Can the internet public know more about you than you would like? According to an article at New Scientist, there’s a company that uses software to analyze blogs and forum posts to find out a blogger’s age, gender, and interests. Web workers who are avid users of Twitter also let the public know what they’re up to most of the day. Here at WWD, we also discussed the lack of privacy of the average web user when it comes to their browsing activity.
How do we maintain privacy when we work on such a public platform?
Read the rest of this entry »
This is the question that I dread more than any other over the holidays, which is saying quite a bit, since my vegan diet also tends to generate another set of awkward questions.
During the rest of the year, my life is filled mostly with other technology workers and freelancers who easily understand what I do for a living. However, the holidays can be a different story when I’m faced with people who know little about what it means to be a web worker.
Over the past few years, I’ve held a number of jobs involving various types of web work. While at Intel, I managed teams of people spread out over several states. I’ve telecommuted from Portland to a company in California. I’ve managed online communities of people with members located around the world. Currently, I work out of my house and coffee shops as an online community and social media consultant.
Here are a few of the scenarios I have encountered as a result of the “What do you do?” question:
Scenario 1: The goof off
Me: I work for Company X managing their online community.
Them: Never heard of Company X. Where is the office?
Me: In California.
Them: Are you moving to California?
Me: No, I work out of my home office over the phone and email mostly.
Them: Cool, I wish I had a job where I could goof off all day.
Me: Sigh
Read the rest of this entry »
Competing with other web workers might not be as cut-throat as corporate competition, but the spirit of competition in web working be dismissed as nonexistent. In fact, it’s a big mistake to ignore your competitors completely. So how should we use our competitors to our advantage without getting dirty?
Identify your competitors. This may seem elementary, but in the thriving online freelancing world, at first glance, everyone else seems like your competitor. But this is hardly the case. In fact, you might even be hard pressed to find your real competitors through a simple Google search. Just because another freelancer’s website shows up in search results targeting the same keywords you do, it doesn’t mean they’re your potential client’s other options. This freelancer is just your competitor in terms of search results, and probably nothing else.
Read the rest of this entry »
Recently, I was speaking to another web-working type about his company’s name - which I really liked, by the way. The name included “Social” in it. He said he’s been hearing mixed things about the name.
“Someone told me that ’social’ is so over,” he said, lamenting that his company name may already be dated.
Is “Social” already over? That’s news to me. Those immersed in web work may be sick of the (over)use of the word “social,” particularly if, like me, they’ve been working in the social media space back before anyone called it “social.”
Back in 1995, we called it “community” and “communication.” Heck, we all became social online when we first realized we could communicate with others via our computers on traditional phone lines. Out on the speaking circuit, I talked about how the Internet was all about “connection - not just connecting us to information but also connecting us to people, to one another.” Sure, we didn’t have the powerful sharing tools that we have today and social networks weren’t even a glimmer on the horizon. Does anyone remember Andrew Weinreich’s “failed” online community SixDegrees.com that paved the way for LinkedIn and the like? That was a social media before it was called social media.
So is “Social” just 2008’s buzzword and on its way out?
Read the rest of this entry »
Does this sound like anyone you know?
I’m not qualified for the work I’m doing. It’s only luck that I got this far in my profession without being found out. I’ve forgotten just about everything I learned in school about how to do this job. Other people really know what they’re doing, and I’m just faking it. One day they’ll find out, and no one will ever hire me again.
If you think I’m writing about you - don’t worry, I’m not. Well, not intentionally. I could just be writing about myself, or about the thousands of others out there with a dose of Imposter Syndrome. Because we work without the benefit of in-person co-workers to compare ourselves to, web workers may be peculiarly prone to this disorder. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be scary.
Read the rest of this entry »
Ever had those clients who demand so much of your time? How about those who keep asking you questions with incredibly obvious answers? All web workers have had difficult clients, at least once in their career. Wouldn’t it be great if we could somehow change their behavior?
If you think you can magically make difficult clients behave better, then either you have a wild imagination or you’re approaching the problem in the wrong way. After all, a client’s unpleasant behavior might have more to do with the dynamics of your relationship than it has to do with them per se.
Read the rest of this entry »
Just because web workers have done away with the traditional office, it doesn’t mean we’re also rid of the stress that comes with working.
We encounter equipment failures, personal problems, and a scary client every now and then. Still, we need to keep our cool despite the stresses of web working.
Here are some ways to start…
Read the rest of this entry »
What do you do?
This is probably one of the hardest questions to answer. Some people hold more than one job, others have a new way of working, while others still have job descriptions that didn’t exist 5 years ago.
As a web worker, you’re probably at least one of the above. If you’re mingling with other web workers, answering “What do you do?” is easy. But if you ask your less web-savvy friends if they can explain your job back to you, you’ll find that they don’t get it.
I’m a blogger, but I’ve heard more than a dozen versions of my job from other people. Others think I’m a Google employee, online English teacher, or a criminal mastermind hacker (no joke). If you understand my situation, then it’s likely that you’ve run into it yourself.
So how do you answer that cocktail question without causing confusion or misunderstandings among people who are unfamiliar with web working?
Read the rest of this entry »
