LinkedIn

My sister asked me to join LinkedIn over a year ago, and, to be honest, I really didn't see the point. It was always seemed like it was meant more for people who work for big companies, where who you know helps you get ahead. Even in the videos on the Thing 5 page, all they talk about is growing Susan's business; how she can hire more help and find more investors. My position as a teacher is not one where I hire people or go looking for people to donate money. That's probably why Education is such an underrepresented field in the network. We think, "That's not directed at us." (Or maybe it's because we can't post lesson plans and worksheets for other people to use...)

For me, at the moment, the value of being part of LinkedIn is to provide a link for someone else to find what they're looking for. A large chunk of my connections are people who are working for engineering or software companies (a side effect of going to an engineering college). Now, this might change as I gain contacts in the field of education that I can't go find in person. I waiting for approval to join the Science Math Primary/Secondary Education group, which I think is likely to gain me some outside Education contacts.

I also think that I'm missing a lot of the value of this networking site, because I'm still trying to find my way around the site. There are times when I look at the page and feel at a loss of what to do. Unlike Facebook, where I can play around a lot more. Part of that is Facebook is a social site, where as LinkedIn is a professional one. I feel a lot more freedom in what I post on one compared to what I post on the other.

Maybe I just need to spend more time playing around with LinkedIn. I have been on Facebook for years...