Category: LinkedIn
Taking a Knee
By Emily Thole
Image credit: Yahoo Sports and Associated Press
In the restless and brutal sea of social media, taking a risk could leave a company struggling for air. You may have noticed from recent events, Nike decided to jump into the water head first by tackling a highly controversial topic in the U.S. With immediate response, the internet both attacked and commended Nike for taking a knee on a political subject that many brands and organizations avoid.
Colin Kaepernick, former San Francisco 49er’s quarterback who inspired player protest throughout the NFL, tweeted a photo marking him as the newest face of Nike.
The photo shared stated, “Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.” Since Kaepernick’s first protest in 2016, where he kneeled during the national anthem against police brutality, he has received backlash from the NFL and people around the country. His actions ultimately left him without a spot on any team, but Nike decided to endorse him anyway. In the early stages of the “Just Do It” campaign’s 30th anniversary, they made a statement.
Image credit: Twitter.com
As a result of the partnership, Nike made headlines. Celebrities including Jamie Lee Curtis, Serena Williams, Russell Crowe and COMMON were praising the brand on Twitter alongside Americans throughout the nation.
Image credit: Twitter.com
But with the good also comes the bad, and even ugly. Multiple individuals took to social media posting images and videos of themselves burning their Nike products, and cutting the swoosh logo from their socks and apparel, voicing that they will never shop with the brand again.
Image credit: Twitter.com
Nike isn’t the first brand to tackle a controversial issue. Many other companies have taken a stance on social issues as well. Dick’s Sporting Goods protested gun violence after the Parkland, Fla. massacre by saying they would no longer sell assault weapons, high-capacity magazines, and also prohibit the sale of guns to customers under the age of 21. Airbnb shot back at President Trump when he closed the borders to refugees in a campaign called, “We Accept,” by voicing their company’s acceptance of other races and nationalities in a time when the biggest figurehead of the nation was saying the opposite. When the U.S. pulled out the Paris Agreement, Ben and Jerry’s started a campaign called, “Save Our Swirled,” focusing on the topic of climate change. Each of these brands were criticized for becoming politically involved, just like Nike.
For a brand with popularity around the world, what form of success can come from this controversial partnership? Through all the back and forth of praise and hate, will either party prosper?
It depends on how you measure success, and from my research, numbers don’t lie. According to the Washington Post, after an initial drop when Kaepernick shared the photo, Nike online sales went up 31 percent. The incident got people to talk about the organization, and, whether positive or negative, the Nike brand was pushed to the forefront of their minds. According to Bloomberg, the company received over $43million in media exposure in the first 24 hours, and that continues to grow.
Risking your brand’s reputation is scary, but if it is something you believe in, take a knee and show the world what you stand for.
College Loyalty
By: Ashley Perry
“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go…” – Dr. Seuss, Oh the Place You Will Go.
College is a four year experience you can never get back. One value I have always tried to live my college years by was college loyalty. The word loyal is defined as “faithful to a cause, ideal, custom, institution, or product.” So, in my opinion, being faithful to college means committing toward collegiate goals. Graduating is the ultimate goal of college, however, there is so much more that goes into college loyalty.
You get what you put in to college. Campus involvement, connections, and opportunities are some of the few ways to make your college experience worthwhile. You have to find something to allow yourself to stand out from the other colleagues who will graduate with you. Focusing on yourself and what you enjoy professionally will help you to advance once you graduate. Try to think of these three words when completing your collegiate years:
Campus Involvement: 
Be involved within your major. Don’t just take a class and turn in your homework. Go out of your way to join a club geared toward your major. Go to your professors office hours and ask them ways you can get involved. I guarantee they would love to see a student in their office for once, and that will allow you to stand out. Even if you do not join a club geared for your major, find one that can benefit you as a leader. Find an organization that you can hold a position within and expand your knowledge of team building. Here is a link for the student organizations on campus at the University of Central Missouri. Check it out and find what club would suit you.
Connections: 
I am sure you have heard the saying, “don’t burn any bridges” because you never know when you might need to take that bridge. Unfortunately, that is true. It starts in the classroom. You never know who in your class could potentially be in a position to hire you one day, or who could think of you 10 years after graduation and tell their boss you might be a good fit. Get out of your comfort zone and make connections with your classmates. It does not stop with classmates, it applies to professors and fellow employees. Be friendly and always offer a helping hand. You can never get enough endorsements on LinkedIn. Basically, do not burn bridges with people, keep them as acquaintances. If you do not believe me on the importance of connections, check out this article.
Opportunities:
Do not let an opportunity slip away from you. If you hear about a chance to network or get together with some classmates, take it. You do not know where it will lead. Do not tell yourself you will do it next time, do it now. Take that hard class that will benefit you, take that internship or job that scares you. It is okay to fail at something, but it is not okay to fail at never taking an opportunity.
What I have received from college on a professional level, took me four years to figure out. I have passed up many opportunities and connections. Fortunately, I finally found the true meaning to college loyalty before my time was complete. I hope this blog will help you do some soul searching to find what college loyalty means to you.
Do you have any comments or thoughts on College Loyalty? Let us know in the comments below, and check us out on Facebook and Twitter.
Cleaning up Social Media Profiles
Image credit: making content.com/socialmedia
By Ashley Perry
Professionals look at social media profiles more than you think. Social media background checks are a significant part of an application process. From your “likes” to tagged photographs, employers will find it all. While social media is for personal use, you still need to think of it as an extension of your resume and self brand. What you may post on social media is a direct representation of yourself and the potential employment you are seeking. Here are some quick tips on how to clean up your social media profiles:
Look through all photos/tagged
Enter a caption
Photos posted on social media profiles are the quickest way to lose a job offer. Do not post questionable photos of yourself that can portray you in a negative light. Friends don’t let friends post pictures of each other making bad decisions. Set your profile to notify you when someone is wanting to tag you in a photo. This will save any bad light shining on you from another individual’s mistake. Here is a link to Facebook’s help center on how to change your tagging settings.
Clean out likes and groups
Image credit: Facebook.com
Back when social media first became popular, liking as many interests and joining groups was the fun thing to do. Those likes and groups you have joined may still be on your profile today. When cleaning out your social media, you should look on your “about” tab and search through the extra features. Slim down the amount of liked pages and groups joined. This will help your profile look more professional. Here is a link from Facebook’s help center on how to find your likes and groups.
Watch comments made
Image credit: coschedule.com
When friends post on their social media, you may want to share your true opinion. Keep in mind that social media leaves a direct trail to any comment that you have made. Foul language or offensive words can come back to hurt you in the long run.
Overall, keep your future in mind when posting on social media. Social media is a public profile for the world to see how you display yourself. Make your social media a positive representation of who you are, not a negative one. If used correctly, social media can positively affect your future employment.
Image credit: joyofthetech.com
How do you maintain a professional image on social media? Have you needed to clean up your accounts recently? Let us know in the comments below, and check us out on Facebook and Twitter.
10 ways to use LinkedIn to its fullest potential
Image credit: brand.linkedin.com
By: Elizabeth Fisher
LinkedIn is one of the most popular social media platforms among business professionals, but many people do not know how to use it to its fullest potential. Here are some helpful hints to making your LinkedIn account stand out from the crowd:
- Use photos to make your profile more attractive
- Include a business professional profile photo and cover photo on your profile. The photos should represent you, but also in a professional manner.
- Use this photo to feature your personality and style.
- Use LinkedIn to feature organizations and job experience not included on your resume
- When future employers visit your LinkedIn account they do not want to see the same experience featured on your resume. Create a LinkedIn account that features your personality and qualifications.
- Connect with individuals with whom you are currently connected
- Professionals you have worked with in the past are perfect individuals to connect with because you already have an established a connection.
- These individuals will be more likely to make a connection with you and help to build your LinkedIn profile.
- Connect with individuals with whom you wish to establish potential connections
- Do not be afraid to connect with potential employers. This will show your enthusiasm for a job or for their company.
- Connect with people who are connected with your friends. Having a mutual common ground will most likely lead to a connection.
- Do not send the general ‘add me’ message
Image credit: Linkedin.com
- Create and customize your own message when connecting with professionals.
- By creating your own message, it shows individuality that will stand out to employers.
- Continue interacting with individuals with whom you are already Linked
- Making connections is important, but maintaining connections is equally important.
- Like a connection’s posts or congratulate them on a career milestone. This will help build stronger relationships with your connections.
Image credit: Linkedin.com
- Use LinkedIn to search for potential employers
- Employers will remember your face from LinkedIn, especially if you create a message of your own when requesting a connection.
- Connect with company profiles you are interested in and relevant industry profiles
- When you connect with company profiles it allows you to network and build trust with that company.
- Download the LinkedIn app
- This will help you stay connected so that you will receive messages and notifications that you may receive on your LinkedIn account.
- You can even read company profiles and resumes directly from your mobile device.
Image credit: Linkedin.com
Linked Up Life
- Create and share posts
- Posts can show off your personality that cannot be seen within your content.
- Sharing posts can create great networking opportunities!
By following these key points, you can ROCK the LinkedIn world!
How do you use LinkedIn in your professional career? Let us know in the comments below, and check us out on Facebook and Twitter.
