Does social media sometimes make as much sense to your work life as this pavement did to me when I walked by it - it looks all very exciting but you don’t have an idea about to apply/use the information at your disposal?
Well here are three suggestions to make you a better informed HR/L and D professional when it comes to using social media that take either ten minutes, a month or a life time. Happy learning and remember - like the booklet below says, just because it is social does not have to make it casual.
(NB Got better suggestions? I would love to hear from you so we can spread the wealth! Please feel free to email/comment at the bottom of this post)
In 10 minutes
Order and then read ‘The Little Book of The Future – A Guide to Collaborative Learning’ from Reed. It is very small and really should take no longer than 15 minutes to read if you get distracted – though with this little book of tips and suggestions I cannot imagine that hap- oh check out that pretty butterfly…
Anyways, where was I? It is a little booklet of tips and suggestions of using different elements of social media, from using Twitter to the top 10 online learning tools. I should mention that some people who provide suggestions are pushing their own agenda (did not want you to get a shock when you realised the column on the benefits of Linkedin was written by their PR Manager) but I don’t let this put you off – it’s a great freebie that is small enough to be digestible without being lightweight.
In one month
I have banged on about this book in a variety of different contexts on posts on here but when ever I feel flush out of ideas for this site or feel I am losing interest in the possibilities of social media I reach for Gary Veynerchuk’s ‘Crush It’.
I won’t bore you with a potted history of Gary V, Winelibrary and his other ventures, you can find him everywhere online. Needless to say he is not in the field of L and D or HR but I think you can take inspiration from his ideas and apply them to most areas of your work to come up with new approaches and solutions. He can be a little rough around the edges for some (i.e. he swears now and again) but I find his authenticity and honesty appealing (i.e. I have been known to swear now and again) and his enthusiasm is very contagious.
In short, a fun read that can help give you some new ideas and it is pretty short at 142 pages, so a month might even be stretching it – Go on, I can feel your curiosity getting the better of you already!
(Looking for something with less of a social media focus? Perhaps Seth Godin’s ‘Lychpin’ or ‘Rework’ by Jason Fried and David Hansson – more about, you guessed it, how you work and what you do. Some social media stuff but that’s not their focus necessarily)
In a lifetime
Learning never stops and social media can be a great platform to make sure this is the case. So here are some suggestions for great sites that I use in my spare time for either professional or personal development:
- TED
‘Ideas Worth Spreading’.With a tag line like that does it even need any further introduction?! Listen/watch podcasts = you feeling smarter and better informed: http://www.ted.com/
- Open Culture
Just discovered this recently, seems to have crazy potential as a personal learning tool given the quality of some of the lectures and resources they have on here in the form of podcasts, ebooks, free courses etc. Have a look and see what catches your eye: http://www.openculture.com/freeonlinecourses
- Stumbleupon
I found this a few weeks ago and tweeted that it was ‘the social media equivalent of cave man discovering fire’. This requires some input on your part so it has an idea of what is to your taste but once it does it provides a world of sites, blogs, videos, podcasts on whatever you are interested in. I view it as my psychic Google – it finds stuff relevant to what I do before I realise it mighty be of interest.
Overblown? Maybe – check it out for yourself to decide: http://www.stumbleupon.com/
(Don’t fancy this? There are other similar sites - try alltop.com for a start)
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| Even Einstein would need help in this game of hop skotch |
(NB Got better suggestions? I would love to hear from you so we can spread the wealth! Please feel free to email/comment at the bottom of this post)
In 10 minutes
Order and then read ‘The Little Book of The Future – A Guide to Collaborative Learning’ from Reed. It is very small and really should take no longer than 15 minutes to read if you get distracted – though with this little book of tips and suggestions I cannot imagine that hap- oh check out that pretty butterfly…
Anyways, where was I? It is a little booklet of tips and suggestions of using different elements of social media, from using Twitter to the top 10 online learning tools. I should mention that some people who provide suggestions are pushing their own agenda (did not want you to get a shock when you realised the column on the benefits of Linkedin was written by their PR Manager) but I don’t let this put you off – it’s a great freebie that is small enough to be digestible without being lightweight.
In one month
I have banged on about this book in a variety of different contexts on posts on here but when ever I feel flush out of ideas for this site or feel I am losing interest in the possibilities of social media I reach for Gary Veynerchuk’s ‘Crush It’.
I won’t bore you with a potted history of Gary V, Winelibrary and his other ventures, you can find him everywhere online. Needless to say he is not in the field of L and D or HR but I think you can take inspiration from his ideas and apply them to most areas of your work to come up with new approaches and solutions. He can be a little rough around the edges for some (i.e. he swears now and again) but I find his authenticity and honesty appealing (i.e. I have been known to swear now and again) and his enthusiasm is very contagious.
In short, a fun read that can help give you some new ideas and it is pretty short at 142 pages, so a month might even be stretching it – Go on, I can feel your curiosity getting the better of you already!
(Looking for something with less of a social media focus? Perhaps Seth Godin’s ‘Lychpin’ or ‘Rework’ by Jason Fried and David Hansson – more about, you guessed it, how you work and what you do. Some social media stuff but that’s not their focus necessarily)
In a lifetime
Learning never stops and social media can be a great platform to make sure this is the case. So here are some suggestions for great sites that I use in my spare time for either professional or personal development:
- TED
‘Ideas Worth Spreading’.With a tag line like that does it even need any further introduction?! Listen/watch podcasts = you feeling smarter and better informed: http://www.ted.com/
- Open Culture
Just discovered this recently, seems to have crazy potential as a personal learning tool given the quality of some of the lectures and resources they have on here in the form of podcasts, ebooks, free courses etc. Have a look and see what catches your eye: http://www.openculture.com/freeonlinecourses
- Stumbleupon
I found this a few weeks ago and tweeted that it was ‘the social media equivalent of cave man discovering fire’. This requires some input on your part so it has an idea of what is to your taste but once it does it provides a world of sites, blogs, videos, podcasts on whatever you are interested in. I view it as my psychic Google – it finds stuff relevant to what I do before I realise it mighty be of interest.
Overblown? Maybe – check it out for yourself to decide: http://www.stumbleupon.com/
(Don’t fancy this? There are other similar sites - try alltop.com for a start)
I've recently put together some employee guidelines on social networking. Take a peek at the HR UK forum http://tinyurl.com/434om5g
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