Photo credit: CollegeDegrees360, Creative Commons/Flickr

Yes, it’s cliche, but January is the perfect time for resolutions, goal-setting, and making plans to better yourself throughout the year. Here are some events, webinars, and other activities of note to help you with your professional development this month.

Job-Hunting Help. If you’re on the hunt for a new job, and one-third of employees are, look for online resources to help you make the most of social media and learn more about potential future careers.

• Learn how to leverage the new LinkedIn profiles in a paid webinar from Jason Alba, the author of I’m on LinkedIn—Now What??? on January 17.
• Join #JobHuntChat on Twitter, Monday evenings from 10:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. EST.
• @HFChat (Hire Friday Chat) also hosts #HFChat with career experts on Fridays at 12:00 p.m. EST.
• NY Creative Interns hosts Creative Q&A virtual events, and on January 16 at 8:00 p.m. EST, Tina Yip, community manager for R/GA will talk about getting into and advancing in the social media industry.

Local Events. If you live in one of these cities below, check out the interesting workshops and panels taking place during January.

• If you’re in Atlanta, attend a “Embracing Conflict: Personal & Professional Conflict Management Workshop” at Little Five Points Community Center on January 19 from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
• In the New York City area? Achievement First is hosting a professional development session for teachers called “The Together Teacher: Plan Ahead, Get Organized, and Save Time!” on January 26 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. in Brooklyn.
• In Portland, the Nonprofit Association of Oregon is hosting “Nonprofits & Advocacy: Mission Advancement & Civic Engagement,” a day of training on January 23 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Free Online Events and Resources. No matter where you are located, you can easily attend several free webinars in January related to nonprofit management and operations.

• The Nonprofit Technology Network is hosting a free webinar on January 15 at 11:00 a.m. EST about mobile donations.
• The “Developing an Epic Facebook Strategy for your Nonprofit” webinar will be held on January 30 at 3:00 p.m. EST.
• If you’re looking to expand your organization’s Twitter presence, marketing software company HubSpot is offering a free download of “How to Use Twitter for Business.”

Conferences. Do you have the time and money to attend a conference that’s not in your zip code? Plan ahead with a couple conferences set for early February.

• The DMA Nonprofit Federation 2013 Washington Nonprofit Conference is set for February 7 and 8, with Katya Andresen, COO and CSO of Network for Good as the keynote speaker.
• The Social Enterprise Conference is planned for February 9 and 10 in Boston, with Ben Rattray, founder and CEO of Change.org as the keynote.

Fellowship and Mentorship Programs. If you’re looking for something a little more in-depth and long term, there are several fellowships and internships in public service, government, and more that have January deadlines.

• Apply to work with President Obama (January 27 deadline).
• Choose between a year-long fellowship or a ten-week leadership training program with the Greenlining Institute (both January 18).
• Learn more about the nine-month Coro Fellows Program in Public Affairs (January 18).
• The Nonprofit Consulting Meetup Group is expanding its incubator and mentorship program in 2013. The group is currently gathering interest via its Meetup page and will plan a kick-off event soon.

Management Training. Even if you are a bit farther along in your career or more set at your organization, there are still ways you can grow and learn.

• Goodnik, a group for social entrepreneurs and nonprofit innovators, is hosting a free Meetup event on “Hiring and Firing in the Social Enterprise” on January 23 at 7:00 p.m. in New York.
• The Center for Nonprofit Advancement is offering classes in January on “Facilitating Meetings that Work” and “How to Present Skillfully and Tactfully,” in Washington, DC on January 16 and 25 starting at 9:30 a.m., respectively.

And don’t forget to volunteer. Volunteering during your free time is definitely be one ongoing way you can boost your career, especially when the career is in nonprofits. Martin Luther King, Jr. day is Monday, January 21, and there are many volunteer opportunities available on Idealist and elsewhere for that three-day weekend.

Just about everyone with an interest in nonprofits wishes for greater information about their effectiveness. Unfortunately, with millions of nonprofits around the world addressing everything from advanced cancer research to preschool enrichment programs, it’s been challenging developing metrics and processes that provide reliable measures of their successes.

How are you measuring your organization's success? (Photo credit: Ms. Tea, Creative Commons/Flickr)

Of course, various groups have been pushing for ways to solve this problem: Foundations ask for progress reports; government contractors ask for tallies of service units; academic researchers design double-blind studies and look for control groups. Yet a challenge with these approaches is that they are designed to give outsiders – funders, government agencies, the general public – tools to evaluate a nonprofit’s work, or even compare performance among nonprofits. We are still left wondering: are these approaches making it easier for board members and staff to develop a thoughtful and ongoing way to assess the impact of the organization’s work? Do they understand their role in the organization’s challenges and successes?

A project developed by the BBB Wise Giving Alliance, GuideStar USA, and Independent Sector is looking to address these questions by helping nonprofits evaluate themselves, starting with their leaders. Charting Impact challenges board members and key staff members of nonprofits to ask themselves five questions, and to be candid when publishing the results. The questions are general enough to work no matter what the goal and to fit organizations of any size. Already groups as diverse as the Food Bank for the Heartland [PDF] in Omaha, Nebraska, and the American National Red Cross [PDF] have completed the process and have their Charting Impact Reports online for anyone to see.

The five questions are:

1. What is your organization aiming to accomplish?
2. What are your strategies for making this happen?
3. What are your organization’s capabilities for doing this?
4. How will your organization know if you are making progress?
5. What have and haven’t you accomplished so far?

While there’s certainly value in answering these questions, the real innovation in Charting Impact comes in the setup and sharing: organizations answer the questions online and can share their initial responses with up to 10 stakeholders who give anonymous feedback. The result is a personalized report that crystalizes your work, goals, and impact and includes the input of your community.  Organizations that have adopted the Charting Impact approach say that some of that feedback has been really useful in sharpening the descriptions of their work and refining the measures they use to track their own progress.

Because Charting Impact is co-sponsored by Independent Sector, Guidestar, and the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance, organizations that complete the Charting Impact process can have their finished report published on-line at various websites that are often used by donors, foundation staff, and people interested in the program.

What do you think? Will this change the way nonprofits examine and share their effectiveness? Has your organization tried this? Share your thoughts below.

Hi, everyone. I’m Julia Smith and I’ve been lucky to edit this blog over the past few years, working with our team to shed light on everything from idea-sharing potlucks to New Year’s resolutions for job seekers to tips for making the most of any conference you attend. Now it’s time for me to hand over the reins, and I’m thrilled to welcome Allison Jones,  a longtime member of our community and one of the newest members of our staff. Read on to meet the communications champ who will be bringing you all kinds of blog goodness from now on!

Welcome Allison, our new blog editor!

Q. When did you first know you wanted to have a career with social impact? Is there a moment in your life you can pinpoint?

A. In high school I lived in a poor part of Brooklyn but attended school in a wealthy part of Brooklyn. The differences were shocking and upsetting; who knew the impact a zip code could have on someone’s opportunities? I loved my time in school yet always thought, “Why can’t my brothers and sisters at home have this too?” And so began my commitment to education equality.

Q. Almost all of your jobs have been at nonprofits, right? What have you found most challenging and most rewarding about working in the nonprofit sector?

A. Yep (aside from an after-school gig I had in high school where I worked in the home office of a retired investment banker!). I have been a nonprofiteer for much of my career. I arrived at the sector by cause: I have always been passionate about education equality and this passion somewhat naturally led me to the nonprofit sector. I stayed in the sector because of community: nothing beats having a network of nonprofit geeks and folks audacious enough to think they can change the world.

I am also excited by the changes in the sector. There is so much movement and conversation around what change looks like, what role nonprofits play in facilitating that change, and the potential of cross-sector work to bring that change to life.

Q. Do you remember when you first set up your old blog, Entry Level Living? What prompted that and how did it feel to click “publish” on your first post?

A. I started Entry Level Living because I wanted to write about my experiences as a nonprofit newbie.  It was exciting but I honestly didn’t think anyone would read it. I had been blogging on LiveJournal and Yahoo!360 (service was shut down a few years ago – am I dating myself?) and the communities I built there were mainly of classmates and other casual/personal bloggers. I assumed my current blog would be the same thing; to be honest I was (and still am!) surprised by its growth since I started in 2007.

Q. Your blog has morphed over the years and is no longer quite so “entry level.” Can you share a little about how and when you decided to rebrand?

A. When Rosetta Thurman and Trista Harris were writing their book How to be a Nonprofit Rockstar they wanted to include my blog and a post I had written. When they checked in to confirm how my blog and name should be credited, it dawned on me that while I was sharing advice on starting a career, I wanted my blog to reflect my professional growth; I wasn’t entry level anymore and had a growing network of peers which lead to a variety of experiences in what it means to make a difference. I didn’t want a huge departure from my original approach but I did want to tighten up my writing and vision, hence my tagline “Helping Millennials put their passions into practice.” Although simple, it acts as a launching pad when producing content. Some of the most popular posts since then have covered the role of college in your career, social entrepreneurship, and nitty gritty job searching tips.

Q. In this new role at Idealist you’re going to be eating and breathing a lot of online networking. Can you share one of your social media “lightbulb moments”?

A. I have had many lightbulb moments, most of them offline, in particular working with parents and students in schools. My work in education has taught me the importance of the phrase “meet people where they are.” Though the phrase is often used to encourage people to adopt social media to connect with new staff, donors, allies, and organizations, it is really reminding us to put people first and to communicate with them on their terms, online and offline.

Q. What made you decide to apply for this job? What are you most excited about now that orientation is underway?

A. [Idealist's Executive Director] Ami once called me an “accidental techie”: I kind of fell into social media and technology through my love of blogging and the excitement I feel from connecting with people and learning about the world around me. But there is something amazing about being able to focus intently on how social media and tech are being used to make the world a better place and being able to throw myself into that conversation. And I just love Idealist.org. Seriously – the service it provides, the message it sends, and its plan for world domination really appeal to me. Plus, I truly believe that writing and editing are art forms. You can make magic happen with words.

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See why we feel lucky to have Allison on board? Leave a comment below to welcome her! She’ll also be the human behind our Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest accounts, so feel free to introduce yourself.

Now we're moving. (Photo: Norlando Pobre, Flickr/Creative Commons)

I just finished my first interview!

I got the interview request a few days ago, and after weeks of stress-induced quesadilla dinners and panic, this was a huge reassurance. Someone somewhere thinks I’m doing something right! (If you need to catch up, here’s how I started my search and what I’ve been doing since.)

After finishing my celebratory happy dance, I got down to work. Here’s how I prepared and how I think you can make it through your interview with minimal stress.

Review.

Remind yourself why you’re a great fit for the position.

• Back to basics. Re-familiarize yourself with the job description, the application materials you sent, and the organization’s website (specifically the role you’re hoping for and how it ties to their mission).

• Anticipate questions and get specific with your answers. Avoid awkward pauses or grasping at straws. List out the reasons—with specific examples—why your past experience makes you a great fit for the position. Review common interview questions that you may be asked and make sure your responses are clear. Don’t leave the critical thinking for interview day.

Rehearse.

Now that you have those talking points, learn them. Make flashcards, invent a color scheme, or cover yourself in sticky notes. Whatever it takes, know the key points that you want to cover.

Interview day

Get comfortable and be confident.

• Go to your happy place. If you have a phone interview like I did, a happy place is both mental and physical. I squirreled away into an empty back conference room with a notebook, pen, bottle of water, the cover letter and resume I submitted, and a print-out of the job description. If your cell phone is as temperamental as mine, try to get to a land line. Get comfortable – if you are more assertive in a suit, wear one. Personally? I rid myself of the jitters by interviewing in flip-flops and blasting Eminem a few minutes before I knew the phone would ring. Oh, and did you remember to go tinkle? Do it.

• If you have an in-person interview, look professional and approachable. If you’re not sure of the dress code, aim to be over- rather than under-dressed (but this does not necessarily mean wearing a suit). And bring a copy of your resume and a way to take notes, even if you don’t end up needing either.

• Pump yourself up, do a mirror check, and review your notes, but do it all before you get there. Arrive a little early, walk through the doors on time, and be nice to the person who greets you. First impressions are crucial. When you step foot in the building, you’re on.

Relax!

The hiring committee is looking for a good fit for the position and their office culture; you are looking for a position where you’ll contribute and thrive. All of this preparation is so that everyone can find out if it’s a good match. Take a deep breath and be yourself.

Extra reading:

This is obviously a well worn topic. Here are some resources that I consulted while preparing for my interview:

• Idealist.org’s Career Center – We offer a rundown on how to prepare, what questions to ask, and even what to pack for your big day.
• AskaManager.org – Alison Green’s wildly helpful site, written from the point of view of a hiring manager. You’ll want to look specifically at her interview and phone interview posts.
• Theemployable.com – Tips on how to answer questions, what your body language is saying to the hiring manager, and mistakes to avoid. Thanks to Catherine R. of our LinkedIn group for the tip.
• Glassdoor.com – Browse interview reviews from previous candidates to get an inside view of a company’s interview process.

Happy dances all around

We’re getting there! Congrats on any progress you’ve made this week. As always, feel free to share your experiences, horror stories, and funny anecdotes with me in the comments or at diana [at] idealist [dot] org. I’m cheering you on!

Hi, Diana again. I checked in a little while ago about the beginning of my job search. I thought it might be time for an update and a few more insider tidbits.

What to do when you're waiting...and waiting... (Photo: Paul Downey, Flickr/Creative Commons)

I have sadly little to report: a few false starts, and one tiny spark of a lead that I hope to turn into a real possibility. I’m trying my best not to let my anxiety get to the best of me, and trying not to check my email fifteen times an hour (…I wish I were kidding). But, never fear. Let’s be proactive:

Keep the applications going and be patient.

It’s easy to feel burnt out when you spend hours on applications and you don’t receive positive feedback. Find your inner Dory, and just keep swimming. Don’t focus on the number of applications you’ve sent out, or the rejection letters (or lack thereof) that you’ve received. All you need is for one employer to think you’re a good fit.

While we’re on the subject of feedback: as tempting as it may be, in most cases you should refrain from following up on your resume. You’ve submitted your application, so the organization knows you’re interested; your cover letter and resume indicate your enthusiasm and skill set. One exception to this is if you have a substantial addition to make to your file. If you’ve applied to a job where Swahili is a requirement, and you’ve since become fluent, by all means, let the hiring committee know. (This tidbit comes to you from our very own HR team; for more insight, check out IdealistHR.org.)

Learn from your (mis)steps.

If you’re not sure about the content, tone, or general approach of your application materials, have a friend or colleague look everything over. As much as it may feel like one, your job search is not a cumulative exercise. The organization you contact today doesn’t know about the spelling error you missed on the last resume you sent out, or about the “joke” that didn’t go over so well in a past interview. Take your past stumbles and learn from them.

Take notes.

Every week, we receive a few calls from panicked job seekers who’ve finally landed an interview, only to realize they have no idea which position they’re being considered for. Don’t let yourself get ambushed – and please feel free to use this little chart I’ve made for myself:

Network. No, really, do it.

I rolled my eyes as much as the next person when it came to networking. But that lead that I mentioned? It came from a connection. I’m sending out applications and letters and resumes, too, of course. But you never know where your dream job will come from. We have so many great ideas on networking already, so I’ll leave you to peruse our resources. Suffice it to say, whether it be via social media, in person, or by carrier pigeon, networking: do it.

React:

This is a struggle for me, too. Some of you have already reached out with your personal stories and experiences. Please keep these coming! If there are specific topics that you’d like Idealist to cover or if you have a never-fail tip, let us know. Drop me a line here in the comments or at diana [at] idealist [dot] org.

–

Liked this post? Here are others you might enjoy:

Five New Year’s resolutions for job seekers

Career Corner: Taking my own advice

Getting your career search on track

Diana’s Big Move: The job search  begins

Eye candy and food for thought from our Facebook feed this morning:

Screen capture of the pinboard "Nonprofit Organizations" curated by NonprofitOrgs

• Nonprofit Organizations on Pinterest: Thinking about Pinterest for your organization? Take a look at the boards Heather Mansfield (aka the human behind Twitter feed @nonprofitorgs and facebook.com/nonprofitorgs) has created: Inspiring Social Good & Causes, Shop for Good, Technology & Fundraising, and more.

• Ten technology-for-good ideas via The Chronicle of Philanthropy: “…accomplishments of the 10 people who will be honored next month for their social-change work by organizers of the SXSW Interactive Festival in Austin, Tex. Meet the advocate who is using mobile technology to promote gay marriage, a volunteer who is restoring tsunami-damaged photographs in Japan, people who are improving health care in poor countries, and many others.”

• If organisations don’t have changemakers they’ll get left behind: Felix Oldenburg, the European director of Ashoka, writes in The Guardian, “Sustainability is the gold standard of green. Can there be anything remotely as simple for social impact? Yes.”

What headlines, tweets, or tools caught your eye today?

Image via Gavin Llewellyn, http://www.onetoomanymornings.co.uk/ (Flickr/Creative Commons).

12.12.2011: The bullets in this post have been updated to include the percentages of social media jobs (out of all jobs posted on Idealist) each year.

Fellow Idealist Jeremy and I recently ran a little test to see how frequently “social media” appears in job postings on our site. Here’s how many listings have included the phrase over the last several years:

• 2007: 25 jobs, o.01 percent.
• 2008: 125 jobs, 0.27 percent.
• 2009: 507 jobs, 1.67 percent.
• 2010: 2,115 jobs, 4.98 percent.
• And in 2011 so far, 3,467 jobs, or 7.7 percent of all jobs posted this year.

Curious what the very first jobs to include “social media” were? Reaching all the way back to November 2006, we found four jobs from three trailblazing organizations: a Content Producer at WGBH Educational Foundation; a Social Network Designer-Manager at Games for Change; and two web developer jobs at Feminist Majority Foundation.

When I was hired in 2006, there are at least a few people on staff who were creating social media, but I don’t think they would have called it that. For example, our editor Eric checked all of the copy on our site, but he also served as a curator of news about the nonprofit sector and posted articles from around the world every day. He was blogging before we had a blog. Now social media weaves naturally into the jobs of many folks here, whether they’re writing emails for multi-channel campaigns, blogging here, or using social networking sites to learn about and grow our community.

Questions for you, dear readers:

• What has this evolution looked like at your organization? Is your organization so new that the majority of your work takes place through social media, or have you spent a lot of time convincing people of the value of this type of engagement?
• Are blogs, social networking sites, and other social media included in your job description? How much of your work time do they consume?
• If you’re a hiring manager posting one of those 3,400+ jobs, what matters to you with regard to filling those roles? How do the best candidates showcase their experience in this area?

We've all been there. (Photo via Alex E. Proimos, Flickr/Creative Commons)

It can be hard to find a silver lining when a hiring process goes awry. In the latest issue of our human resources newsletter, we try to help you avoid those growing pains.

• For an organization, the loss of time, money, and energy is huge enough – but there’s often a significant blow to staff morale. Amelia explores ways to design a hiring process that can minimize unfortunate outcomes.
• Meanwhile, Kara considers one crucial step: making sure we get the best possible applications. What makes a job application successful? You can weigh in here.

What webinars are on your calendar this fall? Leave a comment to let us know. (Photo: Mark Hillary, Flickr/Creative Commons)

Need professional development, but don’t have a budget for travel or tuition? Here’s a roundup of some free or relatively affordable trainings I’ve spotted recently – ones you can join from the comfort of your own desk or couch.

Deepen your storytelling skills

When: October 5, 3:00-4:00pm EST/12:00-1:00pm PST

What: Craigslist Foundation will host a “campfire conversation” conference call with Joe Lambert, founder and director of the Center for Digital Storytelling. It’s free for Craigslist Boot Camp participants and $5 for others.

More info and RSVP: http://ht.ly/6Cp3E

Use data to drive your decisions

When: October 6, 1:00-2:30pm EST/10:00-11:30am PST

Guidestar will host a free webinar on The Seven Steps for Data-Driven Decision Making with Sacha Litman, founder and principal consultant of Measuring Success. It’s free.

More info and RSVP: click here.

Working in study abroad or intercultural communication

Small Planet Studio recently tweeted about several upcoming trainings for people who want to work in international education, intercultural training, or consulting. Explore their menu of offerings here.

Volunteer management, social media, online donations, diversity, and more…

The folks at Idealware have a range of offerings this fall, from $40 trainings on how to choose donor and volunteer management systems to free eLearning sessions on Facebook, Twitter, and the “technology pyramid.” Explore the options at http://idealware.org/online-training.

And of course there’s always NTEN, the Nonprofit Technology Network. In October alone, they’re hosting a dozen events ranging from Diversifying Your Office Culture to Beyond Apps: Mobile for Nonprofits. Prices vary, and it helps if your organization has an NTEN membership. Read more at http://www.nten.org/events.