WCIYP: Google Is Your New Resume

Chapter 2 of What Color is Your Parachute writes about the importance of Google and getting yourself a job. The author pretty much says that Google can either be your best friend or your worst enemy. Yet at the same time, Google is not to blame if it does end up being your enemy. It all comes down to what you do and how you present yourself on the internet. The author Richard Bolles writes, "Sometimes—68% of the time, as it turns out—an employer will offer someone a job because they liked what Google turned up about them." This makes complete sense if you think about it. One quick Google Search can tell someone your criminal history, if you did work in the community, whether or not your story of you leading your high school to a state championship is true, and even if you have been in the news for helping a cat out of a tree. Google does wonders and many people forget to realize that everything that ever happened in their life is probably on the internet somewhere.

The author then goes on to tell the reader a few things they can do in order to maintain that best friend relationship with Google. The first step is to "Edit". This means that one should research themselves and see what Google pops up. If there is something that is not appealing, then the person should go to the source and try to change the information. People make mistakes and humans can be crazy sometimes. So people should be ready to edit, edit, edit. The second step is to "Fill In". This means that people should fill out every possible trait and bio that is provided by social media. That one extra paragraph about how you were on a mission trip in Chile can really boost your credit regarding future employers. The third step is to "Expand". If you do not have a lot of information written about you, then write more. Let people know who you truly are. The more you write and the less Google does, the better off you are. The last step is "Add." Adding on to an old resume and updating the information can only help you in the long run. New information out trumps old information any day of the week.