It is near 10:30pm and I’m still at my machine. Why? Well oddly enough (for me) it isn’t to plough through my ever changing inbox, it is to update things on another (social this time) networking site that seems to be the flavor of the month.
Some time ago I joined up to Linkedin – a pretty good business networking site. It provides a useful function of “book marking” acquaintances, and friends that I’ve come into contact with, one way or another, in the workplace over time. It gives me another way of keeping in touch with them and what they are doing (from a work perspective) as they have changed jobs, moved countries. At least that’s what I use it for – I’m sure that others take it much further.
A more recent addition is Facebook. The bottom line with this one is that if you’re under 35 and you’re not on it, you’re just not with it. If you’re over 35, well then this may well be the first time you have heard of it – confirmed by a colleague (who is the nearest in the office to my “ancient” age) comment upon hearing that I’m now on Facebook: “Cool, now I’m not the oldest person I know on it”!
The one problem that I have always had with these things - and I’m guessing that others out there struggle with the same thing (or not) – what is the etiquette to adding people to “your network”? When is a “friend” a friend, or just someone that you know? When is a person someone you add to Facebook but not to LinkedIn (or visa versa)? When is someone you work with (a client for example) someone that you invite to your (business or even social) network? I guess that I’m not big on just adding people randomly so that it looks impressive that I have a big “network” of "friends" / "business contacts" (depending on the site).
Another problem (ok, I lied about only having one problem with this phenomenon) is, when is it going to stop? I have started to lose count of the networking sites out there that have been the “got to be on” and, maybe I’m a bit sad (don’t follow that thought), but I’m quite looking forward to having my evenings back (so I can get my inbox down to a respectable size before it fills up with overnight mails again). In the meantime I'll be sitting here a while adding friends (or hopefully they will find me and initiate contact so I don't have to).....
