In the highly competitive Salesforce job market, where most applicants have Trailhead badges, a few certifications, maybe some volunteer experience and a well put together resume, there needs to be additional areas that are unique to your capabilities showing how you think, solve problems and add value to an organization.

I believe the #1 way to be able to do this is: Showcasing.

Showcase: 

Verb: The ability to exhibit or display skills

Noun: A place for presenting something favorably to gain attention

The key words in the above definitions: Skills & Attention

Every day we’re inundated with others trying to grab our attention, but as a job seeker you need to consistently be at the top of the attention list to your network and to potential employers by showing, demonstrating and proving your skills and added value.

I realize there may be some resistance to putting yourself “out there” and you might get criticized either for doing something incorrectly or potentially showing a lack of creativity. Fortunately, most are not going to analyze your work to that level of detail, but rather identify it as a key differentiator between you and another potential candidate. The feedback and attention on your work that you might receive whether constructive or positive, builds on itself and allows you to become better known as a contributor in the Salesforce industry.

Plus, it shows the world you have passion in pursuit of your career aspirations.

When all things are equal, YOU, YOUR PASSION AND YOUR CREATIVE WORK make up the difference.

Creativity is scarce, scarcity creates value, value is what employers want, need, and are searching for.

But Chris, I don’t know what to actually “Showcase”. 

Have you thought about it, have you tried ANYTHING or are you resisting before even getting started?

We ALL have resistance and a level of vulnerability that we don’t really want to expose. It’s not near as bad as it seems, but the 1st step is to decide to try, try again, then try again. You will get better over time.

Persistence is key.

You can’t attempt 1 creative act and then stop, as that will not allow you to gain the attention that you’re looking for. Attention leads to conversations, which then leads to interviews that then leads to opportunities that then leads to a fulfilling career. This may take weeks, months or even a year to gain, but when you get started, I’m confident new ideas will start coming to mind. Some will be good and some will be bad, and that’s OK, as you’ll gain:

MOMENTUM!

You’ll learn more about yourself along the way, building your professional character and confidence. 

Below is a list of suggestions.

These are free or cost very little and you have most of the tools already at your disposal.

Everyone has their own medium they feel the most comfortable in, it could be videos, a podcast, a series of articles, blogs, posts, etc. You may want to try different ways as one may work better than another depending on the message you’re wishing to convey and the interaction you’re receiving.

All these mediums already exist and have been done by others, and you can easily piggyback back off what you enjoy and add your unique personality to them.

• Create a blog/vlog or a custom Salesforce job tracker app around your career search journey, tracking the companies, the contacts, the job postings, how you applied, your follow up activities, interviews that were lined up, how you prepped for those interviews, and the associated outcomes.
• Read, analyze, build proof of concepts, and provide your opinion on the quarterly Salesforce release notes that you liked/disliked.
• Review the Salesforce Community pages where questions are asked and identify common issues that people are experiencing and use those to build a possible solution around.
• Create an app that solutions a current problem you’re having at your office, your home, etc.
• Attend some of the local Salesforce User Groups that often present specific functionality, then build off of those concepts.
• Review products on the AppExchange that are not too complex and come up with a modified version of your own.
• Check out various podcasts that members of the Salesforce community air as often they discuss problems either they’re working on or questions of listeners.
• Review blogs of other content creators and create a spin-off of a problem they’re solving.
• Some great specific Salesforce technical examples (courtesy of Chris Pearson, Salesforce Director of HFF in Houston):

a. Creating a trigger that automatically allows a file to be deleted based on a user action

b. Create a lightning component that allows a user to search and view all records they are following in Chatter

c. Provide an app that can take activities tied to an opportunity and present them in a data table

In spending a little time each day or week chipping away at showcasing your ideas and creativity to the Salesforce community, you’ll gain the attention and the career breaks that you’re looking for.

Feel free to contact me if you’d like to go through these or other ideas to help in your journey.