Keeping a 'CEO blog' or 'founder's blog' can be a great platform for engaging your users in a nontraditional way, reaching people outside of your product pitch and building rapport without selling them anything except a belief in your ideas.
Job seekers light up when they find The Muse - we're a breath of fresh air in a stale, musty world. Our user experience focuses first and foremost on the individual, on providing them information - from content to company profiles - to make the most pressing professional decisions in their lives.
It's all too easy to forget that cultural fit is a two-way street. Yes, the candidate needs to gel well with your company's vibe and mission. But, you also need to fit in with her desires, goals, and long-term career vision. It's not a one-sided relationship.
As a general rule, most recent university graduates know far more about U.S. economic history and 'The Lord of the Flies' than about how the modern workplace functions and how to succeed in it. Yet come senior year of college, it couldn't be more important or more timely to learn the basics of getting a job.
There were so many lessons I learned the hard way: missing out on a raise because I didn't know to ask, having colleagues consistently get credit for my ideas because of how I spoke up in meetings. When I looked for a resource that addressed the challenges I was facing, I couldn't find it. There was nothing.
Call it nature or nurture, there are differences in how men and women approach professional conduct, and facing these issues head-on will make us all more equipped to succeed.
Launching a start-up, you need to get a lot done quickly. Every day is different. Everyone pitches in with everything. It's easy for the founding team to say, 'We're flexible. We all help out with everything!' But when it comes to making decisions - that flexibility can spell inefficiency and disaster.
Slouching or leaning back may send the wrong signals. When you sit down for a formal interview, lean forward to show interest and active listening.
For those working menial jobs or putting in 100-hour weeks for corporations, the lure of starting your own business can seem like a great way to get more flexibility, upside, and ownership.
Millennials tend to appreciate regular feedback because they want to feel that their work matters and that they are making a difference in the workplace. As the youngest generation at most organizations, they also tend to be hungry for growth and development opportunities.
Employees don't need to be best friends, but there does need to be a level of mutual respect and understanding.
Every generation brings something new to the workplace, and millennials are no exception. As a group, they tend to be highly educated, love to learn, and grew up with the Internet and digital tools in a way that can be highly useful when leveraged properly.
It's easy to imagine that because a certain company has a prestigious reputation or everyone says it's a great place to work, that it will be the perfect fit for you. But, in reality, the search to find a career is a much more individual process.
Recruiters sometimes have their wires crossed when it comes to what Millennials really want at work. While fancy perks are great, many Millennials are more excited about growing and thriving at a company that appreciates their talent and will help them continue to learn.
It's fantastic to be known as a company that responds quickly to users, shares great resources and friendly banter with them over Twitter, and forges relationships on Pinterest, Facebook, and every other social media site out there.
When I started my first company, I still had a 40-hour a week job. I was working on my company on nights and weekends before I took the plunge and gave up a salary.
When The Daily Muse initially wanted to launch a job board, our first ideas were insanely (and needlessly) complex. We wanted to integrate with social networks, gather rich personal data to build predictive algorithms, and put together numerous cool visualization tools before launching out to the world. We were just sure users would love it!
I always encourage people to learn the basics and nail the basics. Take the time to customize your resume and cover letter to reflect your qualifications, your research on the specific company and position, and how you believe you can add value.
Ultimately, I think it takes a certain grit and determination to constantly re-prove to people that you're just as dedicated, just as determined, and just as capable as the entrepreneurs around you who may better fit the physical pattern - but on the flipside, women who succeed often become razor sharp through the process.
As you move through the application process, keep refining the way you present yourself. Like any skill, you'll only get better with practice, and you'll only hurt yourself if you get discouraged too early. This is one race that's definitely a marathon, not a sprint.
