Are you Linked In? Do you Tweet? Are you on Facebook? Well, if you are or aren’t, there are plenty of places to learn more about the benefits of social media these days. A flurry of instructional and resourceful seminars are available. Tons of information are available on line. Or, you can simply connect with your current colleagues and ask around about the mechanics and benefits of on-line networking. And you’d better hurry. The wave of technology-based networking is moving at warp speed.

I’m active on LinkedIn for professional connections, Facebook primarily for family and extended family contacts, and although I am a member of Twitter, I’ve not yet been tweeting. The primary challenges for me are the time it takes to learn, navigate and make the most of the sites, and the time it takes to connect with past colleagues and friends. And I’m struggling a bit with the increasingly blurred line between my professional and personal networking and disclosure (fodder for a separate blog entry, I’m sure.) I’m not the only one, right?

For all of its challenges though, social media provides an incredible opportunity to connect with others and market yourself and/or your business exponentially. And if you want to thrive in the current business environment, you’ll want to get on board.

As for the time challenge, perhaps we simply need to reconsider the value of time well spent.