Doug's Rant #5: Threads, Resumes Suck, and The Best Content
Yep - it’s that time again, and I’ve got three topics to cover - I feel pretty good about this one! Let’s RANT!
Doug’s Rant #5: Threads, Resumes Suck, and The Best Content (I’ve Seen In A While)
More thoughts on Threads
Threads launched on July 5th. I wrote about it on July 6th. Now a month later on August 3rd I have more thoughts. And they ain’t all good.
I mentioned among all the excitement in my first article that Threads was far from a finished product and a month later it’s…….almost just as far from a finished product. I’m bored. And apparently many millions of other people are just as bored. I really want Threads to be great but it’s moving at a snail’s pace with the new features. Yes, a month is a snail’s pace no matter what the reality of actually adding features to an app is, because they launched an app that barely had any. And I “threaded”(?) about it, because I get no juice from the threads I post, and the feed sucks so……why bother? It was funny because in a thread complaining about no one seeing my threads someone did see it and agreed 100% with my entire take. My buddy Ross Brand who shared it in his Insta story calling it the best thread ever! We were DMing about it and he said yep - it had to be said:
Now, does this mean the death knell for Threads? I don’t think so - not yet. But as I’ve also commented in several places they are playing a dangerous game in my opinion. I get why they rushed out the app when they did to capitalize on Twi——I mean “X”’s (continuing) turmoil, but social media users are fickle, and if they leave Threads and it gets labeled a joke, that can be hard to come back from. Here are brand new articles from yesterday on Mashable predicting that Threads will still indeed mash “X” (see what I did there) and from CNN highlighting Threads’ challenges with their user count falling off a cliff for the reasons I’ve discussed. We’ll see how it goes. I’ll be watching mostly from the sidelines for now.
Why traditional resumes are stupid
Let me make a disclaimer here: For any young people looking to find a job who are reading this, I am NOT saying don’t create a resume or to refuse to provide one to potential employers who ask for a copy of yours.
Although part of me would love to tell you exactly that.
A few months ago I received the following email:
On Apr 14, 2023, at 9:23 AM, xxxxxxx wrote:
Dear Douglas,
I hope this email finds you well. My name is xxxxxxx, and I am a Senior Executive Recruiter at xxxxxxx. I came across your profile on LinkedIn, and after reviewing your impressive background, I believe that you might be an excellent fit for one of the senior-level positions our client is looking to fill.
Our Talent Acquisition Manager has recommended you as a strong candidate based on your experience and skills, which are closely aligned with our client's requirements. I am confident that you can make a valuable contribution to our client's organization.
If you are interested in exploring this opportunity further, I would be delighted to discuss the position with you in more detail. Please send me a copy of your resume, and we can schedule a call at your earliest convenience.
Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to hearing back from you soon.
Best regards,
xxxxxxx
Senior Executive Recruiter
xxxxxx Headhunters Inc.
Here’s how I answered:
Hi xxxxxx,
While I’m not looking for full time positions at the moment I do have the bandwidth to take on 1-2 more clients on a contract basis. Having said that I am willing to listen to an opportunity if it’s the right one, but my resume is really www.M10Social.com and www.FrameableFaces.com - those are my websites and that’s where my content is. I don’t have a traditional “resume” and I never will. 🙂
Doug Cohen
Flash forward a few months and I see this on LinkedIn in my feed:
HELL YES.
I don’t even know Chad but I saw that and I thought - yep I should have written that piece I had in my mind about resumes. I actually started it and didn’t finish.
So here it is in Doug’s Rant #5.
And listen up: I think everyone should have a website for their personal brand. Their home that they own online just like any business. If I’m an employer and a prospective candidate comes my way and can point me to their website where I can see who they are, what is important to them, content they’ve created or even curated - then not only can I get a better feel for what kind of person they are, but I’ll know that they care about making sure the world knows who they are. They are intentional with what they stand for (and hopefully can articulate it). That’s who I’m hiring. Not someone who hands me a standard piece of paper with basic boring bullet points that they can clean up with Chat GPT. I want to see a living breathing representation of this person’s online presence for the same reason I don’t just read a “news paper” - printed with yesterday’s news on it. So think about it - publish a website - and then if someone wants your “resume” at least you can put your URL at the top of it!
The Best Content (I’ve Seen In A Long Time)
I’ve seen a lot of ads recently on Facebook for Oats Overnight but I haven’t tried them yet. I’m going to now. I typically start my day with a smoothie I make in the vitamix with various fruits & veggies and vegan protein. Sometimes I eat oatmeal or oat bran. I’ve done overnight oats before too and those are delish. But one of Oats Overnight’s ads caught my eye lately and I thought it was just brilliant. It’s not groundbreaking per se - it’s not really any different than celebrities reading nasty tweets (“X”’s now I guess) about themselves out loud on late night TV, but I just loved the execution and it’s damn funny to share horrible reviews about yourself as a fairly new brand getting the word out.
I love it!!! The website is impressive too - these guys make me want to eat their oatmeal, and I plan to. Oh, and here’s a really horrible review for our photography studio Frameable Faces Photography that we’ve owned in the Orchard Mall in West Bloomfield, MI for 15 years. Hehe…
And it’s ALLY damnit.
M10 Social is owned by Doug Cohen in West Bloomfield, MI and provides social media training and digital marketing services from the Frameable Faces Photography studio Doug owns with his wife Ally. He can be reached there at tel:248-790-7317, by mobile at tel:248-346-4121 or via email at mailto:doug@frameablefaces.com. You can also connect with Doug on Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram, and/or M10 Social on Twitter or Facebook, and check out his other biz www.VirtualPetcations.com while you’re at it!
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