Office Space: Social Connection

By Ma'ayan Plaut

Jim Frazier for CASE

I've always had a complicated relationship with numbers. In high school, I wrote a piece of poetry trying to dissect all the numbers associated with my life, arguing that none alone defined me. Collectively, however, they did represent something about me.

Right now, there is one number that sometimes feels as though it's hanging over my head—my age. Like it or not, people draw conclusions about others based on their age. I am 24. At 22, I started my first real full-time job working for my alma mater, Oberlin College in Ohio, after I graduated in 2010. A short time later, I transitioned into my current position of social media coordinator. I debated for a long time about whether to discuss my age with the world, but I chose to do it because I'm also in a position to convey my experiences as a young social media manager.

At my age, it is quite nice to have a job I love. I always express how incredibly grateful I am to have any sort of job, much less one that I adore, in this economy. And I am proud to tell other recent Oberlin graduates that it is possible to go from college into a job you enjoy.

Some people presume that those who work in social media positions must be young, often in their 20s or early 30s. First, I disagree with that notion. Skills and judgment, not age, are what matter. Social media management, as it is currently defined, is a young field in terms of its existence, but it doesn't demand that the people employed in it belong to a certain age demographic. Second, if that were true, then the job descriptions I've seen for positions similar to mine wouldn't call for "5–8 years of professional social media experience." There's a disconnect there, and part of it is that those job descriptions don't speak to someone like me, a young professional whose social media experience comes from outside the traditional workplace.

I'm sure that telling a prospective employer that I've been using Facebook since it was opened to high school students in 2005 doesn't adequately demonstrate my knowledge and understanding of the platform in a professional setting, even though I do possess both qualities. However, I can say that I've been using social media since 2004. I started blogging when I was 16 and became a paid blogger at Oberlin when I was a third-year student. I've used photography and video to document events and experiences in my life since I was 17. In my second year at Oberlin, I parlayed these skills into a job as a student photographer for the college. In fact, I've been representing Oberlin in some way or another since I first arrived on campus in 2006. So, what would you think if my resume came across your desk?

Peer advice

I may be young, but I think of myself as a professional in all senses of the word. I think beyond myself to the groups I collaborate with daily. I know that when I speak, I do so for myself and the institution. And I am acutely aware that I am judged, both internally and externally, for the work I produce and how I execute it—not only because I am a newcomer to the workplace and my position but also because my occupation is relatively new.

As a result, I have some advice for people working in similar positions managing social media:

• Do not be afraid to think big. Develop your ideas, discuss them, launch them, review their results, and then discuss them again. Rinse and repeat. If you think big, you can be big.

• Remember to think small. Double-check, nay, triple-check everything you put out into the social media world, especially grammar and spelling.

• Ask for help when you need it. Sometimes issues can be bigger than you and your responsibilities. Know whom you can talk to when these times come. Apologize if things go wrong.

• Find allies, mentors, and supporters. Seek out the people you wish to learn from, or those whose work you admire, and connect with them. Keep them close.

• Read and share. As the social media world changes, so will the nature of your work. Staying abreast of the shifts will make your individual and collaborative efforts far more effective. Pass ideas on and up, and discuss them online and offline.

• Find a balance between short- and long-term projects and goals. Ensuring that both are outlined clearly and in advance is essential. (However, being nimble is almost more important than sticking to previously outlined plans.) Your plate might be full, but what is it full of? A to-do list should include your daily goals as well as knowledge of how these activities fit into your long-term plans.

• You are wrong sometimes. Take it in stride, explore, examine, reflect, and educate others as you learn from your mistakes.

• Ask better questions. What and why are not enough. While these questions help garner information, asking why not and what's next encourage problem-solving.

Supervisory advice

For those who manage people in positions similar to mine, especially if you're not well-versed in social media, I offer these suggestions:

• Guide me. Check in, but not too often. Keep short- and long-term goals in mind so that we may move forward together. How will I know if I'm heading in a good direction if I don't have any checkpoints? Answer questions that I may not ask. This is my first workplace experience as an adult. Office standards may not be intuitive. Let me know what is expected and model that behavior.

• Teach me and I will learn from you. Demonstrate your communication and leadership style and how you reflect on change and progress. I will take these lessons in stride and improve on them for myself.

• Learn from me. Gain knowledge about what working in social media entails, which includes understanding the vocabulary that's inherent to these platforms and tools, so that we can have productive discussions. If you don't know what I'm talking about, please ask. I will happily teach you, as you teach me.

• Empower me. To paraphrase my third-grade teacher: praise, question, and polish. Everything I do has a measure of insight, a point that needs clarification, and a place that needs more work. This process makes both me and my work better. Continue to push me, make me think, and get me out of my comfort zone. I will bloom under your watchful eye.

• Trust me. You trusted me enough to hire me. Now trust me to do the right thing. But know that I will make mistakes—and that I also will learn from them.

In gradually exploring what I know in this world, I have discovered that there are more and more things I don't know. But I have open eyes, open ears, and an open mind. I'm here, willing and ready to experience all of it. That desire to continue learning, growing, and pushing boundaries is exciting for anyone at any age. However, I ask that if you're in a position to hire, please understand that seeing the phrase "5–8 years of professional social media experience" can temper the enthusiasm of that potentially great job candidate with nontraditional experience.