A fading memory

January 08, 2016 • 4 Comments

Day 5 of "20 Days of Chill" writing challenge! The theme for the day is "A fading memory"

When you think about a fading memory, your mind probably goes to a time when life was better, when the sun was brighter and nostalgia blah, blah, blah. What I want to talk about is something more immediate, impactful, and something that can make a difference on your bottom line.

If you rely on networking as part of your business strategy, you should be aware of the findings laid out in this article How Many People Can You Remember? the short version is that most people can maintain stable relationships with, and easily recall names and faces of around 150 people, and beyond that people can remember more with additional prompts. If you attend a networking event and walk away with 50 business cards, having exchanged yours with 50 people then you can bet that with every minute that passes you are becoming a fading memory.

Let's say in this scenario that some of these people liked meeting you and want to follow up and continue to connect with you online. If they search for you on LinkedIn, which of the following profile pictures would be the most likely to be an effective prompt for them to remember you?

kathymphoto-0950IMG_0950.jpg kathymphoto-1170_MG_1170.jpg

This is something that is easily overlooked when you are filling out all the resume information in your LinkedIn profile, but the reality is that people will search for you, and will use the photo you provide to verify that the name on the screen matches the person that they want to connect with, and how you show up could be the difference between maintaining that connection or becoming a fading memory.

Keywords: 20 days of chill, Media, Netorking, Photography, Social, personal, writing

Comments

Kathy Mukhopadhyay Photography

Thanks for the comments. There have been times in my life that I've felt that it was vanity to pay for having my pictures taken professionally, it was actually after I got on the path to starting my photography business that I started to see the value. I was asked to provide a picture to be featured on a website and I found that I didn't have a picture that I felt represented my photography. The more I thought about it, I realized that I didn't have a picture that represented me as a professional. It actually took a few tries to get to a picture that I really liked.

P.J.(non-registered)

Definitely a good point. I don't do a lot with my Linkedin, but I know there's a photo up there. For the longest time, I didn't have one. I almost feel like it's superficial and it leads to the ability for potential employers to throw people aside based on looks. At the same time, it can also help show confidence etc. It's interesting to see resumes and job hunting grow as technology does.

Clare Barton(non-registered)

Well you've made me realise that I've been neglecting my Linked in account. Its not been kept up-to-date with recent work experience. My profile picture looks like I'm about to head butt someone...but at least then people might remember me.

So, after reading your post it prompted me to start giving some attention to my linked in profile, as it may serve me well in the future, especially because i'm not in paid employment right now. Thank you.

https://uk.linkedin.com/in/clare-barton-42a76395

Hach(non-registered)

Never really thought of it in that way, but it's pretty true. I'll have to remember that LinkedIn thing.

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A fading memory

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