Tag Archives: community

Dissing folks on LinkedIn and Discriminating on Social Media

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discriminationFirst up, let me say I don’t see LinkedIn as an actual Social Network. Matt Charney said it best last week after I tweeted “Can we really call LinkedIn a Social Network?” This was on #NextChat (SHRM’s weekly HR Twitter Chat) and he replied with:

Matt Charney (mattcharney) on Twitter

I’m not a huge LinkedIn fan but understand it to be a necessary evil. I suppose with everything it has its good points and bad.

I will be the first to admit I have given way to social discrimination, especially on LinkedIn. Meaning, I’ve had folks wish to connect with me on social (and LinkedIn) and because of the way they’ve branded themselves online,whether through their goofy photos or lack of social media coolness, I’ve been quick to hit the delete button or ignore them. You know you’ve done it too!

I wonder, is that the same as other kinds of discrimination? Will we one day find ourselves in a court room explaining why we did not accept Joe Blow’s friend request because he was too fat? Because he was holding a chicken and drinking an RC with a mouth full of moonpie on his LinkedIn profile?

I’m pretty sure a lot of us discriminate and exclude others because of where folks live, how they spell their name, what kind of work they do, how they dress or if they’re as pretty as the rest of our friends. I think however, we (as in me) should instead be open-minded especially when it comes to social networking and building our communities.

It’s great to mix and mingle with those of different experiences, viewpoints, cultures and diverse backgrounds as opposed to always engaging and hanging out with those who are similar. It sharpens us. It challenges us to think outside of our little world wherein we live and come outside of our little groups of mini-me’s who are just like us.  It causes us to expand and enlarge not only our communities but enlarge us, personally.

So perhaps we put aside our biases, our pre-judgments and open ourselves up to a whole new world of folks who can add immense value into our lives, both professionally and personally.

And if you’re reading this and I’ve dissed you online or off, please feel free to call me out!

Photo Credit: PrincessTweep

What’s good about Community?

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Whether online or off, whether we think we do or not, we are all creatures that need community.

Let’s look at Wikipedia’s definition – “A group of interacting people, living in a space (be it online) that share common interests, values and social cohesion; A group that shares their environment that help one another.”

I know some of you think you don’t need this, but let’s think of it differently – Perhaps, we need you!

This is one reason why I love social media and the way it allows for online community building.

Over the past couple of years, since diving into the whole “social media thingy,” I’ve met tremendous folk whom I never would have met IRL nor would have I remained engaged with on almost a daily basis.

If you are still wondering “What Can Social Media Do For Me?” I challenge you to look at the awesome power it has to produce some fantastic networking and relationships. And perhaps, you have this amazing gift or personality that WE are missing out on, for fear of getting out there.

Community is about sharing and caring. It’s interacting and engaging. And though it crosses boundaries of our professional and personal lives – that’s one of the reasons it creates such close connections.

Back in January, I went through a very difficult time in my personal life. I made one post on Facebook (that made others quiver) that mentioned what I had just experienced. My online community stepped up to the plate.  (Read more here)

Through one of the most difficult of times, I was bombarded with overwhelming comments, emails, messages, and texts from my community. They began to show their support for me, offering their condolences, sharing their personal phone numbers and email address, encouraging words and reaching out to me in a most amazing way.

Community shows that you are in fact, human. And with that come the good, the bad and the ugly. But if you’ve created a community of trust, those things are simply accepted.

Photo Credit: SocialMediaToday

Note:

This post was created for my dear friend Steve Browne, who is hosting Carnival of HR over at his blog Everyday People. Be sure and check out the other HR Blogs on that list. They are from some truly, creative and engaging folk. Thanks Steve, for including me.

#Follow Friday – Video with Joan Ginsberg

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About Joan:

One of the most unique backgrounds  . . . in the HR sector  - That statement was made by Bill Boorman, a recruiter from London, England.

Armed with her Bachelor’s (with honor) degree in Criminal Justice from Michigan State University,  she began her professional life as a uniformed police officer in suburban Detroit.  Police officers necessarily acquire a lot of skills: negotiation, attention to details, multi-tasking, setting priorities, and complex problem solving.

Deciding that she could put those skills to better use, Joan left police work to attend law school (Detroit College of Law), and says she and law school were made for each other; she went on to graduate first in her class.

She learned that the practice of law wasn’t made for her, and she quickly abandoned legal practice to become a law professor.  Specializing in commercial law (the buying and selling of goods in the marketplace), she made academics her professional home for several years.

When my teaching contract expired, I jumped at an opportunity to become a manager at the meat processing facilityco-owned by her husband.  There was no human resources function at all when she started, so she decided to create one.  She learned and studied, ultimately becoming a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR).  With HR, she felt as though she had truly found her calling.

Watch the video above and find out what new endeavors Joan is diving into these days.

Connect with her here:

Twitter, Facebook, Blog, LinkedIn, Google+ 

#Follow Friday; Buzz Rooney – making some serious buzz

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Happy Friday Folks. Today I awoke to about a foot of snow outside. Couldn’t begin to tell you how happy that makes me.

Today’s featured guest and #FF is my good pal “Buzz Rooney.” Some of you may have already connected with Buzz and if not, what are you waiting for?

Her Background

10+ years HR Generalist Experience
Employee Relations
Training & Development
Compensation & Benefits
Leadership
Planning, Goal Setting & Alignment
Change Management & Process Improvement
Talent Recruitment & Management
Compliance (Federal, State & Local)
Excellent Social Media Knowledge

Her Blog

Buzz has an amazing way of using story-telling mixed with a-lot-of-smarts and humor over at “TheBuzzonHR” and is simply a weblog of her thoughts, experiences and wisdom on human resources, management and leadership. I am always learning from her.

Now understand she has created this online persona  ”Buzz Rooney” and along with working a day job, meandering throughout social spaces, she is now providing consulting services and includes resume writing, basic management coaching, organizational process improvement and compliance assistance.

Her Passions

Buzz has a passion to help others, whether it’s online (retweeting, sharing great content, allowing guest posts) or IRL with her employees. It all comes through to those that read her blogs and articles or chat with her on the phone or are connected with her in some fashion. Oh, and from what I hear, she has a few young-ans, and I’m sure she’s passionate about them :)

And like me, she loves The Food Network and to me, that’s reason right there to connect! So do it, already.

Where to Find Her

TheBuzzOnHR, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Google+. Here she is appearing on DriveThroughHR #DTHR. Tuesday nights you can find her in front of the TV watching “Chopped” and sometimes talking about it online.

Life giving you the finger?

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These past two weeks have been crazy for a lot of those within my community. I’ve heard all kinds of things and even been through a shit-hole of a week myself.

I have had friends that have been laid off, lose a parent, have a parent go into a coma and I’ve had those whose marriage is on the edge (ahem).

Let’s face it, life is messy. Things can change in a blink of an eye and turn our whole world topsy-turvy within minutes.

How do we respond? Do we throw in the towel and say “To hell with it” find a cliff and jump off of it? Or do we allow these difficulties to be just an obstacle to overcome. Something that we will get through eventually. Something we are going to survive and look back on, perhaps using it to help someone down the road that may go through something similar.

My community has been so supportive to me during my crisis. Whether it was in person, or online giving me their support – they (you) have truly rallied around me, encouraged me, and said “this too, shall pass.” And I hope I have done the same for them (you).

Community is so important. Especially during difficult times.

Thank you all for your continued love, encouragement and support.

Boomers, Networking and Baby Showers

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Since I am on the road traveling, I thought I would pull one of my guest posts out for you guys this week: Take it away – Joan.

A NOTE TO MY FELLOW BOOMERS - Back when you and I began our professional lives, the term “networking” was not in widespread use. We got our jobs and presumed that if we worked hard and long at them, we would stay working. No one spent time deliberately trying to cultivate a professional network for future job opportunities. If you had a professional network, it was created as a necessity of your particular job.

The economy was shifting underneath us, though. The country was gradually moving from manufacturing goods to providing services, and technology allowed businesses the flexibility of geographic moves and fewer employees. So when the economic bubble finally burst a few years ago, many of us had no professional network to turn to when they lost their job.

Yes, there are job boards and job fairs and even old-fashioned want ads. But statistically, most people get jobs through referrals. In fact, around 60% of all jobs are filled by referred candidates, because studies show that they make better employees.

But being referred means having a network of people willing to refer you to their boss, colleague, or acquaintance. And it is your responsibility to make sure that the world, or at least as large a network as you can grow, knows you are looking for work.

I recently attended a baby shower. As luck would have it, I ended up sitting next to a woman who had recently left the hospital accounting department where she and the hostess worked together, and was in the market for another job.

“I’m an HR consultant,” I told her, “and maybe I can help with your search. Do you have a business card or other contact information with you so that I can put the word out on my network?” Sadly, she had nothing to give me other than her name and piece of paper with her phone number scribbled on it.

In the job search world, this woman didn’t exist.

The lesson here? Treat every event in your life as a potential networking event. 

Networking means establishing conversations with people you meet, being prepared to explain your needs if the opportunity arises, and offering to help them if possible. It’s never too late to start, and there are many opportunities to network that you may not even consider. Use them all, and develop a network even if you are employed, because, as a wiser person than me once said, you should expect the unexpected.

Oh, and carry a business card with you. Always.

About the Author: Joan Ginsberg, JD, SPHR

From police officer to law professor to HR manger, Joan has traveled a unique and interesting career path. Recognizing the common and vital thread running through those fields – a commitment to communication and honesty – Joan has fully embraced both in the new and exciting field of social media management. She writes about HR and workplace issues at her blog Just Joan ( www.joanginsberg.com)  and Women of HR. (www.womenofhr.com) She is the president and co-owner of Castanet Social, a social media services company for small business, and the Director of Social Media for the Human Resources Association of Greater Detroit (HRAGD). She is highly active in the online HR community through social media outlets like Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

joan@joanginsberg.com

@JoanGinsberg  (Twitter)

JoanGinsberg (Facebook and Google+)

Inbreeding; The Social Way

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We Southerners always get a bad rap. Whether on TV, in the movies, or some dip shit that says out loud and to your face, “Hey, don’t all you southerners intermarry? Is your uncle really your daddy?”

So to clear the air, not all southerners marry their cousins.

I was thinking one day and pondering how I came to be connected with so many folks around Cyberville and noticed a wonderful thing. Here’s how it works:

I connect to Joe Blow. Three days later Joe Blow’s connection John Q. Public sends me a connection request because he sees that I’m a friend of his friend Joe, and he respects Joe’s opinions (for the most part) or sees some comment I made on Joe’s FB or Twitter stream that he decides he too, would love to connect with me. The next thing you know, not only have I made friends with Joe and John Q. and have been engaging with them in conversations and content sharing – I have reached out to their friends Tom, Dick and Harry and they have obliged me in connecting…and so on, and so on.

I now have this awesome community with whom I engage almost on a daily basis. Shootin’ the shit, sharing their blogs and links, and just plain ole getting to know them.

A waste of time, you say? I beg to differ.

You see, I have made many friends online, many acquaintances that know about my business, what I’m passionate about, what rocks my boat. They also know how much I care about them because I share their shit too! In fact, I make a habit of it.

When the time comes that they themselves or someone they know needs my services, or they want me to blog for them about my area of expertise, they are already connected with me and have organically grown this relationship – all they need to do is ask. I’m not having to cold call them (which is so a thing of the past) but they are just about one click away from me.

If you’re not building a solid online community of engage-rs (not just those selling you their wares) you’re totally missing out. And I believe I have the coolest online friends ever – whether that turns a profit or not.

Stop evaluating this according to ROI and start building relationships.

And for Pete’s sake, stop asking me if I connect to every Tom, Dick or Harry – I just told you I do.

If you want to read more on inbreeding in America – check out “When Cousins Get Married.”