Working the Web: Start building a network to find a job

There are a lot of folks out there who don't have jobs right now. And in this market, finding a new job isn't going to be easy.

In my own experience, most of the jobs I've had I learned about through friends and coworkers " networking. The old saying is true: It's not what you know, but who you know that counts.

But there is something you can do about this problem. It's really very simple: Get to know a lot more people.

That doesn't mean you have to start going door-to-door shaking hands.

Online social networks are the big buzz online these days, and you can use them to find a job.

Let's take a look at LinkedIn. It's like Facebook for business, where the name of the game is to create connections to other people you know or have worked with.

LinkedIn has several tools to help you find people you know. Once you find them, then you invite them to join your network. As you are linked to each person, you can then see all the people they are linked to, and it grows from there.

By building a network of friends and coworkers past and present, you can get the word out about what kind of job you are looking for. Many of them will know about job openings in your field long before they are ever advertised.

You might not think you know enough people for this to be effective, but you would be surprised just how many people you actually know. Think about all of your classmates from high school or college, or anyone you have had business dealings with. Now, think about how many people all of those people know and can introduce you to. It adds up fast.

Another technique is to search for the companies you want to work for and who works for those companies. LinkedIn will tell you if you share any connections that you can use to get an introduction.

Another way to build your network is to see if there are any of these kinds of sites that specialize in your profession. For instance, there are many social networks out there for journalists. Using these networks can lead to you creating new friendships and expanding your circle even farther.

You can also use Facebook for finding a job, even though it's more social than business. Again, get connected to all the people you know, then look and see who they are connected to.

You can also use sites like Facebook to do research on people who you want to hire you. For instance, it might be helpful to know that the person interviewing you for a job might share your favorite hobby, or attended the same school.

Times are tough, but we do have far more tools available to find jobs than ever before. So get networking, and good luck on finding that next job.

- Contact reporter Kirk Caraway at kcaraway@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1261.