“Tweeting & Blogging are a Waste of Time!”
I often find it amusing and somewhat baffling when people tell me they cannot see the value of being on Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter, having a blog, etc. I get this from friends, coworkers, and new acquaintances.
I try to explain that I understand that it seems foreign and that being involved in social networks and interactive media might not be relevant to some people, but honestly, when the president of the United States has a Twitter account and a blog, can you really tell me that you cannot somehow use these tools for business purposes, to promote yourself, to drive sales? Or, what about the fact that Dell supposedly did $1M in sales on Twitter over the holidays alone? Does new media still seem like a waste?
Ask a big time blogger or Twitterer how many doors have been opened due to their involvement online.
So many people don’t understand that you can get more advantages from social media or social networking than just looking at friends’ vacation pictures, so they try to play off blogging, facebooking, or whatever else as a waste of time or child’s play, and I truly comprehend that, in certain lines of work, being online does not help much, but in so many, it acts as another way to expand your network, meet new people, demonstrate value, show experience, and more.
Every experience is obviously different, but I can say this… I have found being involved in online networking has created more paying, and non-paying but still worthwhile, projects than I would have imagined.
You don’t even have to have your own blog to get cool full- or part-time job offers. Try spiffing up your Linkedin profile with links to your company, your Twitter account, or whatever else… and don’t forget keywords people would use in searches to find you. 
Don’t think it’s useful to get job offers now and then? What about the connections you build that could be useful down the road?
What about answering questions on Twitter and realizing that the person you’re tweeting with knows someone who needs a weekend bookkeeper… and what do you know, you are looking for some extra income.
As I often say to people, “Twitter, or anything else like it, is something that seems pretty stupid from the outside, and once you start using it, you might still decide it’s not for you, but the people, who like it even just a little bit, really tend to love it.”
You don’t have to understand it. You don’t have to like it. You don’t have to love it. But, just like face-to-face networking, online networking has proven immensely valuable (try googling Zappos and Twitter) for so many companies and individuals. If you don’t want to take advantage, very few people will disparage you. They’ll just deal with you disparaging them while they make sure they’re building their skills for the future and you’re still adjusting to the present.
Certainly, several people reading this have encountered similar reactions from others. How do you deal with it? Do you try to win people over? Do you even bother explaining your participation online?
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