In this week’s top ten celebrity quotes on People.com (please remember, dear reader, that I am unemployed and have a lot of time on my hands) I came across this gem: “’I would rather have a prostate exam on live television by a guy with very cold hands than have a Facebook page.’ – George Cloony, explaining his aversion to social networking.”
Well what do you know? George Cloony and I have something in common – we both have an aversion to social networking! Oh Facebook, I wish I knew how to quit you.
At some point in our lives we’ve all heard the phrase, “It’s not what you know, but who you know.” I can only wish that it wasn’t true. In my opinion, networking is just about the most awkward thing. Ever. Many will verify that I’m not a particularly shy person, but when it comes to networking I might as well carry around two walls with me everywhere so I always have a corner to stand in.
Although I feel awkward networking, I know that there are those who do it like it IS their job. My mom happens to be one of them. Let’s face it; the woman is a networking machine. She has no problem what so ever with asking people what they do and then asking if they know of a job for her unemployed daughter. I’m grateful for her networking prowess and sometimes it works in my favor, but for the most part it makes me want to hide in my build-a-corner.
Recently I found out that it’s not just my mom, but perhaps parents across the nation. The other day I answered the phone and it was an old friend of my mom whose daughter just graduated specializing in the same thing my mom does. He wanted to know what my mom knew about the field (re: does she know of a job opening? Can my daughter work where you work?). Another friend of mine is working at a company that her dad networked her a position at. I’m at least glad to know that I’m not alone.