Using Social Media to Build Your Professional Influence
Here is a handout I used for a national presentation on using social medial to build your professional influence that I thought some of you may find helpful. It is in outline format, and I’ll post the outline below as well:
Key Takeaways
- Social media can be used to establish yourself as a thought leader and expert, advancing your career.
- This can be done at low cost and with varying amounts of additional time dedicated to it.
- The key is to find something that you are already doing or want to do that, if broadcast to others via social media, could benefit other people.
Two Personal Examples
- Emergency Ultrasound E-mail Listserve and Blog
- Used Pubmed to e-mail me any new paper with the word “ultrasound” in it.
- Screened the abstracts for those relevant to emergency ultrasound.
- E-mailed the abstracts out to anyone who wanted them and automatically posted them on a blog.
- At peak over 600 clinicians were receiving the e-mails world-wide.
- MCCareer.org – Joel Schofer’s Career Planning Blog
- Took a job where I was responsible for helping others manage their career.
- Realized that there were great resources already in existence for this, but that they were scattered about the internet and in personal files.
- Solved this problem by consolidating it all in one place.
Benefits of Social Media Activity
- As you develop a following, you build a brand as an expert.
- Translate that expertise into positions of leadership and opportunities:
- Ultrasound listserve:
- Secretary/Newsletter Editor of American College of Emergency Physicians Emergency Ultrasound Section
- Editor-in-Chief of SonoSite Journal Watch
- MCCareer.org Career Planning Blog
- Navy Emergency Medicine Specialty Leader
- Deputy Medical Corps Chief
- Multiple speaking opportunities throughout Navy Medicine
- Ultrasound listserve:
- Benefit by helping others. People will seek you for advice and mentorship and thank you for your efforts.
- Being internet famous.
Proceed with Caution
- Make sure you follow your employer’s social medical policy!
- Once you start producing content, you need to do so regularly. Walk before you can run.
- Automate any processes you can. Post in one place and have it auto-post on other sites.
- The Danger of Social Media for Healthcare Professionals -(https://www.healthecareers.com/article/career/social-media-healthcare-professionals)
Resources for Further Information
- Successful Blogging: 10 Steps to Building and Growing a Website – https://www.physicianonfire.com/blog/
- Do You Even Blog – https://doyouevenblog.com/
- Twitter for Physicians – https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2012/06/started-twitter-primer-doctors.html
- Tips to Establish Yourself as a Physician Thought Leader – http://www.priviahealth.com/blog/tips-to-establish-yourself-as-a-physician-thought-leader/
- How to Use Social Media in Healthcare: A Guide for Health Professionals – https://blog.hootsuite.com/social-media-health-care/
This entry was posted in Leadership, Social Media and tagged leadership, Social Media.
