Get Linked In

Published April 2011

One of the small benefits of living all the way over here in Borneo is the fact that sometimes, just sometimes, we can sit back from current online trend waves and other hot social media must-haves, and just observe politely before deciding whether or not to jump on the proverbial bandwagon.

To be honest, my interest in blogging has waxed and waned. Facebook's still a great option for keeping in touch with my high school and university friends - which was the main reason why I signed up for it back in 2007 in the first place. Sure everyone signs in, posts a statement, has a laugh, sometimes a profound moment, does a spot of lurking, sighs when an ex's photo pops up. You know, those old chestnuts. But truth be told the one site that's been keeping me going back for more lately is none other than LinkedIn.

Don't feel embarrassed if you're not entirely sure about what LinkedIn is. Up till quite recently not many of us did either. But it's high time you brought yourself up to speed.

Dubbed 'the de facto standard in professional networking' by online publication Huliq, LinkedIn's CEO Jeff Weiner has been quoted as stating that users are growing at roughly a rate of one million new members per week, up to as recently as March 2011. That works out to be one new member every second.

Personally, what I most enjoy about this site is its relevancy to my current occupation. It allows me to build and maintain connections with individuals I have worked with before, or plan to work with in the future – all the while ensuring that privacy remains a priority and unwanted contact is not allowed. In an environment that is geared more towards working professionals, this is a factor that is paramount.

Not to be forgotten is the ease and ability for members to network. The ability for such direct contact aids in the widening of scopes and horizons with respect to the possibility of future projects and communication. I personally have joined several groups on this site that allow me to interact in a controlled and (there's that word again) relevant manner with counterparts from other publications around the world. POVs are put on the table and discussed, opinions asked for and received.

But what is LinkedIn good for, and how could it possibly apply to you if, say, you're retired, not currently working or a freelancer? LinkedIn brings with it a good choice of social media user friendly options such as Twitter, Facebook and Typepad decks amongst others for some light-hearted discourse amongst friends. The main crux however goes to work related features such as being able to present a comprehensive portfolio complete with experience listings, educational background and other notable mentions. Users are able to give and receive recommendations based on abilities, achievements and strengths. An online referral if you like.

LinkedIn has been credited with not only strengthening professional ties, but also in assisting with job offers, sourcing projects, raising awareness for existing companies and even starting a brand new business altogether. Case in point is an example listed on LinkedIn's own blog of Barbara Lemaire who was able to identify key benefactors for her non-profit organization which focused on helping homeless women and children. Then there's one Alice Shapiro who, after losing her job, became a published author after getting help from a LinkedIn connection.

Marry all these positive points with ease of use and functions that are regularly being updated and fine-tuned to suit members needs. What we are presented with something that I believe to be a true social media networking site in its best and truest form.

www.LinkedIn.com

Sources: www.huliq.com / http://blog.linkedin.com

News To Me

Published August 2009

The beauty about conducting ones daily reading via online news portals is that the temptation to deviate towards attention-grabbing headlines is huge. The best thing about pages like Yahoo! for example, is that it not only covers international, local and financial news, but also entertainment round-ups and features that keep me clicking for hours.

Take today. I’m in my office. I’m staring at the computer. I’m thinking about what to write for my next column. Nothing comes to mind. I’m stuck. So I figure I’ll do my usual scouring of new updates online hoping to find some sort of inspiration somewhere. And true enough, I find articles that catch my eye.

MATTHEW ROBSON

In today’s reading I find myself grinning at an article written by one Ben Patterson, in which a 15 year old intern for global financial service firm Morgan Stanley has written a scathing report on the likes and dislikes of his current generation. The great thing about this is that the captains of the media industry are actually listening. Young Matthew Robson’s findings have got many around the world agreeing that this kid is on to something. And it’s not earth-shattering brand spanking new information, mind. It’s very simply someone taking the time out to say his piece and finally have the big guns listen. "One of the clearest and most thought-provoking insights we have seen,” stated one Morgan Stanley executive.

Some of Robson’s findings about his counterparts are:

*Teens don’t Twitter. When utilizing this application by mobile phone, they would much rather text and ping friends directly them rather than resort to Twitter with no guarantee of their messages being read.

*Access to free, easily downloadable music is a serious priority for them.

*Hardly any pay attention to banner advertisements on websites, with many finding them highly annoying.

*Most prefer to read their news online.

The ensuing online commentary from teens and adults alike on this feature was an interesting one, with many young adults claiming the contrary to the above points, and some middle-aged individuals confessing to being Twitter hounds and the like.

SIX TUNES TO TORTURE WITH

Freelance writer Danny Gallagher presents a list of six (once) popular songs based on an article by an NYU musicologist in the Journal of the Society for American Music. I was surprised to find out American military and law enforcement bodies include playing one or more songs repetitively during interrogation as an effective way to get detainees and suspects to divulge information without having to resort to physical force or violence.

In this highly entertaining write-up one would be initially hard pressed to understand how seemingly harmless songs which you probably know all the words to (and are guilty of having belted out at least one of them during a karaoke stint) can be responsible for inflicting pain. But I suppose after extreme repetition, it wouldn’t be hard to see why the following tracks could wreck some serious damage:

1. “Born In The USA” – Bruce Springsteen
2. “Dirrty” – Christina Aguilera
3. “These Boots Were Made For Walking” – Nancy Sinatra
4. “Shoot To Thrill” and “Hells Bells” – AC/DC
5. “Anything” – Barry Manilow
6. “I Love You” – Barney The Dinosaur

Make of this list what you will. I for one could see myself cracking under the strain.

ONWARDS

I then decided to allow my reading to stay within the confines of the lighter variety and continued exploring. While still on the same stream I gravitated towards MSN UK’s Entertainment channel and chuckled as I went through a list of the best TV catchphrases.

Catherine Tate’s “Am I bovvered?”, Little Britain’s “Yeah, but no, but” and Sacha Baron Cohen’s Jamaican patois salutation “Booyakasha” from Da Ali G show were listed as some of the UK’s most well loved catchphrases. Not exactly scientific findings or nuclear research papers, but quirky and fun nonetheless.

Today’s column may seem a little rudderless but I assure you that this is not the case. It’s hard to pin down and define what each and every person out there enjoys reading. When it comes to me, I know what I always choose to avoid: Most things related to politics (I simply feel I don’t have a good enough grasp of it to fully understand the ins and outs) and anything even remotely attached to Japanese anime.

The next time you are online, read and explore as much as you can. If anything, whatever you find should make for interesting dinner conversation at the very least.

Facebook 101

Published June 2009

FACEBOOK 101

Just the other day my friend Melissa announced that she was taking a break from that bastion of technology and replacer of actual human contact, Facebook. You can imagine the restrained pandemonium that it caused amongst her 800 odd Facebook friends (odd as in reference to numerical definition. I'm sure her friends are perfectly nice, normal individuals) when she made it clear that she wanted a little break.

Now my friend is one of those annoyingly popular people, you know the type - the one that everyone wants to be friends with. So when she made it clear that a bit of Facebook (FB to the initiated) downtime was in order, her page was filled with well-meaning pals asking her what was up, as well as messages of reassurance and care.  One would think she was she was leaving the state indefinitely on the sly. Something tells me that when Melissa is ready, she'll launch an FB redux and get back into it.

Ah, Facebook. How I adore thee. I am not going to go into the detailed hows and whys of FB because I am assuming that anyone reading this will already have a smidge of an idea. Even non FB users have at least heard of it or have a rough inkling.

Personally speaking, all I know about Facebook is how it affects me and what it does for me. I can't give you statistics of users and advertisers but what I can tell you is that three years ago an old, old friend sent me an email invitation to this thing called Facebook which she promised was better than Friendster. I heed and hawed, mumbled excuses and contemplated my navel several times over, before finally giving in and agreeing to take a look.

Once registered as a proper FB user, I found too many friends I'd not seen in at least ten years. Apparently the international Facebook community had been extremely active for a good couple of months and the idea of being able to reconnect with the people I grew up with was something that made me very happy. So I dove right in, posted photographs, added friends and built up a decent FB portfolio.

I also tried getting friends here in Kota Kinabalu tuned onto FB but was met with a lot of initial resistance. The usual grunts of I-can't-be-bothered-it's-just-like-friendster-what's-so-good-about-it type whines permeated and ran rampant. For a short while there I was convinced that FB was perhaps not meant for Sabah just yet.

However, a small handful of mates were clued in enough to give it a shot and ended up liking what they saw. They made the big push for this online program and now it is where it is. Everywhere.

FB is truly a unique online environment. I mean, where else can your grandmother see photos of you doing shots on the bar (on. Not at) with your pants somewhere south of where they should be, gyrating wildly with the village bicycle and anyone who'll have you? A proud family moment and one I'm sure she'll not be forgetting anytime soon. Evil friends can also make your life very uncomfortable with something called the Photo Tag function. Any shot of you that has your name on it will appear on your profile page. Nice.

My rule of thumb on these sorts of evenings is to have a clear discussion that any photos taken will not appear on FB. And it wouldn't hurt to have certain relatives on something called a Limited Profile either. Sorry mom.
Speaking of mothers, did you know that stay-at-home moms make up the largest growing group on Facebook? Apparently they're the most active too.

And then there are the so-called 'urban legends' which are sadly true and have happened in real life – FB users have found out their relationships and even marriages have ended and are over thanks to Relationship Status changes on the profile pages of their significant other. Highly inappropriate to say the least.
 

Another thing to bear in mind is Privacy Settings. Never add someone you're not sure about. When you have to scrunch your face up and try your best to recall if you've even met, then it's a surefire bet that you're probably better off not accepting their Friend Request. But that's just my personal opinion. I know some voracious FB users who see this as an opportunity to collect as many friends as they can and compare numbers. A form of competitive sport for the lazy, if you like.

Going back to that simple decree; if you don't know them, don't accept them. Yes there weirdos on FB. Yes to a certain degree your life is exposed. And yes you do need to be responsible for the content that you upload. So be smart about it and you'll be fine.

And we get to my favourite part of FB. The Status Updates. A status update is where you can let your friends know your plans for the day, what mood you're in, whether you're contemplating skiving off work or looking for a happy hour associate. This section of FB has the ability to floor me and can make me smile more times in a day than I care to think about, especially when it comes to friends who are at the very opposite end of the world. Instead of wondering what sort of day they're having, I can just check their updates. Sweet.

It fascinates me how Facebook has literally taken over the planet and continues to grow and expand. Sure, there are things about it that bug me. And those endless quizzes that flood up the homepage are annoying to say the least. I have no interest in joining your Mafia War or becoming a vampire general to counter the werewolf strike. And I really do have better things to do with my time than finding out what your true name in Uzbekistani is.

I will, however, support charities and fundraising organizations as well as projects that I feel are worth it. I suppose I should mention that FB is not only limited to making and maintaining friendships, it also has giant marketing and online gaming communities. It is by far one of the best ways to raise awareness and company profiles online today.

It is interesting to note that to some FB users, personal emails are now outdated and letters redundant. "Poking" your friend online is an accepted expression of affection and endearment, though I doubt that a physical poke to the ribs would be appreciated quite in the same manner.

I hear whispers of Twitter all over the place. While I am sure that it's a great program, I'm still not convinced I need to sign up for it yet. I'm still pretty happy with Facebook for the foreseeable future, thanks.