You can go to business conferences, talk to “experts”, consult with agencies- but one angle in regards to social networking tools that isn’t being emphasized enough: do not overuse the tools. The definition of what “overusing the tools” actually means is debatable- but we all can agree it’s easy to get addicted, become excessive with usage of the tools and ultimately can translate into being counterproductive. Don’t get me wrong, I flippin’ love Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, [insert the next big social tool here and here] but I’ve also am cognitive that there is a right way to integrate these tools into your life without it taking over your life. It can help you, not drown you. It should augment your life not make it harder. It can make things easier and not be a burden to your already long list of things-to-do. But also realize, like everything else, it does take practice, retooling and lots of self-evaluation. Unfortunately, no one can really teach you how to do this because how you should use the tools depends on what YOU are trying to achieve. I would argue it’s not the same for everyone.

That said, I wanted to share a great article I came across from the NYTimes of view points that are totally on-point in my opinion. Take the 5-minutes to read it here. One of my favorite excerpts from the article:

“The bottom line is: We have to learn when and where multitasked social networking media actually help us carry out our daily tasks rather than interfering with them. Because these media are ubiquitous, tempting and potentially addictive, we must strive to manage them better than we do now.”

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