Last night I participated in my first Brazen Careerist webinar. The topic? How to use networks (formerly known as groups) to build your personal network and develop more of your personal brand. Generation Y buzzwords aside, it was a very real and genuine conversation. I myself have joined about 17 networks, and sometimes participate in the conversation. Most of the time, I am on the observing end, watching people answer questions and post them, and the dialogue that commences.

The webinar was a chance for us all to listen to the different perspectives that are possible within a network, and the importance of encouraging people to speak up and benefit. Being more of an introvert (at least until something really, really bothers me) it was interesting to hear that introverts should feel a level of “safety” within the networks that they join.

Sometimes I want to say something, but I don’t and I feel the moment passes me by. Hopefully, the more I blog, the more I talk to people, and the more I “put myself out there” in the social media world, the better I will be at it.

Blogs are more intimate communities, but they are also very public too. Blogs can be found in search engines, comments can sometimes be tough to take, and you have to be able to withstand the heat. I find myself shying away from controversial topics for that very reason – but the webinar helped me to begin to think about the most important part of all of this: honesty.

Honestly, I never thought I would like social media and blogging as much as I do. Honestly, I have met some great people doing it. Honestly, sometimes it’s tough to know how “authentic” I am being. Maybe I don’t even know what that is yet. But I’m trying.

I know that I can try harder and better – and thanks to the Brazen peeps for recognizing that each person works with media VERY differently. It makes a lot of sense.