The most terrifying obstacle for me when I entered the social networking scene was the lack of rules and guidelines.Why was this scary?
Because maybe like me, you too had learned at some point that it was for my own good that I separate my business and private life. These two should never mix and if they did, it was a really bad thing! Seriously. Bad.
I got this message first from childhood and then later on from school in my marketing classes. Be different in every part of your life.

799 friends on facebook – Wow! Sounds sort of like an accomplishment doesn’t it?

But, who do you really know out of those 799 people? Guess who is reading the resume you just submitted to that huge advertising firm you really want a job with? Remember Ryan, that older guy from high school? Ryan has you on facebook (you never spoke in high school besides that one time you accidentally walked into him) and he is now searching your profile and notices all the party pictures, that not so friendly page you “liked”, and your recent status update of having a few double caesers on your lunch break.

Okay. So you’ve just come back from a networking event and have a pile of business cards you’ve collected from all the folks you’ve interacted with. Now what?
In the past, we might have input the information into our computer’s address book and emailed everyone a followup letter. And while this is a great idea, once the initial followup action has been taken, that’s where it may end for a number of your contacts. Let’s face it…. life is busy and out of sight means out of mind.

Your business card may be your lottery ticket to the best job imaginable.

Now that the holiday season is over, it’s back to work! If the thought of meeting new people at a business event sends a chill up your spine, you’re not alone. For many of us networking is something we dread. Unfortunately, these days, it’s not what you know. It’s who you know or who knows you, that really counts for business success. And even though tradeshows and business mixers can be intimidating for anyone, they are also the perfect opportunity to network and build business relationships. To feel more at ease at your next event, prepare ahead of time, with full stomach, the right attitude and the right business tools.

Today I watched an interesting webinar by career expert J.T. O’Donnell of Careerealism , who described five things job seekers should not do when creating their LinkedIn profile. I agree with most of her points and have a few more of my own to add. So, what are they you ask? Let’s start with J.T.’s list:

I recently nagged a client to get her LinkedIn profile fully up and running. She emailed me the other day to say that she got an email from a recruiter within 2 days of doing it. A new survey explains why.

Imagine you’ve walked into a networking event only to meet a potential employer you’ve been dying to snag an interview with. This is your chance. You need to make a good impression, and quickly. But you’re not sure what to say.

Many people are daunted by the prospect of establishing a new relationship, or leveraging an existing one, as a career strategy. Not all are born communicators, not all are outgoing by nature. No matter how awkward or painful your initial attempts, there are compelling reasons to begin practicing networking.

Getting into the habit of following up quickly is one of the key qualities of all great networkers. You want to get people on your team and becoming part of your job search success. Recently, co-author Judy Thomson and I presented a Power of Positive Networking® session to a group of MBAs in Toronto.