Technology Expresso Cafe: Taking Social Media Serious - Social Media Job Search Tips (Dawn Major)

Jacqueline Sanders is the co-host of a vibrant Internet radio show, Technology Expresso Cafe. Her efforts are regularly showcased on my other blog. However, I thought that many 'villagers' would benefit from the discussion that Jacqueline has with Dawn Major.

At the end of the day, the question that you're being asked is a simple one: 'Is Social Media your hobby or is it your next career move?!'

Check Out Relationships Podcasts at Blog Talk Radio with Tech Expresso Cafe on BlogTalkRadio

What did you learn from this online dialogue?

Google+ Hangout Interview with President Obama

I didn't listen to the unique Google+ Hangout social network event hosted by President Obama yesterday. Here is the video of the full Q&A session for you listening pleasure:





What is your take-away from this Google+ Hangout session?

Wordless Wednesday: GTFO!

Are Blacks More Likely Than Whites to Support Causes Online?

Most villagers know that I'm the executive director of the BDPA Education and Technology Foundation (BETF).  BETF has established a number of online fundraisers via social networks in the past few years. As such we were intrigued by a new survey that claims ethnicity is a factor in how people perceive charitable and political causes they encounter on social networks and whether they go on to get involved with those causes.  [SOURCE]

Out of 2,000 participants in the survey, 30 percent of Black adults and 39 percent of Hispanics said they were more likely to support online causes rather than causes they encountered offline; 24 percent of whites said the same.

The study was released by Georgetown University’s Center for Social Impact Communication and Ogilvy PR, a public-relations company.

While most of the survey participants said they believed they could make a difference by supporting a charitable or political cause, African Americans and Hispanics were more optimistic about the effectiveness of using online networks to do so. When asked if tools like Facebook, Twitter, and blogs could help spread the word about a cause, 58 percent of Blacks and 51 percent of Hispanics agreed, compared with 34 percent of whites.

In addition, more Blacks and Hispanics said Facebook and other social-networking sites made it easier to support a cause: 62 percent and 64 percent, respectively, compared with 54 percent of whites.

Whites are also less likely to use Twitter in general. According to a telephone survey of 2,277 adults conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International, 25 percent of black and 19 percent of Hispanic Internet users say they use Twitter, compared with just 9 percent of white Internet users. What’s more, one in ten Black Internet users now visit Twitter on a typical day, compared with 3 percent of whites and 5 percent of Hispanics.

Yet despite the emphasis placed on social media, blogs and social networking sites are still second to more traditional information sources like television, newspapers, and personal relationships. Likewise, people were more likely to donate money or talk about a social issue than post it to a blog or Facebook, the Georgetown study found.

“What the study shows us over all is not to put all your eggs into the social-media basket,” says Julie Dixon, deputy director at the Georgetown Center. Instead, organizations should tailor their communications strategy based on the how their audience is likely to engage.

Our hope is that those of you who support the STEM-based programs that BDPA implements on local, regional and national level will find a way to visit and support our online fundraising efforts. Here is where you can find BDPA in various social networks:

1. Click and Pledge: Donor designates how funds are used
2. Crowdrise: BDPA IT Corps
3. Crowdrise: Various local chapter college scholarships
4. Facebook: BDPA Charlotte HSCC program
5. Facebook: BDPA IT Corps
6. Facebook: BDPA Los Angeles HSCC program
7. Facebook: BETF Endowment Fund
8. Facebook: Jesse Bemley Scholarship
9. YourCause.com: Donor designates how funds are used

What is your take on the survey findings?

The Great Debate: High Tech vs. High Touch

April Gillespie

by April Gillespie, Catalyst for Everlasting Change

and Founder/CEO of Starseed Consulting

In the 21st century, this age of information technology, we are surrounded by gadgets that allow us to stay connected. The question is how much connecting are we really doing?

With 2,000 friends on Facebook, 800 connections on LinkedIn and 4,000 followers on Twitter, how well are we really connecting with our fellow man?

The Great Debate has begun. How is technology affecting our relationships in our family life, businesses and with friends?

About a year ago, a mentor of mine by the name of Jeff Olson spoke on this topic – High Tech vs. High Touch - at a large self improvement conference in Chicago. Jeff Olson is world renown for his best-selling personal development book, The Slight Edge, but he is also a leadership expert, business philosopher, motivational speaker, billionaire entrepreneur and personal development coach to those like Oprah Winfrey, Donald Trump and more. As a student of the personal development industry I quickly became fascinated by the struggle human beings are enduring today to balance technology and personal relationships.

Do you remember the days when the only way you could get in touch with a friend was when they were at home and you had to leave a message on their….answering machine?

Or when a guy was late picking up a girl for a date and all she could do was wait – there was no Facebook messaging, texting or instant messaging to find out his ETA.

As we work to manage all of these fabulous resources that are creating billion dollar business deals, helping no-name artists get record deals through YouTube, and bringing people together virtually to create life-long matrimony, let’s not forget that although we live in an information age, information is useless unless we are creating “high touch” relationships in the process.

Here are a few tips to help us accomplish this:

1. Say Thank you! - Our mothers worked to instill this sense of gratitude in us at a young age but ask yourself, how many times do you say thank you when someone approves your friend request on Facebook or LinkedIn? A simple acknowledgement through a quick thank you goes a VERY long way when it comes to building connections vs. just communicating. This simple gesture in gratitude shows the other person that you aren’t taking their relationship for granted but you genuinely care to get to know them.
2. Be Different. - If there is one thing that irks my nerves more than anything is when people request to connect with me on LinkedIn, which is supposedly a more professional environment than many other social networks, but all I get is this generic “I'd like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn.” My question is WHY DO YOU WANT TO CONNECT WITH ME?? We must remember that our presence and communication on the social networks are an extension of who we are in real life! If you don’t think you’re generic then don’t use a generic introduction. You wouldn’t do that in person would you? Let’s be different, ingenious, helpful and inspiring! I do some advertising work for human resources professionals; so if I’m connecting with someone in HR I might say something like, “As a fellow HR professional in greater Cincinnati, I would be honored with your connection. Please let me know how I can be of service to you personally or professionally.” Adapt this to your industry and what you seek to accomplish of course, but remember that if social media is going to be your first impression to a key decision maker, it better be an authentic one.
3. Request a real life interaction. - Here is where the “high touch” comes into play. Remember that just because a small head-shot and bunch of text is on a page does not mean that person is a robot. They have feelings, emotions, hopes and maybe even some dreams that you might be able to help them accomplish. This high touch interaction could be coffee before work, a quick telephone conversation or inviting them to accompany you to a networking event that you feel they could benefit from based on what you learn from the content on their page. I’ve even created connections with people on LinkedIn in other states where I travel, then when I’m in planning to be in their area I send them a quick note requesting a time for lunch, dinner or coffee and every time they are excited to meet with me, collaborate and see how we can help each other. It’s a beautiful experience to see how technology can bring us all together but let’s not forget about how to translate that into an authentic personal connection.

Regardless of where you work or what business you are in, we are all working with these weird units called HUMAN BEINGS. We no longer live in an environment where we can hide behind our desks and block out the rest of the world – the world, and all these weird units in it will find you. Human beings long for high touch interactions and we can never underestimate this fact regardless of how advanced technology becomes. Your customers still want to hear your voice, shake your hand, and even play a round of golf with you from time to time. Leverage technology – high tech – to start initial communication but be sure to truly connect with others live via phone and in person – high touch – to fully maximize the power of technology.

Twitter Thursday! - What Is Your Twitter Name?

Drumbeats from Vincent Wright gave us the idea to see if there are any villagers who want to Twitter with us?

Tell us your Twitter name!
To get things started, here are mine:



Personal Twitter name: twitter.com/Villager
My Non-Profit Twitter name: twitter.com/BDPA

For those of you that don't know ...Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that allows its users to send and read other users' updates (otherwise known as tweets), which are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length.


Updates are displayed on the user's profile page and delivered to other users who have signed up to receive them. The sender can restrict delivery to those in his or her circle of friends (delivery to everyone being the default). Users can receive updates via the Twitter website, instant messaging, SMS, RSS, email or through an application such as Twitterrific or Facebook. For SMS, four gateway numbers are currently available: short codes for the United States, Canada, and India, as well as a United Kingdom number for international use. Several third parties offer posting and receiving updates via email.

There are millions of registered Twitter users. Do you have one of them?

The BDPA Insider - July 19, 2010

The Web Academy Offers Free Online Web Design Courses

BDPA New York chapter member Eric Hamilton is becoming one of our favorite IT professionals. He was the key player in the successful grant proposal with Yahoo! Employee Foundation. He is also one of the world-class workshop presenters at the 2010 BDPA Technology Conference in Philadelphia on July 28-31.

Click here for the full article.

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Body Language Can Make or Break a Job Interview

Savvy job seekers know how important choosing the right words is when we communicate with prospective employers--but what about nonverbal communication?

"You could be saying how great you are," says image consultant and "Hello Job! How to Psych Up, Suit Up, & Show Up" author Alison Craig, "but your body could be giving your true feelings away." Mark Bowden, the author of "Winning Body Language" agrees with Craig--and with the highly regarded Mehrabian communication study, which found that if what's coming out of your mouth doesn't match what your body is saying, your audience is more likely to believe your body.

Click here for the full article.

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BDPA Military Connections - Meet Joe McMahon

BDPA's vets may not be "vocal" about BDPA, but our actions certainly have been far from "silent" over the past 30+ years. Meet Joe McMahon, President, BDPA Hampton Roads and Distinguished Military Veteran.

Joe is an active volunteer who works to provide high impact educational opportunities and workforce development for grades k-12, undergraduate and graduate studies and IT professionals. He currently serves as Advisory Board member for Norfolk State University College of Engineering, and ECPI College of Technology.

His actions have earned him special recognition such as 2009 BDPA Epsilon Career Achievement Award, letters and certificates from members of US Congress, and numerous military awards including two Defense Meritorious Service Medals, three Navy/Marine Corps Commendation Medals, and four Navy/Marine Corps Achievement Medals.

Click here for the full article.

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Call to Action - US Military Readers Poll - Tell Us Your Story

You've served your country in the US Military and now you're serving your country in BDPA. Got a story to tell about the US military and BDPA? We're asking all military veterans to answer the question:

• What did you learn leadership and technology by serving your country in the US Military and how have you applied what you've learned to do great things in BDPA?

Send your responses to the BDPA Social Networking Team via email socialnetworking@bdpa.org.

Read more:
BDPA in the News (military)

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Please accept our invitation to join us in the City of Brotherly Love by registering for the 32nd Annual National BDPA Conference, July 28 – 31, 2010 at the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown, Philadelphia, PA.

Hotel Rooms Are Now Going Fast: Please Book Now!!!
Reserve your room today by contacting the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown at 1-800-266-9432 and ask for the BDPA (Black Data Processing Associates) rate or register online.

• Subscribe to the BDPA Foundation Blog via email:
• Subscribe to Blacks Gone Geek Blog via email:

 Follow us on Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/BDPA
http://www.twitter.com/BDPA_Conference
http://twitter.com/BDPA/conf10-presenters

Find the buzz on Twitter - #BDPA:

This message has been brought to you by the BDPA Social Networking Team. 

Contact our Social Networking Team - socialnetworking@bdpa.org

PS: Please share this information with your friends, co-workers, church members, etc so that they can help us pass the word. The key is that we must share what we know with others so we can all grow and prosper.

Facebook Milestone: 800 Friends

I noticed today that I now have 800 'friends' on Facebook. Friend #800 is Shae Shae, a powerful blogger in the afrosphere.

I joined Facebook a few months ago with the intention of identifying alumni from High School Computer Competition (HSCC) held annually by BDPA. I figured that these young people would be on Facebook. I was surprised by the number of adults on this social network. I have found family, college classmates, business colleagues and a handful of celebrities via Facebook. Even my 70-year old mom opened up an account last month!

Facebook is a fun place. I don't use it to conduct business, although I am using it to promote the Electronic Village!

What is your experience with Facebook?

Twitter Grader * Where Do You Rank?

By simply entering your Twitter username into Twitter Grader. The site calculates your grade using a combination of factors including:

• The number of followers you have
• The power of this network of followers
• The pace of your updates
• The completeness of your profile
• …a few others

The top-ranked Twitter account is Barack Obama. My account is ranked in the 75th percentile. Where do you stand?

5 Myths About Social Networking

by Jim Neusom
Founder, BDPA Nevada Chapter

Owner, City Lights Software

As and online professional I maintain a major presence on most social networking sites such as Myspace, FaceBook and BlackPlanet. Through these online communities, I've found thousands and thousands of "Friends".

Now don't get it twisted. I do not collect friends like baseball cards. I have read each, and every persons profile, in my Friend list. I personally approved their Friend request because, I believe they have something special to offer the Black online Diaspora.

If you search my Friend list, you will find everything you need to create, market, and sell, Rich Media and digital content in the new millennium; writers, Directors, Producers, Actors, Photographers, Models, Dancers, Musicians, Promoters, Distributors, Web Masters, Software Developers, Marketeers, etc...Yes, even Lawyers, Doctors, and Indian Chiefs (think CEO) .

If you're a regular reader of my online journal/Blog, then you know I joined these networks with a purpose. I hope all my new friends, are enjoying this online publication.

I post articles, and stories such as this one, in order, to educate, empower, and stimulate discussions, on issues of importance to our culture.

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Five Myths About Social Networking

Myth #1: It's All About You.

Successful networking is a two-way street. It's NOT all about you. In order to build a friendship/relationship there must be common ground. Most online profiles reveal the basics about a person (who, what and where)

One of your first messages to a new friend should reflect what you've read about them online. Let them know you're interested in them, their field of endeavor, or lifestyle (music, books, sports, etc)

Myth #2: It's A Popularity Contest.

Quality trumps quantity in human relationships, every time. You don't want a hundred messages a day about things you don't care about. You want to receive info on things that interest you. If you're meeting people for business or social reasons, your friend list should reflect your interests.

I can generally judge what a person is into, by the type of friends they have. So if you're into music, your friends should reflect this. Relatively, if you're about business, one would expect your friend list to be full of entrepreneurs....birds of a feather, flock together

Myth #3: It's A Quick Hit.

Friends call friends...friends visit friends. If you're not receiving an email or comment from a friend at least once a month, then they're just a name in cyberspace...not a real friend

The most you can hope for at an initial online meeting is to make a contact that (with care and time) could blossom into a fruitful relationship. Be diligent about following up and staying in contact with your online friends.

Myth #4: It's hard work.

It may be that you're working too hard. Friendships happen naturally. If you introduce yourself to people, stay in touch with people you've met, and think, in every interaction, "How could I help this person?"...you'll have an enjoyable and productive online relationship.

You're surfing the Internet anyway...why not pass along information or events that you think your friends might be interested in; for example there's a sale on at Target, I read about a job opening on Monster, have you seen the latest Obama ad....

Myth #5: It's A Waste Of Time.

Your time will surely be wasted if you approach each interaction as an opportunity hawk your wares, push your cause, or sign someone up. Conversely if every time you read a message it's about information you can use...your time will be well spent.

Knowledge is power. If you pick your friends with commonality and good sense, your online experience will be invaluable. Like in the real world, they will be there for you through the good times and the bad.

Always remember that the same rules apply in the virtual world that applies to the real world. If you want friends...then you must show yourself to be friendly!

I have found social networks to be an ideal platform to network and make new relationships. In that regards, below is some good advice on social networking

Remember, We Must Share The Knowledge (Network)... To Share The Dollars!!!

Peace and Gods Blessings,
Jim Neusom

Villager on Facebook

I resisted the constant pressure to join Facebook for many years. However, last month I joined Facebook as part of effort to promote the BDPA Foundation. I have been pleasantly surprised by the usefulness of this social network.

I have made connections with AfroSpear members, bloggers, high school friends, college friends, BDPA colleagues and others. However, I haven't found many relatives online yet.

Here are some Facebook groups that villagers might be interested in checking out:

1. Afrosphere Bloggers Association - (visit ABA website)
2. Black Data Processing Associates (BDPA)
3. Blackonomics Million Dollar Club - (see BMDC overview)
4. Blacks Gone Geek - (visit BGG blog)
5. Black Women's Political Exchange - (see backstory)
6. Call on Fox News to Fire Liz Trotta - (see weak apology from Liz Trotta)

I invite you to connect with me on Facebook. Mostly, I would be very interested to learn about your experience with Facebook? Positive? Negative? Or are you simply refusing to check out Facebook at all?

Social Networks or Social Bubbles?

Dori J. Maynard is president and CEO of the Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education, the nation's leading trainer of journalists of color. She is the co-author of "Letters to My Children", a compilation of nationally syndicated columns by her late father, Bob Maynard, the first African-American to own a major metropolitan newspaper. Maynard was a reporter at The Bakersfield Californian, The Patriot Ledger in Quincy, Mass., and the Detroit Free Press. In 1993, she and her father became the first father-daughter duo to be appointed Nieman Fellows at Harvard University.

Anyhow, Ms. Maynard had some interesting thoughts about the afrospere that I wanted to share with you:

First, the Jena 6 story lived on the Internet. Bloggers, many of them Black, members of listserves such as the National Association of Black Journalists and members of social networks like Facebook, used the Internet to spread the story before it took off with mainstream news organizations like CNN, The Washington Post, and NPR.

The fact that the "afrosphere" has largely received credit for driving this story is important to keep in mind when we think about what is going on in cyberspace.

At a time when "the digital divide" is still code for "people-of-color-don't-have-access-or-know-how-to-use-the-Internet," Jena 6 reminds us of the fallacy of that premise. African Americans used the web and alerted the world to what was going on in a small town and in a largely overlooked state.

True, there are still some significant hurdles for entry into a fully wired world. However, they are largely socio-economic. I once asked someone how many white homes in Appalachia have Internet access. Turned out not a lot. The digital divide is real. It's class, not race, that makes the difference.

The Jena 6 story also reminds us that while the Web may be a place where anyone with access and an idea can voice his or her opinion, it does not mean that every opinion gets the same amount of attention. Think of how quickly word spread about "Memo Gate" and how long it took the outside world to pay attention to Jena 6.

So, that leaves us with the question of whether this new technology is opening up our world or allowing us more time to hibernate in the comfortable corner of the world that reminds us of ourselves.

That is something I look forward to exploring as I look at diversity in an online world. I hope you'll help me so that together we can think this through.

I don't think that Ms. Maynard gives enough credit to organizations such as The AfroSpear or the Afrosphere Bloggers Association. However, I appreciate her acknowledgement of the growing influence of Black Bloggers ... some of whom will be on the November 2007 list of the Top Ten Black Bloggers shared by the Electronic Village on November 1st.

Personally, I hope that more BDPA members become bloggers in the coming weeks and months.

LinkedIn Brothers & Sisters

I accepted duty as a moderator for a new YahooGroup called LinkedIn African Americans. LinkedIn African Americans is a professional discussion and networking group for LinkedIn African Americans or for those looking to do business with us. LinkedIn African Americans is a moderated forum so once you are a member you won't have to worry about spam.

It is our intention to have a good, rich conversation and even a bit of fun in networking with other LinkedIn African American professionals. Click here to see my profile. Part of the issue in our community is lack of unity. Perhaps if we systemically improve our ability to network with one another we can also improve our chance of finding 'common ground' on any number of issues.

Those that know me realize that I believe that economic empowerment is the best likelihood for the uplifting of our people. Networking in forums such as LinkedIn provide foundation for the spirit of Ujamaa to permeate us. Let's take advantage of cyberspace for the positive movement of ourselves, our families, our community and our people.

Have you made the move to the LinkedIn Network? If not, perhaps now is the time!