Social media can be incredibly useful, but many fear “going down the rabbit hole” and committing too much time and energy to it. Here are my tips for practicing Social Media Self Preservation whether you are getting started in social media or looking for a way to be more effective.
- Check out all social networks as they appear. Use those that seem most useful to you. Discard the rest.
- Join useful networks and engage there so you and your work can be found by others
- Tell people what you do and how well you do it so opportunities can come to you
- Start your network with — your own blog, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube
- Only add people to your network that provides value to you in some way — links, commentary, insight, real world knowledge, entertainment
- You aren’t judging people, you are judging the value of their information to you
- Start your network with people you already know — friends, family, peers, etc.
- Constantly re-evaluate who is in your network. Discard those who have lost their value to you
- Share to provide value to others in your network
- Share your knowledge and expertise (Everyone is an expert in something)
- Share your work (what you do and how well you do it)
- Share your life (Who you are as a person)
- Share a balance of all of these
For a more in-depth discussion of these tips, check out my Kindle eBook, Social Media Self Preservation, available from Amazon.com.