This is the third part of a series on how I learned the value of social media platforms for becoming connected and professional development.  I was wrong.

LinkedIn

I have not been on the job search. I did not have an account with LinkedIn. If I were  seeking employment, I would go directly to classified ads or employment websites. As for LinkedIn, I had heard of it, but I had never used it. Last year I had several people ask me why I did not have an account, and honestly I really didn’t want another account with more notifications. I had not considered using it since I thought it was simply for people who were actively looking for employment or who were recruiters.

While all that is true and it is a platform and a means for people looking for and posting employment information. It is really quite a professional community similar to the other platforms for people to share information, to learn, grow and connect with one another. I think that depending on who you are, what you do and what you need, you could decide to have accounts with each of these platforms I have mentioned, or simply choose one of them and try it out for a period of time. You might really be surprised at what it adds to your personal and professional life. Constant stream of information available, learning potential and power for becoming more connected.

LinkedIn differs from the others in that even if you are not actively looking for employment, it is a way to display your professional appearance/ persona and show people what it is that you do, share your interests, highlight your skills, for a few uses. But beyond these “postings”, it is also a way for people to support you because they endorse you for these skills. I have been in conversations with mixed viewpoints on these features, but I guess the thing to remember is that not everyone will find the same value, benefit for these, the important thing is that there are choices available for people to make their own decisions about what works best for them .

To create an account or not….

Now some people have accounts with all three of these and the way they interact with each of them varies, depending on role/profession in society, you may be very active and share your information freely. Or you may be more private and use each one of these in a different manner. It’s just about choice and preferences. But what I like is that with any of these you can share with others who you are and what you are about. And maybe more importantly, you are available for supporting and adding to conversations, communities and more.

I enjoy having options available as a professional, finding the right balance between all of these can be tricky, but better to have choices than not. 🙂

Next up…Walkie Talkie??