I’ve been quite active in social networking recently. Facebook is the latest I’ve been playing around with but don’t bother searching for Panzer on facebook — it doesn’t exist as this pen-name is not my “real” facebook profile.

Linkedin and having a basic blogger page that has my name are the other items. I have set up Plurk and Twitter accounts for Panzergrenadier.

Now why am I introducing social networking into this blog about financial freedom?

Hack-proof your income streams

Most of us have our primary income from employment. The cash flows come in so long as we have a job. Today’s recessionary climate makes jobs less secure than they were 1-2 years ago. Thus, engaging in social networking is a practical way to make sure you are on friends and acquaintances radar so that when you need their help, you have cultivated sufficient goodwill with them to lend a helping hand or a listening ear.

Even if you are a businessman, your business is dependent on customers who are other people. If you can build relationships with them that last, they will think about you positively when they may require your goods or services.

Social networking can also be useful in building up income streams from blog monetisation or selling your services online as you build on online persona and brand. I’ve deliberately chosen to operate Five Cents Ten Cents blog using Panzer because I want to distinguish between my day-job and this blog. It also allows me a degree of anonymity but some of my close friends know who I am.

I’d rather people visit my blog because of what I have to say and not who I am. It also allows people to criticise or comment without worrying too much about hurting my ego since it’s easier to be critical of people you don’t know..hahah.

Social networking can be fun

One added benefit of social networking is that it can be quite fun. The tools are getting more user-friendly all the time and most of them are free. You can share photos, notes, information about yourself, lifecast what you are doing in between blog updates. You get to know your friends a little bit better as small tit-bits about their lives are revealed piece by piece.

The downside of social networking using tools such as facebook is that your privacy may be affected if you are not conscious of what information you allow people to see. In general, I allow people to see those things that I would readily tell another person if I meet face-to-face. However, I keep my birthday and age generally off the page but people can roughly guess how old I am from the pictures I posted.

Overall, the fun part outweights the downsides so long as you are in control of how much or little you want to reveal about yourself.

Social networking can be serious

The serious part of social networking is that it can be that little bit of leverage that helps you land that job, be recommended for business opportunities and to re-connect with long-lost friends.

Personally, I’ve gotten a job offer in the past through a referral a friend I know from my active national service days. Whilst my last two job offers were more plain vanilla writing in to publicised vacancies, I believe in today’s uncertain climate, every small bit of help goes a long way in hack-proofing your career as well as continuing to build the relationships needed to succeed in business and life in general.

How are you connected through social networking?

Share with Panzer how many networks you are on and which do you think is the most useful to you?

Be well and prosper.

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