whoisnick.com

So I’ve finally come to the conclusion that networking through the web isn’t a cup of tea for me. Matter of fact it isn’t even a cup of anything for me. I’m not in it. For me it’s too forced and not natural enough. I did go to one of the meet-ups but didn’t really get into it. I’m sure there are other meet-ups that are great, but right now in my life, not for me. So…the links are gone.

Hmmm, maybe all these internet networking portals could have down falls? Maybe I should re-evaluate my little “digital networking” experiment? Christopher Allen, at Life with Alacrity, is warning us all about the hazards to internet networking and how when it gets to be too large, how can we actually keep up with it? I believe, it comes down to a great point about quality vs. quantity.

Our current breed of social networking services have focused on amplifying our contacts not only because it serves us, but because it serves them. The more contacts that you make, the more people they potentially have in their service. However, in the long run this is unsustainable — a social networking service also has to be useful — merely amplifying your contacts isn’t enough.

Also I believe that the digital network from what I’m seeing has an impersonal element to it. And for me the personal connection is really what makes the connection tick. I guess that give’s MeetUp an star in my book, for trying to use the digital to enhance the tangible.

_{Note: from this there was mention of Spoke, so I’m adding it to my networking links, to give a try}

O.k. So I’ve gone through the process of adding the links to my “Networking” section, on the left side. I’ve signed up to 3 different sites and I’ve been playing with how they work and what can be done.

• Ecademy - Seems to be chalker block full of features and additions. You’ve got blogs and message boards, meetings and clubs but only if you can afford it. I’m still looking through it, but so far, nothing for the broke ( which is me ).
• LinkedIn - It’s a friendster for business. You can search profiles, groups, experiences, business industries, anything that the users put up. And another bonus, it’s free. I’m connected to 1 person so far, woohoo!
• MeetUp - This site’s purpose is a little different. Like LinkedIn, it’s free. They’ve got a small twist, its goal is to create physical networks. Sure they’ve got a message board but their strive is to make the face to face connections, which is scary but I think can be very beneficial. I’ve got my first meetup on Feb 10.

Ultimately like real networking, it’s something that takes time an patience, so one week isn’t going to get me huge results. I’ll check in from time to time to let you know how the network grows.

This past week my Company of Friends Group was discussing aspects and thoughts towards Networking. Stewart Marshall has learned some great lessons and shared them with us, and the conversations that ensued were interesting and eye opening for me.

The best aspect I took from our conversations was the misplaced negative stereo-type people have created over the years about networking. I’m not exactly sure how and when this happened but I know I had this idea until this conversation. the term “Networking” for me conjured images of fake smiles and fake hand shakes. Giving your card out to thousands of people and knowing only 1% might actually keep it. I found myself surprised that concepts and principles in networking are the exact same I use to make friends. It all comes down to meeting new people, however we’ve found that we can do that, use it.

So as a learning and growing project, and being an internet person, I’ve decided to start linking in through various networking sites and to give them a try. I’ll be adding the Networking sub-category to my Business Category, and as I learn about these sites and explore, I’ll definitely be keeping everyone in the loop.

_{Side Note:: This also keeps in line with this new concept of chaos theory. New People = Unexpected = Chaos.}