“You get the best out of others when you give the best of yourself.” – Harry Firestone

Being a successful person doesn’t revolve around money or commodities. It doesn’t even involve great accomplishments on the job or in your personal life. True success and leadership are developed when you take your relationships to the next level, serving others and committing to their success.

You read that correctly.

If you are bent on growing others, you will invest in growing yourself. This is one of the most critical and influential laws of leadership. And, the best part is the social media is specifically designed to help you master this principle.

Developing Others 101

We all play a part in the lives of many different people every day. Whether you’re a boss or a janitor, husband or brother, church leader or Girl Scout mom, you have influence in the lives of others every single day. However, most of us never harness this potential, at least not for good.

Whenever we think about people influencing others, we immediately assume it’s a bad thing. We think that one person is “playing” another and that someone is always getting the short end of the stick. Developing a person is certainly the opposite of taking advantage of someone.

When you are influencing someone to help them, you have their best interests in mind. You are giving your all–your mind, your attitude, and your experiences–to help them have a successful life. As you begin to develop someone, you grow closer to them and become a more significant part of their life. Once you have played your part in their life, they will most certainly reciprocate and help you when you need it. It’s simple; helping others helps yourself.

Social Media and Developing Others

The Internet is the perfect place to begin developing others in order to help you both grow. The advancement of peer-to-peer networking (P2P) has made this leadership principle easier than ever. Websites such as Twitter and Facebook connect you to others and provide you with the means of interacting, which is the fundamental key to developing others.

In order to properly influence and develop others so that you will also benefit, you need to be helpful and understanding in your interactions. Let’s dive into what this could look like…

• Make it a point to routinely connect with others for the sole purpose of developing a friendship. If you have hundreds of friend, connections, or followers, schedule time each day or week to reach out to someone and grow that relationship. Use a quick email, Facebook message, or DM to let them know you’re there.
• Not every attempt at communication is going to bud into a happy-go-lucky relationship so make sure you don’t neglect the people you’re currently close with. These people don’t plan to go anywhere; don’t give them a reason to leave.
• Connect with like-minded people through groups and fan pages. This is going to be critical because you are most likely to continue conversation with someone if you know you have something in common. In a group or fan page, you know what the common thread is and you can use it accordingly to generate conversation.
• Don’t be overly pushy or set on helping every person you contact. It’s not going to happen and don’t force it you don’t see a reciprocated interest. That person may still come around in their due time; don’t destroy that potential connection right now.

Action Steps

Here are three action steps for you to complete today or this week:

• Create a short list of people, maybe five or six, that you will contact to start growing your relationship. Don’t pick the most wealthy people or the most popular. Instead, pick the people who you will connect with the most.
• Determine your best mode of contact. Will you use a Facebook message? A DM? Will you just pick up the phone and call? Try to determine the best way for the other person to chat and use that method.
• Contact someone and begin to develop others. Take a chance and do it! You will begin to reap the benefits shortly…

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Eric Alpin is the Associate Editor of Folk Media and works for a telecommunications company in Baltimore, Md. He is a social media enthusiast, blogger, writer, and student with a passion for leadership and self-development strategies and techniques. Find out more about Eric on Twitter.

*Photo by svilen001

It’s quite apparent that the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has been the focus of the United States for the past few months. Animal rights activists are concerned about the ecological impact of the spill and the stock market hasn’t been in the best shape since the messy disaster, either. As expected, though, getting the most attention is BP, the company whose line burst on April 20, 2010.

You would think that during a time when everyone is focusing on your pipeline and your failed recovery efforts, that a company with quite a large stake in the oil market would want to make matters easier for themselves.  Much like the Exxon Valdez oil spill, it’s going to take quite some time to clean up and restore the Gulf Coast to some sense or normalcy.

So, why isn’t BP letting everyone know that they’re sorry? Why does the government feel they need to step in to hold BP accountable for cleanup efforts and restoration costs?

And, my biggest question – why hasn’t BP launch a major social media campaign to try to clean up this huge PR mess they’ve made. For every gallon of oil that seeps into the Gulf, it gets that much harder for BP to come out of this thing alive and on top. From the looks of it, it’s going to take them a long time to come clean and head in the right direction.

The Past Holds the Future

I’m not a big fan of the whole “history repeats itself” mentality because I believe we all have choices in life and we can make sure history does not repeat itself. However, when it comes to social media campaigns, I think that the past holds the fortune of the future because in my mind, if it’s worked once, it’ll work again.

Let’s rewind a few months ago to the devastating Haiti earthquake. As soon as the disaster struck, social media campaigns by the Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity, and tons of other organizations were springing up. Millions and millions of people were touched by the stories that were told and the gripping images that were shown on the news each night, leading to quite a hefty amount of donations to help victims recover.

Action was taken quickly and goals were pursued relentlessly. Lives were changed and rearranged. Giving abounded and millions of people across the world felt the pain of Haitians. All of this was because of a major push in social media? You bet.

Although the disasters are quite a bit different, the same core concepts apply to BP and the oil spill.

1. Action needs to be taken – now!
2. People need to be touched emotionally
3. Misconceptions and judgments need to be cast aside and the facts need to emerge.
4. No matter how much it hurts, a no holds barred pursuit of positive PR needs to happen.

The Learning Factor

Just like the Haiti disaster, there are a ton of things that you and I can learn from the BP oil spill. I think Justin Kownacki (@JustinKownacki) said it best yesterday when he tweeted, “Aspiring PR pros could save a bundle by quitting school, subscribing to the #BP hashtag & then doing the exact opposite.”

It’s the truth – if you want to see how to do things the right way, look at the example BP is setting and do the opposite. Don’t follow in their footsteps.

I think the most powerful lesson we can learn from this situation is that when your dignity is on the line, make sure that you do everything possible to restore hope in your brand. Customers won’t be buying from BP for a long time because of the company’s lack of response to this situation. BP can’t sit around and hope it gets better. The company is losing its reputation with its oil and they should be doing something about it.

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Eric Alpin is the Associate Editor of Folk Media and works for a telecommunications company in Baltimore, Md. He is a social media enthusiast, blogger, writer, and student with a passion for leadership and self-development strategies and techniques. Find out more about Eric on Twitter.

*Photo by Greenpeace USA 2010

In a world full of social media, it’s important to realize that actions actually do speak louder than words.  It’s OK to say that you’re going to complete a project or post a great blog entry but until you do it, your words mean very little.  It’s the actions that make or break a social media strategy.  How well can you engage your followers and show them value beyond the occasional tweet or @reply?  How can you show your Facebook fans that you care and not just tell them?

Your social media campaign requires action in order to be successful.  In the same token, your quest for leadership development needs action to make a difference – tier two action.

You’re probably wondering, “tier two action?”  Well, actions can be broken down into two types, or tiers.  First, you have standard, or tier one, actions.  Tier one actions would be putting in a good word for someone, giving someone a deal on a specific item, or just engaging in deep conversation.  Tier two actions are a step above; they help people.  An example of a tier two action would be giving someone advice on how to deal with a struggle at work or at home.

In a nutshell, tier two actions deliver your knowledge and expert wisdom to another person, thus imparting your abilities in their life.  In a sense, you’re spreading the word about something great and you’re influencing someone in hope that they will be great one day.

First Class Leaders don’t just sit in their seats all day and keep all of their knowledge and guidance to themselves.  No, they share it and they do it willingly.  First Class Leaders make tier two actions a part of their day-to-day routine, whether its at home, the gym, or the office.

So, why should you become a First Class Leader and spread your knowledge?  Because, after all, if you spread the information you’ve gathered through the years to someone else, that means you’re in competition for jobs, promotions, and bonuses, right?  Yes, that’s true but it’s not the end all be all of leadership.

A leader doesn’t read books in order to get the next promotion or snag the highest bonus.  Sure, those are positive consequences of becoming a good leader but they aren’t, or they shouldn’t be, the only reason to develop your leadership potential.

The reason you should develop your leadership potential is because you know that you have more to offer the world.  You know that you can have an influence on the lives of others, your company, and global society if you become a leader.  There is no comparing a one-time bonus to changing the face of a company.  First Class Leaders develop themselves in order to develop others through tier two actions.

Now that you’re convinced you need to start dishing out tier two actions, here are a few ways to get started:

• Seek out people who need your help.  You’re a SME (Subject Matter Expert) in some area and there are sure to be people who aren’t.  Connect with them and make a difference.
• Freely give your feedback in meetings and in focus groups.  Show the other members of the meeting that you care and that you want to help.
• Share best practices with your team or office.  Have a quick way of doing the reports?  Share your method with everyone else and see what happens.
• Become a mentor with someone, even if it’s out of the office.  You might become a mentor to a teenager, a struggling student, or a recent college grad.  Give back to someone.

I just named a few ways of showing tier two actions but there are so many more.  Think about showing you care through two tier two actions this week.  See how they pan out.  If nothing happens because of your hard work, try again and don’t give up.  Be a First Class Leader and take the next step – touch the world with tier two actions.

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Eric Alpin is the Associate Editor of Folk Media and works for a telecommunications company in Baltimore, Md. He is a social media enthusiast, blogger, writer, and student with a passion for leadership and self-development strategies and techniques. Find out more about Eric on Twitter.

*Photo by lusi

You should close this article and do something else with your day.

Yes, I said it.  I’m trying to convince you to stop reading this article.  Honestly, I don’t care about your retweets or comments.  If this post received no Twitter glory, I wouldn’t lose sleep.  Why is my behavior so odd and my attitude so negative?

It’s not.  You’re just not used to being productive.

It’s estimated that the average American worker wastes more than two hours a day on the Internet while on the job.  In a standard 40-hour work week, the average worker is productive for only 32 hours.  But, what does the average person read about?  It’s a tough call but I’d like to guess that most people are reading about things they can improve or things they’re interested in doing.  For example, Bob the new homeowner might waste his eight hours looking at home repair information.

We’re a curious breed and we’re always looking for something to occupy our time.  Why wouldn’t a majority of our Internet activity reflect that notion?

That brings us to you and this article.  Why are you reading this article?  Is it because the title caught you?  Are you on this site to learn more about social media?  It could be a number of things but you’re here.

It’s time to put down the instruction booklet and close the Internet browser.  It’s time to do something.

Yes, I said it.

1.  Learn

When you get out of the chair or the cubicle and start doing something, you begin to learn about numerous things.  Naturally, you learn about what you’re doing.  If you’ve decided to unfollow a few users on Twitter, you’re going to find out the method that works for you and is most efficient.  In the exampe of Bob the new homeowner, he might learn by fixing a few things around the house.

But, most importantly, you learn about yourself.  You learn about the areas where you excel and the areas that might require a little extra effort to get things done.  Case in point, I’ve learned that blogging takes a little extra time for me.  I need to allot a portion of my morning to blogging and if I don’t, I’ll get distracted and I’ll never get my post finished.  I learned this because I tried it.  You can’t learn about yourself if you don’t do something.

2.  Produce

It’s pretty obvious but I need to say it: you can’t produce unless you start doing.  It’s a simple fact.  If you don’t put what you have learned into action, you’re never going to be productive.  For example, over the past two or three years, I have learned that I am the beginning part of my day.  I have the most energy, the best creative thoughts, and the most concentration.  If I refused to acknowledge this fact, I wouldn’t have the chance to produce blog posts, email responses, school term papers, and anything else I accomplish on a daily basis.

In order to produce, you need to start doing.  Get out of your seat and move.  Log into Twitter create a profile for your business.  You’ve read about how to do it but you’ve been putting it off.  You won’t produce if you don’t start somewhere.

3.  Teach

This is the best part about getting something accomplished.  Now that you’ve mastered the art of doing, you can share your knowledge and experience with others.  In essence, you’re paying it forward.

Going from unproductive to productive is one of the biggest shifts a person can make in their life.  Believe it or not, a lot of things revolve around your productivity and willingness to do.  For example; if you don’t pay your bills, your credit will be bad.  If you aren’t productive at work, you won’t get a raise.  If you don’t clean the basement, your house will be full of junk.  Productivity leads to effective living.  It’s one of the best gifts you can share with someone.

If all went according to plan, no one should be reading this right now.  If you are, I’ll leave you with a final thought.  Doing something is a critical part of your success, both at home and on the job.  From a social media standpoint, if you don’t do anything, you won’t be able to keep up with the changing world of Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.  You need to go out and get your hands dirty; stay in the trenches.  But, on a personal note, getting things accomplished is a great motivator for a better life.  Once you feel the rush of completing a task, even a small one, you’ll be hooked and you won’t want to stop.

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Eric Alpin is the Associate Editor of Folk Media and works for a telecommunications company in Baltimore, Md. He is a social media enthusiast, blogger, writer, and student with a passion for leadership and self-development strategies and techniques. Find out more about Eric on Twitter.

*Photo by Behance