Web Business Freedom

Every day just seems to bring more bad news. Today, I learned two old friends and colleagues, with decades of service to the same company, were dumped and given a mere week’s severance.

Yesterday, I learned about the ax falling for the employees of the Rocky Mountain News, Colorado’s oldest newspaper. Another industry in turmoil and good people on the street.

Sadly, for many of the folks in Colorado as well as the two people I heard about today, things are going to be tough. Both of the people I know are older (one in her late 40s to early 50s, and another in his 70s). Both have dutifully worked for the same place for decades, and counted on their paychecks and 401ks to support their families. We all know so many in that same predicament.

Unfortunately, right now it’s a buyer’s market (for employers), and any hiring that gets done tends to skew toward younger and cheaper workers. So if you’re older, it’s imperative to remain relevant as well as flexible in terms of what you’re willing to do, and for what amount. Another former co-worker emailed yesterday and offered to work for me for free in exchange for some knowledge sharing!

I also have a younger family member who’s been unemployed and looking for months. I recently discovered she has an outdated profile on LinkedIn and just three–three!–connections. And she’s not using Facebook or other tools like Twitter to make connections.

All these examples make me sad, but also angry. Angry in the sense that too many people sit around, complacent in their situation and not taking active steps to ensure their very survival. This latest economic malaise has done nothing if not show us all that in a palpable way, it’s every man and woman for herself now. So today, I’m imploring everyone I know to face the reality that no one’s job is safe. And the best way to protect yourself is to ramp up your networking efforts–before it’s too late.

As I look around, I see a lot of hope in people who are out there helping others. Much of this is taking place thanks to the very networks I mentioned, like Facebook and Twitter.

I’ve spent a lot of time through this website writing about ways to connect with others using social media. I encourage you to read Top 10 Ways To Improve Your Personal Brand Image Online and A 4-Step Plan to Achieve Social Networking Fame, among other posts.

Rather than rehash those articles, I’ll just add a few more observations:

• If you’re not actively using and learning about social media tools, now is the time. Stop complaining and worrying about your life and just do it. As long as you have an Internet connection, 99% of this stuff is free. All it takes is time.
• It’s never too late to get started.When you first join social networks, you might go weeks or months without making many connections. This is pretty normal. The same goes for creating a blog; I wrote for months and had very few people reading what I said. It can be discouraging, but stick with it! These efforts pay off in the end, if you’re diligent and have something valuable to share with others.
• I just mentioned the real secret to social media: sharing. You can’t join social sites and spam people and expect it to do you any good. You must seek opportunities to connect with, help and share information with others. Daily. This week, I had the pleasure of meeting Peter Shankman of Help A Reporter Out. During a presentation, he mentioned that back in the ’80s, media titan Barry Diller used to get up early every morning and randomly called 10 people in his Rolodex. Over time, it made Diller one of the most influential people in Hollywood. Peter brought that notion forward by sharing that one of the first things he does daily is log in to Facebook and send greetings to all his friends who are having birthdays. It’s a simple gesture, but incredibly powerful. Thanks to doing little things like this and using simple technology, Peter Shankman is now a renowned and sought-after speaker and consultant. For a similar story of a guy who has used networking to catapault to the top of his industry, study Gary Vaynerchuk of WineLibrary. A lot of what Gary shares has nothing to do with wine or his company. He says he’d rather have a million friends than a million dollars, and I believe him. And the funny thing is, the more friends he makes, the more money, too.
• Embrace social networking—online and off. If you just sit in front of a computer all day and don’t make real, physical connections, you’re missing out.Just yesterday, as I was wracking my brain trying to promote a client, I got a tweet from a journalist that led to a phone call that led to a TV interview. Then, I met another friend from Twitter for lunch. It turned out his father-in-law was a notable and frequently quoted expert on the very subject I was pitching for my client! Another great connection made.
• Start Googling, taking classes and reading blogs and great books by the new masters of networking, like Chris Brogan and David Meerman Scott. These are real people with fantastic ideas that just flat out work. I’ve never met either of these guys, but both have taken the time to email me or leave comments on my blog. To me, that’s impressive.
• Secret #2: Help others. Right now, that especially means young people getting out of college in a tough market, as well as the older generation I mentioned. They need all the encouragement they can get.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Lots of people will be happy to do so.
• Sharpen the saw. It sounds trite, but thinking about the analogy of the ax falling on so many people makes me think of Stephen Covey and his 7 Habits’ saw. Instead of dreading the blade, grab it and start polishing like crazy. In a real sense, this means taking a real hard look at your life and talents and figuring out how to use them as best you can. Don’t let others dictate the outcome for you, or prescribe your unhappiness. Stay focused, work hard, make connections and good things can happen!

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