Mark Granovetter’s (1973) theory of “the strength of weak ties” posits that new opportunities often come from acquaintances, not close friends. Social media massively scales weak ties. By sharing industry-relevant content (articles, data visualizations, commentary), a professional remains visible to a large network, increasing the probability of serendipitous opportunities.
Posting is important, but commenting is a hack. Spend 15 minutes a day commenting on the posts of 5 industry leaders. Do not say "Great post!" Say why it was great. Add a data point. Ask a smart question. Their audience becomes your audience. OnlyFans.2023.Bigtittygothegg.Virtual.Sex.Goth....
According to a 2023 survey by CareerBuilder, 70% of employers use social media to screen candidates before hiring, and 57% have found content that caused them not to hire a candidate. Conversely, 45% have found content that prompted them to extend an offer. This duality forms the central thesis of this paper: Social media content acts as a persistent, searchable, and scalable proxy for a worker’s judgment, ethics, and expertise. Mark Granovetter’s (1973) theory of “the strength of
Employers look at who you interact with. Are you following leaders in your industry? Are you commenting intelligently on their posts? Or are you following influencers and arguing with bots? Your social feed is a map of your professional tribe. Posting is important, but commenting is a hack
The question is not whether you should be on social media. The question is whether your current content helps you sleep at night or keeps you up worrying.