I just attended the APCO International Women in Public Safety Communications Leadership Conference and thought it would be fun to share some of the things I learned.
The attendees were an amazing group of women, many of whom are 911 emergency dispatchers. They had amazing stories to tell and I was honored to speak with them about how to build personal credibility by using social networking.
Kelly Rasmussen talked about the fact that you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with. This is a great concept! If your friends are goal-oriented, positive thinkers then it is likely that you are, too. However, if they are the “negative Nellie’s” of the world, always blaming others for their problems, glass half (or totally) empty, then it will definitely affect your outlook on life.
Kathy McMahon talked about changing careers. She said that it’s critical to truly examine why you want to change. She suggested making a list of what you don’t like about your job. Of course, this is easy, because you wouldn’t want to leave if it was perfect! But she also said to make a list of what you like about your job. Sometimes, you may find that there are more positives than negatives. She also advised keeping both lists in mind during your search. You don’t want to take a new position that has some of your current dislikes and you want to maximize the positive things.
During my presentation, I asked how many currently had some type of social networking presence. Everyone did, although some weren’t very active. In preparing my presentation, I found that APCO has a Facebook Fan page, a LinkedIn Group and even a Twitter account. I was astounded to find that not a single attendee followed even one of these! If you or your business use social networking in your marketing efforts, are you telling people how to find you?
There were many more thought-provoking conversations but now it’s your turn. What do you think about what I learned…or more importantly, what is one great tip you learned at a convention you attended?
I really liked the tip that you are the average of your 5 closest friends. That is eye opening. I also liked the list of likes and dislikes of your current job. I would suggest developing 1 or 2 paragraphs that describes your ideal job environment. Actually I’m in the process of writing a blog on about it. It should be posted soon. Thank you for sharing your experience!
It was a fun discussion about the five friends – of course, I think we all immediately thought “hmm, going to stop spending so much time with x!”
Listing the things you like and dislike sometimes convinces someone to stay at a job – if they think they can change the dislikes. Plus, it definitely helps to think about the positives in a future job search. You’ve got a great suggestion about creating your ideal job environment.
The part about not following your own companies social media presence reminds me of a client I have. I manage his Facebook campaign and he doesn’t have a Facebook account. All he wants to know is how many fans we have. If I were a dishonest person, I could write all sorts of things and he wouldn’t even know. I just don’t understand his thinking.
Thanks Deborah for blogging about the Women’s symposium! I had a fabulous time and will happily return in 2011 per APCO’s request. I plan on attending the full event. There is so much to learn from all of the women there.
It is a gem in the “busy-ness” of our daily lives. The women who coordinate and plan the event are the best of the best! Hats off to them!
I am glad to have met you briefly and wish you well.
Kelly R. Rasmussen
Kelly – it really was great and I hope I’m invited back next year. Hope to see you!
This really answered my problem, thank you!
Cool! I’m glad you are finding value in my blog.