Drew McLellan is doing a viral Advice to Grads effort among blogs.  I am speaking to two marketing classes at Kent State today and thought I would kill two birds with one stone.  Here is what I will be telling the marketing students, and it is good advice for any student today.

As early in your college career as possible, start working on this list of things to do.  I can tell you as an employer, if you came in and had done these things, had a good attitude and reasonable expectations, I would not need to interview anyone else.

1. Blog.  Not your My Space blog.  Blog what you are learning, what you see in the industries that interest you.  Connect with other bloggers in that industry.  This is more valuable than any resume.
2. Start a Business and Network. Network online and go to networking events.  Start a little (or big) business so that when you go to a networking event, you are not just saying: “I am a student collecting business cards so I can blast you with my resume later.”  Some ideas are:
   - Website/Blog Design
   - Graphic Design
   - Marketing Assessment
   - Local Guerrilla Marketing
   - Writing
   By doing this, you will have first hand experience that few other graduates had, even you it never becomes a thriving business.
3. Publish Articles.  The web is full of places that you can publish articles.  A future employer will Google your name and the top ten spots can all be you if you use the web to get your message out there.
4. Speak.  Don’t dread speaking.  Look for opportunities to speak any chance you get.  Craft a couple of canned speeches that you can “sell.“  (For the speaking fee or just for the opportunity.)
5. Publish a Book.  OK, now you think I am just wacky.  However, I think publishing a book was a lot easier than college.  If you write a couple of pages a day, you can be published in under a year fairly painlessly.  The key to publishing a book is that it may not make you much money, but it makes everything else easier. 

The key to all of this is picking your areas of interest and establishing yourself as an expert in those areas before you ever ask someone for a job.  Someone that has taken this kind of initiative will not even be looking for an entry level position.  They will be in the running for a more senior position right out of college.

And don’t worry, most of the people reading this will not do it.  You will stand out if you do.