Social Networking Friends vs. Real Life Friends...

While many of us use social networking tools differently, most of us struggle with similar questions and challenges. Should I connect only with family and good friends on Facebook and only business contacts on LinkedIn? How secure should I feel when using Facebook's privacy settings to determine which groups of friends can or cannot see particular photos? Should I be concerned when someone tags me in a photo or I comment on someone else's post?

LinkedIn-apalooza! Ready to rev-up your profile?...

If you're a professional or business person, you know you need to be using LinkedIn wisely, right? And, college students, that goes for you, too. If you don't know why it matters or know deep-down in the pit of your stomach that you're really not all that sure what to do with LinkedIn, then this is for you......

Who Influences You? (Plus, get a free book)...

One of the best ways to learn is to watch others; see what works, what falls flat, what suits your style and what doesn't. Learning how best to communicate and influence others is no different. Don't we all hope to influence others? Whether it is to market our business, persuade a client, motivate an audience or capture the attention of potential employers, influence is important.

Yet Another SXSW Post (And, No, I Don’t Know If You Sh...

I wasn't going to write about SXSW (South by Southwest). After being asked by countless people what I thought of it and whether they should attend next year, I gave in. Rather than write a comprehensive overview, I decided to just fill in the gaps with some points which may be helpful and different than what others have said.

Coming Soon: An Interview with YOU!...

As the blog's readership and community have grown, I'm continually impressed with all of you. I'm pretty sure that I've learned far more from you than you have from me. You share your thoughts by commenting on blog posts, sending emails and tweets, and participating on my Facebook fan page. Through all of my activity online, I've met so many fabulous people I never would have met otherwise.

Ready for Yet Another Social Platform? Here Comes Google Buz...

Are you ready for a new social platform? Here comes Google Buzz, which brings social elements right into you Gmail inbox. With so many of us using Gmail, this just might stick. It will be rolling out over the next week. You'll be notified when it is live for your account.

LinkedIn Lets You Show Off Your Best Assets...

So you think LinkedIn isn't as sexy as Twitter, Facebook or other networking sites? I encourage you to think again. If providing the most powerful professional networking and job search platform around is sexy, then I'd say it's pretty sexy. And, it just got a little sexier in that you can now show off your best assets more prominently. No, I'm not talking about push-up bras; the change I'm talking about allows you to bring more attention to your professional assets.

What is Your Favorite “Real-time” Tool?...

The theme of LeWeb '09 was "The Realtime Web," but what exactly "is" realtime? And, at what point, do realtime tools stop being new toys which only geeky people use and start becoming so embedded into our everyday lives that we don't really think about them, but can't imagine living without them?

13 Signs That You’re At a Tech Conference...

Having had a very long career in the corporate world before plunging into social media, I've attended conferences of all types. While I truly love the energy and content at tech conferences, I'm struck (and, at moments, slightly entertained) by the differences in style and etiquette between the entrepreneurial tech events and those with a more traditional, corporate bent. It is with the greatest love, respect and true geek-envy that I offer the following observations:

I’m Engaged! (4 Tales of Accidental Twitter Friends)...

It's true, I'm engaged. No, not that kind of engaged. I'm virtually engaged - listening to conversations and building relationships online. As with other networking platforms, I use Twitter primarily for business purposes. Still, as we all know, even when we network and use social media for business, we don't talk about business 100% of the time, right?