This week's question comes from a reader who is facing a dilemma that I am sure is rampant among even the tech savvy creative people out there: am I required to be publicly online in order to get ahead at this point, and if I am, how do I do it well?
This week's request was worded so well, I will let her speak for herself:
"Dear Ask Remabulous,
I have been very hesitant to get on Facebook, but the peer pressure is mounting. I feel overwhelmed with all the new technology (Twitter, Zumbox, blog feeds, etc) but also know that I am missing out on advancing my next career move. The main reason I have resisted is because I don't want to be chained to my computer, something I have not been able to avoid in my two career choices so far! Any tips on how to use all this new technology to our advantage, but not get sucked in 24/7?
Sincerely,
Take Away My Ball and Chain, LA"
image: mrlerone via flickr
Dear Take Away My Ball and Chain,
I feel your pain. Yes- really I do. Just two short years ago I was sitting in a conference and asked my friend Gwen Bell with wide-eyed innocence, "What's Twitter?" and watched her nearly spit coffee all over her brochure. To be sure, the technology-focused tend to be a bit ahead of the curve. By the end of BlogHer 07 I had a shiny new twitter account and didn't get it at all. I tweeted maybe three times and didn't touch it again until right before BlogHer 08, when a little light bulb went on and I dove back in.
The purpose of social media is to connect. It seems basic, but I think it is a principle that needs to be stated that clearly. If there is one thing I have learned as I play in this Social Media playground, it is that I have far more online profiles and widgets going than I actually use.
The best advice I have received on the issue was also from Gwen Bell, on a panel she spoke on at BlogHer 08: better to have fewer tools that you use well, than a ton of them that you barely touch.
Our current landscape for promoting and networking is changing almost daily, perhaps faster. I have watched twitter change incredibly in the last 9 months I have been a more serious user. Each site has a culture to it, and I think it will serve you best to think about what cultures you want to be a part of. I would begin with the following questions:
- What do I hope to get out of social media?
- Why do I feel this will help me improve my job advancement?
- Do I want a strictly professional identity online?
- If I am willing to be personal online- how personal is that- where is the line for me?
- How much time per day/week/month am I willing to dedicate to this?
The answers to these questions will help you get a picture of where you want to go with this.
There is a learning curve for each of these applications. I spoke to a co-worker yesterday as I was starting to take over the social media applications for Book Soup, who said honestly, "I signed into our Facebook profile and it was so vast on there I didn't know what to do. I know what twitter is, but I still don't know how to do it."
I think many more people feel this way than care to admit it. So my advice is, start slow. Facebook is a good application because you can be very guarded if you want to be. You can choose to make your profile unreachable to anyone who isn't a friend- this is a good way to start when you are first setting up. Set your profile to "Private" to keep others from having access to your information. And start slow- just a picture, name, a few details and past jobs should be a good start while you are playing around and you can see how comfortable you are.
Twitter is a good one to try too, just because it can be as small or as big a commitment as you like. Check out a list of highly followed people, like you can find on twitterati, and just watch what they do with their tweets for a while- no need to submit anything yourself at all. Alltop's twitter news also gives you a good idea of what is possible. Then, when you feel ready, you can put something in there. The key is to have a conversation on there. The beauty of it is that you can chat and share information you might never otherwise meet. I found both my VA (virtual assistant) and my bookkeeper through connections I made on twitter. I coudln't be more pleased with the results. The true gift of twitter is being able to pull from the opinions of a large pool of people at very short notice. Questions like: "Anyone tried this software? Is it good or did you find it pointless?" Will get answers immediately, depending on how big your following group is.
So, while I am on linked in, and have a myspace account I haven't logged into in nearly a year, I really do concentrate on Facebook and twitter. I also run my blog posts through friendfeed and twitter so that they are promoted when they go up. I think that is more if you are trying to build a serious blog audience, so that might be level 2.
And in terms of your fear about being tied to technology, my answer has been that the balckberry and iphone apps are quite good and an easy way to drop in on facebook and twitter without being at home. As an entrepreneur, I can't live without my blackberry- although I am counting the days until my contract is up and i can get an iPhone, as I find the apps much more effective. Either way, I would say I do the majority of twittering from my phone. It's much more organic to mention a cool event I am going to when I get a call from a friend about it, or when I am heading there, than to feel obligated to keep a list of things to tweet when i am in front of the computer.
And while Facebook apps to require a phone with internet capacity, I have seen many people use regular phones and text in their tweets. So if you have a good texting plan- unlimited is ideal, you can tweet back and forth that way, far from your computer.
However, the end result is that how you use Social Media is as individual as you are. Trust your gut about what to share and what to keep private. We don't all need to be Julia Allison. Despite my moaning and groaning about joining Facebook for a book group, I can't say what an asset it has been to my business and to keeping up with friends all over the country. i understand your hesitation, but it is often those who are the most resistant to it who become the biggest fans.
Good luck and keep up posted on how it's going. Also, feel free to follow me on twitter, too: I am @remabulous.
Enjoy!
Caroline
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