Micro-resume: selling yourself in 140 characters

[Irulan]

Take twitter out of the discussion and think about how to sell yourself in one or two sentences. My professional organization has us do this all the time. It teaches you to represent yourself succinctly - especially if you have a non-mainstream niche or specialty. There's absolutely nothing wrong with this and it's certainly not dumb. It's a very good excercise even if you just talk to people about what you do.

[emily_in_nc]

Take twitter out of the discussion and think about how to sell yourself in one or two sentences. My professional organization has us do this all the time. It teaches you to represent yourself succinctly - especially if you have a non-mainstream niche or specialty. There's absolutely nothing wrong with this and it's certainly not dumb. It's a very good excercise even if you just talk to people about what you do.

Well said!

[Trek420]

How about this: My current job sucks, yet is so demanding, challenging, technical and exacting that it prepares me for anything you need me to do ... in Seattle

[emily_in_nc]

How about this: My current job sucks, yet is so demanding, challenging, technical and exacting that it prepares me for anything you need me to do ... in Seattle

I love it!

[Crankin]

Well, not only do certain things not fit into my place in the world, they also do not fit into my profession. Or the one I was in before. In my new world, I am considered computer literate, which is a joke. In the two places I interned, there was more than one clinician (usually male) who could not do email or type. Hand written notes are the norm. Some people (not all my age) are looking for other things to do before 2014, the advent of digital medical records. So, in human services/healthcare, one does not have to know anything about social networking because we don't want our clients to know anything about us.
I am in the same boat as Trek. My resume has been sufficiently doctored to only show my jobs since 1992; not even my first job in Massachusetts. It may look like I was someone who is in her early 40's and/or was a stay at home mom. Dates have been left off of my BA and first MA degree. Age is definitely a plus in my new field. I talked to the director of career services at my university and asked her about this point blank. She verified the above about older is a plus in my field, and also said that my demeanor, obvious fitness, and my resume information about being a bike trip leader are huge plusses, not just for an older person, but for anyone. I do feel uncomfortable about putting hobbies there, as it seems "personal", but if it helps a hiring person see me as a whole person, I guess it's OK.
I don't think I use "old" jargon and no one pegs me as "old." Having to swear in order to seem hip seems, well, just silly. My kids, who are in their 20's don't swear at work. Even the Marine, who well, doesn't swear like a Marine anymore. I know that "suck" does not have the connotation it had in 1969, but I kind of see it like when people use the word "putz." They think it means "idiot," until I tell them the real meaning in Yiddish.
I'll probably never, ever use Twitter and neither do my kids. I am on Facebook and perhaps, will join Linked In. My son in the Marines is very anti Facebook. DH, who is in the software field and manages over 200 people, all younger, does not Twitter and although he has a Facebook page, thinks it's evil.