It's Good to be a Follower

Dear B-Reader,

Alas, we've reached the final chapter in our brief social networking primer.

Think back to your childhood. Your parents, teachers, and other leader-type persons berated your little child-self whenever you followed someone, didn't they. They said something like, "If Johnny jumped off a cliff, would you?" The answer in social networking is a resounding "YES!"

In online life, mimic what others do. As in real life, don't do anything stupid or morally questionable just because someone else is doing it. Copy what seems good and what seems to work for others.

But how will you know what works unless you actually observe these others? In order to interact with others and learn from their experiences, you must be a member of their social networking page. Think of it as a clique or group. Your inner teenager wants to be in the in-crowd. Here's your chance to give in and to do it.

When you find a social networking profile that you enjoy reading, Like, Follow, Follow, Connect with it (Facebook, Twitter, Blog, LinkedIn). Let that person/profile know that you are waiting to see what else they will post. Let them know you care. Don't be scared to let your true colors shine through. Just because you follow profile sites does not imply that you endorse what they have to say. Following simply indicates that you are interested in knowing what they have to say.

Let's practice now. On my Chalkaholic blog site, there is a box, the Following Box, at the top right corner with a pictorial of my followers. These are the persons who choose to publicly follow this blog. They receive notifications when there is a new posting. They can comment on my posts and comment to each other. I can see if they, too, have blogs, and then I can follow theirs. Remember, it's a community.

Now, click the Follow button. It will ask whether you'd like to follow publicly or privately. It's your choice, B-Reader. Either way is A-OK with me. We can be secret friends if you are too shy to let the online world know that you are a Chalkaholic.

P.S., If you have a blog that you'd like me to follow, B-Reader, then by all means, please let me know.