“Social media are a catalyst for the
advancement of everyone's rights. It's where we're reminded that we're all
human and all equal. It's where people can find and fight for a cause, global
or local, popular or specialized, even when there are hundreds of miles between
them.” — Queen Rania of Jordan
People earn either quick fame or bad
name due to social media. There are celebrities who intentionally exploit social
media to hit limelight. There are people who kick up controversies by tweeting
posts to get noticed. It is obvious that everyone wants to get noticed either
for good reasons or bad reasons. Unfortunately, most people get noticed for
wrong reasons which is not a healthy trend. Hence, social media is playing a
crucial role either to create or destroy the image of individuals. It all
depends on how people use it.
Research shows that most senior
leaders don’t have social media presence. It adversely affects their leadership
brand. In the world of social media, the slogan is ‘be visible or vanish!’ When
you look at leaders like Richard Branson and Jack Welch, they have a huge
social media presence. When you look at film stars, they have a huge social
media presence because they thrive on their brand image. Therefore, senior leaders and CEOs must have
their social media presence to make their presence felt that helps them build their
leadership brands globally.
On April 18, an eminent Indian website
interviewed me on social media. Here are their questions with my answers on
this amazing online platform:
Q:
What is social media quotient according to you?
A:
Social media quotient
is the ability to share your knowledge and impact with others. It is your
visibility and credibility on social media platforms. I opened a blog in 2007
titled, ‘Where Knowledge is Wealth’ URL: http://profmsr.blogspot.com
and started sharing my knowledge. As a leadership professor, I realized the
importance of social media in sharing knowledge with others more than a decade
ago. Currently I have four blogs to cater to four kinds of audiences apart from
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/professor-rao/34/11a/b52, Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Professor-MSRao/451516514937414 Twitter: http://twitter.com/professormsrao
Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/+ProfessorMSRao YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/profmsr7
and Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/M.-S.-Rao/e/B00MB63BKM.
Being strong in social media quotient helps you reach your messages to the right
audiences instantly. Similarly, companies reach their customers and clients
successfully with this powerful platform. Succinctly, social media quotient is
a powerful tool that helps you hit the bulls’ eye.
Q:
How to use social media well?
A: Social media is a double edged sword.
It can be used for either for good or bad. We must use it constructively to
share our knowledge to make a difference to the world. Instead of adding value
to ourselves, we must add value to others. We must create more knowledge and disseminate
it for the benefit of mankind.
Q:
What are three must and three no-nos for social media usage?
A:
Don’t overuse it. Instead,
use it judiciously. Don’t think of boasting yourself. Instead, think of adding
value to others. Take issues that are burning and unaddressed by others.
Address them. Encourage dialogue and discussion. Tolerate dissent and respect others’
ideas. Don’t attack others unfairly and unprofessionally. Be professional in
your approach and attitude. Don’t overstretch. Don’t make false commitments. Don’t
post plagiarized content. Don’t present fake information. Don’t post the stale
content. Don’t post the same content repeatedly. Appreciate the knowledge
shared by others and share their knowledge for the benefit of others. Don’t be
in a hurry to network with eminent people. Above all, work for satisfaction,
not for recognition.
Q:
Can you explain the impact, if any, that social media quotient has made on you
personally?
A:
I have utilized
social media effectively to build my brand as an International Leadership Guru.
I get offers globally to keynote their conferences and provide leadership
development training programs to corporates. My books are sold online. It is
all possible because I share a lot of knowledge free of charge with the world
through my four blogs http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in,
http://profmsr.blogspot.com, http://professormsrao.blogspot.com,
and http://professormsraoguru.blogspot.com.
Q:
What are some mistakes you regularly see leaders make on social media?
A: Some of the leaders post stale
content that brings down their image. The readers lose interest and perceive
such leaders wrongly. Remember, first impression is the best impression. Hence,
leaders must start with a good impression by posting quality content in their
area of interest to arouse interest in readers.
Additionally, they must do intensive research and post unique content that
was not covered by others.
Q:
How do you encourage creative thinking through social media?
A: When you read quality content on
social media in your area of interest, you get more ideas and insights. You will
find the gaps in the present area and explore to close them resulting in
creation of more knowledge.
Q:
Do you set aside specific times to cast vision to your followers through social
media?
A: I have crafted Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders URL: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in/2014/12/professor-m-s-raos-vision-2030-one_31.html.
My vision program was ranked as one of the Top 10 Finalists in the ‘Not For
Profit’ category of Leadership 500 Excellence Awards 2015. My vision is to build one millions students
as global leaders by 2030. It is a nonprofit initiative. I have trained more
than 30,000 students as global leaders so far. I opened a blog on it and share
my knowledge regularly http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in. I regularly invest some time to post articles
on students to groom them as leaders. Whenever I get opportunities from
colleges to provide free training programs for students, I deliver it free of
charge.
Q:
What are you doing to ensure you continue to grow and develop as a leader?
A: A good leader builds more leaders,
not followers. I am building more leaders to make a difference to the world. I do it through blogging, teaching and
training programs.
Social
Media is not a Sprint
Don’t consider social media as a
sprint. It is a marathon. To be in the race in the long run, you must be a
domain expert. Carve a niche for yourself. Over a period of time, you will have
a specific set of readers and followers ready to read your online content. You
must be patient and persistent to create your customers, clients and followers.
Connect with your followers and respond their comments as far as possible.
Cater some time to connect with your followers. In this way, you can also take
their feedback to improve your content and build your brand gradually.
Conclusion
Social media is a powerful platform
that builds your customers, clients, followers and fans globally. You must know
how to use this amazing platform productively to reach your clients and build
your global leadership brand. To summarize, although social media builds your
brand with your consistent sharing of knowledge, you must consider building
your leadership brand as a byproduct. You must keep your vision and mission in
view to make your presence felt globally. To conclude, social media is a
powerful platform to build your credibility and visibility. Hence, use it
effectively to influence, impact and inspire others.
“We all have personal brands and most
of us have already left a digital footprint, whether we like it or not. Proper
social media use highlights your strengths that may not shine through in an
interview or application and gives the world a broader view of who you are. Use
it wisely.” — Amy Jo Martin
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Read my ‘Vision 2030 One Million
Global Leaders’ URL: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in/2014/12/professor-m-s-raos-vision-2030-one_31.html
Life is great!
Professor M.S.Rao, India
Founder of MSR
Leadership Consultants India
Recipient
of 10th International Prestigious Sardar Patel Award―2015
Vision 2030: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in
Twitter: http://twitter.com/professormsrao
Google
Plus: https://plus.google.com/+ProfessorMSRao
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/profmsr7
Global Top Gurus 30: http://www.globalgurus.org/leadership/upcoming.php
21
Success Sutras for CEOs: http://www.amazon.com/21-Success-Sutras-Ceos-Rao/dp/162865290X
Thanks for reading!
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