Even since doing his LinkedIn book, people have been asking Jason Alba if he would do a Facebook book, and his response has been, “na, I’m not crazy enough to do this twice!” Well in his Jibber Jobber blog post, on December 3, 2007, Jason admitted, “Apparently, I am crazy enough.”
Similarly, despite the fact that I know business people who are on Facebook, I’ve felt it would be crazy to venture out beyond my LinkedIn comfort zone. Then I read Tory Johnson’s article, “Get Hired in '08: Workplace Trends to Put You Ahead,” and realized that I’d be crazy not to. After all, as a career consultant and personal branding strategist, I ought to be in the know about this important social networking site. So, within minutes, I’d dashed off an e-mail to Jason asking if he still needed early reviewers for the book. Minutes later, I had my review copy.
Frankly, my situation was not really “I’m on Facebook, Now What???” Rather, it was this: I’m not on Facebook, what am I missing? Happily, I was about to find out with this terrific book, coauthored by Jason Alba and Facebook expert Jesse Stay. Just browsing through their book, I saw it is an outstanding “how-to” manual that clearly lays out what to do – and more importantly, what not to do! And after I actually read it, I was not disappointed. With its rich content, well-documented resources, tips, and end-of-chapter Action Items, this is a must-read guide for novices and experienced users alike.
Bolstered by their view that “understanding what Facebook can do for you is a requirement in today’s business world,” I plunged into the first chapter, “Getting Stated.” After reading reasons for professionals to get involved, I moved swiftly to the section on navigating Facebook, and felt I was ready to jump in – but didn’t. And while I could have opened my account after reading the first three chapters, I chose to read the remainder of the book. If you do not yet have a Facebook account, I recommend you do too. Why? As Alba and Stay point out Facebook is a feature-rich environment which means that it is complex; so, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed.
