“Bill Gates doesn’t get a lot of credit these days for being a visionary,” said Simon Dumenco in Portfolio. But in his assessment of the business benefits of social-networking sites, “he may still be a step ahead of the rest of us,” Gates recently quit his daily habit of using Facebook.com “cold turkey”—probably because everyone wanted to be his “friend.” What’s somewhat surprising is that Gates was on Facebook in the first place. He “obviously doesn’t need to schmooze” online, though frankly “neither do you.”
Don’t be so sure, said Eve Tahmincioglu in MSNBC.com. “Let’s face it,” social-networking sites have helped many workers with their careers, and most likely “you need to be part of at least one of these networks.” But one is probably enough: Concentrating your effort to “build a solid network” in a single place will help you avoid wasting time. “When it comes to professional networking,” most experts consider LinkedIn the best site for professionals. If you find LinkedIn’s no-frills style to be too stuffy, Facebook is a “good alternative.” Just learn to use the privacy settings: You want would-be employers browsing your portfolio, not party photos.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
How to create a healthy 'germier' homeUnder The Radar Exposure to a broad range of microbes can enhance our immune system, especially during childhood
-
George Floyd: Did Black Lives Matter fail?Feature The momentum for change fades as the Black Lives Matter Plaza is scrubbed clean
-
National debt: Why Congress no longer caresFeature Rising interest rates, tariffs and Trump's 'big, beautiful' bill could sent the national debt soaring
