I had the opportunity to be part of a panel discussion on social media at the most recent Agent Reboot event in Washington, DC.  It was great to be back to a place I lived for several years "back in the 90s."  Lots of familiar places and was able to reconnect with some friends while I was in town.

I framed my comments at the event to take a step way, way back from the hype and excitement around social media and explain what it is and that everybody can, and already does, do it.  Learning all the tools, tricks, and tips is another issue but there really is very little mystery surrounding it.

Here's why:

Fundamentally social media is about communicating with people.  Something we all know how to do and do every day in a variety of ways – meetings, phone calls, emails, etc.  The "social" piece of it focuses on participation.

More people from more places can come together and share, interact, and get updated all at one time or, more importantly, on their time complete with links, pictures, and a threaded view among other things. 

I suggested the following four steps to get started and this has been a recurring theme of ours in all of our presentations.

1.  Listen

You don't have to have anxiety about your writing, if you can be witty, or even spell correctly.  Start out by reading what others are sharing.  There is probably already somebody in your neighborhood doing this.  In Kirkland, WA (where I live) there are two local blogs I read that keep me informed about what is going on in my community – Kirkland Weblog and Kirkland Views.  Beyond where you live, find others writing about your interests, skills, or hobbies.  It is really easy to use Google to find these types of bloggers and you can also use Twitter search.

2.  Share

Now that you are reading interesting things by people in your neighborhood or written about your interests, you will no doubt want to share those with others.  Enter email.  Copy a link and paste it into the body of an email or share it directly via email from the post. You'll probably even add a bit of commentary on it as you share with friends or co-workers. Congratulations, you have now shared content. 

3. Comment

Now it is time to come out of the shadows and share some of that commentary you are adding to the emails with the world.  Read a post and comment directly on it.  The comments on a blog, especially a heavily trafficked one, are where the real conversation and insight unfolds.  Remember, do not self-promote.  Add something of value to the discussion…like you would if you were talking to a group of friends at a coffee shop.

4.  Contribute

If you have made it this far and really want to strike out on your own by publishing yourself, you have a variety of choices to make about tools, costs, time commitment, etc.  The tools are cheap, easy to learn, and just put yourself on a schedule to write a blog post a week.  Carry a notebook and write down random thoughts.  If you find yourself answering the same questions over and over for friends or co-workers, write a post and share that link next time (see #2 above).  Simplify your broadcasting by linking your blog to Twitter to Facebook to LinkedIn.  Or don't and control it.  It is your call and you are in control.

Even if you never move past Step 1 you will be better informed in your job or even at your next cookout.