By Jason Alba, TNNW Career Transition Editor
I’m the first to admit, I’m social-networked-out. It happened sometime last year when I got an invitation to a different network each week. Now I get about three invitations a week, and I haven’t changed my mind about joining them.
I have a MySpace page, which I created just to see what it was all about and haven’t logged in for at least a year.
I have a Facebook account, and I do appreciate some of the features there (I love the birthday notifications – I have found out about my friends’ birthdays that I would have never known about. But, choosing applications to add to my account is a little confusing. Some are a waste of time, very few are valuable to me, and I have a small concern about what access I’m giving to others if I load an application.
I have a LinkedIn account, of course (I better, I just wrote a book titled "I’m on LinkedIn – Now What???"). I’m most comfortable in this space since I’ve spent the most time there. I’ve heard others say that LinkedIn is too old, obsolete, and left in the dust by newer networks (like Facebook), but the truth is, it still "does the job," and it does it well.
Aside from that, I really don’t accept invitations for other networks. The funny thing is, one of the hottest internet companies around allows YOU to create your own social network in about two minutes, for free! Just go to Ning.com and you can have a social network based around your family, business, industry, city or whatever else you can think of!
But don’t invite me to your social network, because I’ve already got my hands full. Nonetheless, I’d like to share 7 things to help you get the most out of whatever social networking you choose to do:
Have a purpose: Why are you on the social network? Is it to expand your network, keep track of their changes, or remind yourself to nurture the relationship? Some networks are going to be better than others for each of these purposes – but one of the keys is that other people join and connect with you.
Keep the proper perspective: these websites are just tools. They aren’t your networking silver bullet, and they won’t make all your wildest dreams come true. They are just tools… if nothing else, remember to go offline and network in person!
Realize you don’t need to be an early adopter: If you want to be an early adopter you’ll spend a lot of time setting up profiles on new networks, poking around, figuring out value… are you a software evaluator, or are you using these tools or a reason??
Don’t get sucked into the noise and hype: It’s easy to add new widgets, and poke around different features, and spend way too much time in your social network without really networking. Again, another time waster, in my opinion.
Fix your preferences: Do you want to log into the social network every day? Me neither. Check out the preferences to see if you can set up e-mail notifications for certain things. For example, in LinkedIn, you can set your account to send an e-mail to you when someone asks a question in Answers, but not send an e-mail when someone updates their profile.
Quit and decline: It’s okay if you stop using a social network, or if you delete your account and move on. And it’s okay if you ignore invitation requests, or don’t load the coolest new application. If your social network accounts become mental clutter, it’s probably best to just move on and network in a different manner. I give you permission.
Be in the right place, at the right time: You really need to have some kind of online presence. If you are in transition, or moving in that direction, you should have a complete account on LinkedIn (it’s free!), and an account on Facebook. Just by accepting connections you increase your visibility, and the chance that a recruiter or hiring manager will find you.
Are you social-networked-out? More importantly, what networks are you on, and where do you find real value? Shoot me and e-mail (don’t twitter me, don’t leave me a message on my wall, … I live out of my e-mail, not my social network).
Jason Alba is the job seeker's advocate (and aren't we all job seekers?). He got laid off in January 2006, just a few weeks after Christmas. Even though he had great credentials and it was a job-seeker’s market, Jason could hardly get a job interview. Finally he decided to step back and figure out the job search process, including trying to understand all of the available resources. Within a few months he had designed a personal job search tool, JibberJobber.com, which helps professionals manage career and job search activities the same way a salesman manages prospects and customer data. Get a free account at www.JibberJobber.com and begin managing your career right now. Jason blogs at www.JibberJobber.com/blog, recently celebrated his first blog birthday and a book called "I'm on LinkedIn -- Now What??" You can learn more about his book by clicking here.
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