There has been a lot of news lately here in Austin created by John Mackey the CEO of Whole Foods. It began with open attacks on his blog against the FTC who it appears is trying to block the Whole Foods acquisition of Wild Oats. Things quickly went down hill when it was discovered that Mackey has posted comments anonymous comments about both Whole Foods and Wild Oats on public message boards.

 

At a time when I'm constantly talking with folks who are thinking about starting their own business or company blogs this can't be encouraging news. However, I think it only serves to reemphasize the points I've made all along about what you should and shouldn't blog about.

 

I love blogs because they tend to have a much more personal feel to their writing. More personality comes through due to the more informal nature of the medium. But, there's a fine line between being personal and real and making inappropriate comments that are instantly public. These days it's not just blogs. If you're in any type of high level position ANYTHING you put in writing could become public in the future. Too few people think about that reality when they send an everyday e-mail. It's just too easy to forward that e-mail.

 

Think before you write! Whether it's your own blog, and e-mail or any type of communication it's important to think it through. My general rule is to not write anything I wouldn't want my mother to see. (I found out recently that she actually reads my blog so it's a good thing I've always followed this rule) Also consider the worst case scenario. If I were to write something disparaging about one of my colleagues and they were to read what I wrote what would happen? It's too easy for this to happen, so it's probably best not to write it in the first place.

 

Blogs, e-mail and online forums are all incredible ways to communicate. We shouldn't stop using them because we're afraid of them. We just need to use some common sense and be respectful (even if we think we're anonymous).

 

Happy Networking!

 

Scott Ingram

In my experience the hardest part of keeping up with those in your network is job movement. Much of the time all of the contact information I have for a particular individual is 100% related to their job. Company name, work phone number and a work e-mail address. If they leave that job I suddenly have no way to reach them.

 

Job changes happen ALL the time! I don't know exactly what the statistic is these days, but I'm sure it's safe to say that the average tenure at one company is only 3-5 years. So how on earth do you figure out where these people in your network went if they change jobs and you don't have any relevant contact information?

 

The answer is LinkedIn. One of the most valuable things about LinkedIn for me is also one of the simplest. It's the notification that someone has added a new position or made another change to their profile. The other side of the coin is important also. If you change jobs you want your network to know that you've made the move. All you have to do is update your profile on LinkedIn and notify all of your connections.

 

If you're not already on LinkedIn, then please setup an account today. It's free and a very valuable service. You can find some great information about how best to use LinkedIn on Scott Allen's Blog: LinkedIntelligence. I have another friend who is in the process of writing a book about how best to used LinkedIn that I'll let you know about as soon as it comes out.

 

To get the most out of LinkedIn you'll want to connect with those in your network (this is what LinkedIn is all about).

 

Finally, make sure that your profile is up to date and that your correct e-mail address is listed so you can be contacted by those in your network.

 

LinkedIn is a great tool. Like any tool, it only works if you use it. If you're not on LinkedIn spend 20 minutes and setup an account, start your profile and make a few connections. If you're already on LinkedIn spend 20 minutes learning how to better use it, or make a few more connections.

 

Happy Networking!

 

Scott Ingram

 

P.S. If we're not already connected on LinkedIn you can find my profile here: Scott Ingram's LinkedIn Profile. Please only make a connection request if we actually know each other. I do not connect randomly to people I haven't met (we're not actually part of each others network). Of course those situations can be corrected if you reach out and work to build a relationship with me.