FROM ONLINE HOBBY TO HOT LEAD GENERATOR
Simply sending a resume is yesteryears way of tackling unemployment. “The bulk of my effort is to meet as many people as possible and get my name out there as someone that knows a lot about technology and social media,” says Atkins. He previously used hisLinkedIn profile and Facebook as more of hobby than an actual work connection, he says, but now is using those tools as a principal way to find the next assignment.

While Atkins awaits his last day, blogging has also become a useful tool. And these days there is more of an activist approach about unemployment, says Atkins: People “don’t see themselves as a victim.”

Are you wondering how to take advantage of what the online community has to offer? Here are three tips from Dan Schawbel, author of Me 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve Career Success, on how to maximize the online and social media world for jobs:

1. BE YOURSELF. When using social media tools to network, always be authentic and transparent with your conversations. Taking genuine interest in others is a proven strategy for building tighter relationships with professional contacts.

2. STAY CURRENT. Make sure that your profile on social networking sites is always updated with your latest experience and professional interests and best represents your brand.

3. BE ACTIVE. Start a blog under your field of expertise, post regularly and use it to build a community, which will in turn provide you with opportunities, such as a job.

A HAPPY ENDING AND A NEW BEGINNING
Not long after his MainStreet interview, Atkins wrote from his twitter account that he had good news: “My first consulting project proposal was accepted by a person who knew me because of my local blogging.”