|
|
||
7/22/10
Social Networking Myth Busters
The other day a good friend of mine sent me an invitation to connect on Linkedin. I happen to be in the kitchen fixing dinner but since I recently "digitally double downed" (as @ryanestis would say) I received the email on my BlackBerry through my work email and on my iPhone through my personal email. And, because I'm always curious to see how others are using social networking sites to connect professionally, I accepted the invitation to connect right away and took a peak at her profile.
Do you do this too? Read, review and critique resumes of people who connect with you? I love it when I see new deas that I can "borrow."
I realized as I was reviewing her Linkedin profile that I had never viewed my own from my mobile devices. So as my pot was was boiling over (literally... I was making pasta) I flipped over to my Linkedin profile. I knew from the process of developing Sodexo's mobile careers site that each device is different. Just because it says BlackBerry at the top of your phone does not mean it's going to look the same from one model to the next. And, for certain, there is a difference between the BlackBerry and the iPhone. I was happy to see how well the mobile version of LinkedIn converted - but I also noticed opportunities for improvement thanks to the great ideas I "borrowed" from my friend.
Yes, I did call her to tell her how fabulous I thought her profile was and yes, I did asked her if I could borrow a few of her ideas. For some reason this surprised her and she asked if I was looking for a new job. Which surprised me and made me think about social networking myths that I'd like to address right here right now.
*MY* Top 10 Social Networking Myths:
1. If I join Linkedin my employer will think I am looking for a new job.
Wrong. By now your employer should understand the use of social networks for professionally connecting with your colleagues. If they don't (and there are plenty who do not) then I'm not sure what to say. I take for granted how innovative and supportive Sodexo is sometimes.
2. It's not important to update my profiles to reflect recent accomplishments if I'm not actively looking for a new job.
Wrong. You never know when a career opportunity will pop up with your current employer. If you keep your Linkedin and other online professional profiles up to date the process of applying for a position within your current company will be less painful and you won't find yourself scrambling to update your resume.
3. Online resume services like, Visiual CV, Resume Bear, and DoYouBuzz.com are a sign you are looking to make a career move.
Wrong. See my answer to number 1 and 2. Career growth should be important to you and a company that supports career growth is where you want to start and end your career. Sodexo actually has training classes for current employees to help us update our resume and improve our interviewing skills -- specifically so we are ready for our next promotion.
4. Social networks like Linkedin are time consuming, a waste of time, and "too hard."
Wrong. I hate when I hear people say this but exercise patience and I try not to tell them they are so "2000 and late." If you have an electronic version of your resume (and we all do, don't we?) then it's as simple as copying and pasting. This is true for Linkedin, Facebook, and online resume services. My mother wants to join Facebook to connect with family & friends but I refuse to do it for her because it really is so easy. Does that make me a bad daughter? I don't think so. She has to learn eventually if she really wants to be on Facebook. Unless she thinks she's going to call me and tell me what she's up to so I can update her status for her. Oh wait - she probably does think that's how it will work. No, mom.
5. Linkedin and other social networking sites won't get me a job.
Wrong. Did you read new Sodexo employee, Trish Freshwater's story the other day? She got her job because she was on Linkedin and Twitter. And so did new Sodexo recruiter, Marguerite. I "knew" MG as MGRecruiter and now I also know her as SodexoMG on Twitter. These are just two success stories. There are many, many more success stories in and out of Sodexo. Look for SodexoMG's guest blog post soon.
6. Social networking is all about you.
Wrong. Social networking is like having a conversation with someone who is standing right in front of you. You woudln't stand in front of a colleague and say nothing would you? If you are using these tools to connect with people within your industry then "talk" with them just as you would live at the local chapter of your professional association.
7. More is better.
Wrong. Someone said to me the other day they were busy building their Linkedin profile and hoping to reach 500 connectioins so they could start their job search. It's not about the number of connections you make it's about the quality of the connection. Having 50 of the right connections is more productive than having 600 miscellaneous connects. Right?
8. Facebook is selling my data to advertisers.
Wrong. Not true. I was going to try to explain this one in my own words but this recent blog post by Berin Szoka (@TechLiberation) on his blog, The Technology Liberation Front is better than any of my attempts for clarity.
9. Social Networking is a fad.
Wrong. You know I had to throw this one in. I can't tell you how many people have said this to me over the last 3 years. It's not a fad. Facebook reached 500 million members this week. It's not a fad.
10. My personal and professional lives will collide.
Perhaps. If you are worried about this then create two profiles on Facebook. You can do this by using your work email for your professional profile and your personal email for your personal profile. Or use Linkedin for professional connections and Facebook for your personal connections. As a side note... if you decide to use Facebook for just your personal connections then remember to turn your privacy settings on high so your profile is less likely to appear in a Google search and if it does, you aren't sharing information you did not intend to share.
And by the way, have you Googled yourself lately? If you haven't then why not? Take charge of your digital footprint!
Oh, and P.S. for the record I love the iPhone 4!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments:
Post a Comment