyle Friday: Lake Michigan Edition

I love water. It’s a joyous, auspicious part of my life.

As a child, water is play, and joy is the uneven, submerged sidewalk, and the jumping both feet first into the deep puddle.  As an adult, I thrill of the cacophony of the downpour and the rolling, crackling, earth-shaking thunder, and I smile when I’m caught in unawares in rainfall.

Growing up, I had an endless supply of water to explore. There were lakes everywhere. Lakes in my friends’ backyard.  Lakes with loons. Lakes with small, 6-foot sand islands. Lakes with sailboats. Lakes with marshes and reeds.

And then there was The Lake. The biggest lake. A lake larger than the seas of faraway lands.  A lake so vast you cannot see its end. A lake so powerful you can surf its waves.  A lake with its own stories of sunken treasure and shipwrecks. It’s my lake. And it’s so many people’s joy.

You can surf it, patrol on it, commute on it, sail on it, cruise on it, dive in it, swim in it, —and in the winter— you can even walk on it.

When I see my lake, I feel at home. It doesn’t matter from whose shore or what perspective I see it from, my lake makes me feel at home.

Lake Michigan, my lake; my home. The collection of all of the water, and joy and luck, of my life.

Hello, my friend. How I’ve missed you.

Why You Should Ask for a Raise and How to Make the Ask (As Explained With Gifs)

Right now, I bet you’re thinking about all the things you could do with that extra cash.

But hold on! You should only ask for a raise if you have a good reason to. (Sorry,  “because I’m broke” and “I really deserve this” are not acceptable answers.)

Also, keep this in mind: you don’t get a raise for just doing your job. That’s called a salary. You’re already receiving that.

So what are some good reasons to ask for a raise?

• I worked my butt off all year (and have results to prove it)
• I went above and beyond my job description on numerous occasions
• I love my current job and I don’t want to change jobs in order to increase my income
• I am underpaid for my position (and I did my research and have proof of this)

When should I ask for the raise?