KNOW, the Magazine for Paralegals Summer 2014 | Page 34
I’m No Dinosaur. I’m
By Chere
Does anyone over 50 feel like a dinosaur? We didn’t grow up with computers. We did invent them, that’s true. I’m hearing more and more
about technology moving so fast that by the time you learn one thing,
it’s old, gone and done with.
So, 60 years of age is the new 40. Does that mean 20 years were lost or
is it 20 years hasn’t happened yet. What are you doing besides exercise,
eating healthy and Botox to erase those years? And why, if 60 is 40, do
you look like your grandma?
Let’s take this social media thing. You’re definitely a dinosaur if you’re
not social mediaing it. So, I’m twittering, I’m linking, I’m facing, I’m blogging, I am pinning (although with what, god only knows) but I’m no
closer to anyone than before. Where are my friends?
I have almost 7,000 followers on LinkedIn. That doesn’t count some
of the groups I own where there’s 9,400; 8,700, 2,000, 1500 and I don’t
know what else. I send eBooks, I retweet, I’m friends with people I’ll
never meet. In fact, I’ve never met any of them.
Let’s see. Straighten me out here. You set up LinkedIn to do business. It’s
the career/business network. You’re supposed to look professional and
get business or job offers. But it’s not polite to talk about your business,
you can’t advertise and you sure as heck can’t solicit anyone. You are a
dinosaur if you don’t have your profile on it with your airbrushed, digitized, photo shopped, natural picture.
So you peek in to see how many people viewed your profile today. But
you’re not supposed to ask them what they thought or could you help
them find something. Then there’s the posting. You can post about an
article that you haven’t written (I write a lot) because to mention an
article about yourself is tacky. Absolutely, positively no self-promotion
allowed. You get written up nationally but it’s egotistical to talk about it.
You have to wait for one of your friends to talk about it for you and I just
told you about the nebulous 7,000.
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