LinkedOut

What am I missing? Am I an old codger-in-training? I’m not Facebooking, Twittering or Linking In. It’s not that I’m against them as a statement of non-conformity, I just don’t care to spend the time. It’s precious, really it is. I’ve got to spend it on the people I love…I’m just able to love them more in person. Professionally, I still prefer picking up the phone and calling or meeting face-to-face. What’s wrong with me? The way I see it, nothing at all.

LinkedIn. Wow, there are 40 million active users. Facebook – over 200 million. Twitter – 40 million and each are growing at an incredible clip. I get invitations all the time to “join my professional network” on LinkedIn. Why don’t I want to network? I could reconnect with former clients. It could land me a great job offer. It could be the network I need if I were to ever put myself on the market.

The answer: while there is a big part of me that thinks this is all a giant social ponzi scheme, I’m just not interested right now. I always question, what would I really get out of it? How better am I knowing that ‘Joe hates rainy days’ or ‘Belle is going to market’.

In the social networking age, I see the formula as: Possible Reward = Less Privacy + Unwanted Acquaintances – My Free Time or PR = LP + UA – MFT.

I admit that I’m sounding a little cynical, but believe me – I am very social. I love people. I love going out and meeting up with friends and colleagues old and new. But I usually call them, make plans to meet, and then have a great time in person. It works for me that way.

At my workplace however, I’m feeling particular pressure to get “LinkedIn” – helping my clients navigate this site to make the most of it for their branding and recruiting initiatives is after all part of what I do. I am just not ready to log on. But if you’re looking for an honest answer to the question of ‘to social network or not to social network’ you can give me a ring at 215-568-3200. We can talk about it.