Posts Tagged ‘Networking’

Accounting out of balance and out of my comfort zone

Here I am hanging by a thread 500 feet above the ground. The wind combines with the speed at which I’m rapidly descending to forcefully spin me around. I feel as though I’m leaning backwards in a chair at the brink of tipping over head-first. At this moment, I wonder why agreed to go zip-lining at the Sundance Mountain Resort, which according to its website has the 3rd longest total distance and biggest vertical drop of any zip-line tour in the United States. It’s torture and the cruelest test ever of my moderate fear of heights!

#Hawkins2015Retreat Jake and I ziplining.

A photo posted by @dustinwcpa on

The zip-line tour got easier with each successive line as I learned how to control my speed. I figured out how to stay facing forward. I stopped fearing for my life and started to enjoy the beautiful fall colors of the treetops. At the end, I was glad I had the experience. Accountants tend to be creatures of habit and order, enjoying the safety on the ground. As a result we’re part of the joke: why did the accountant cross the road? Because that’s what he did last year. I’ve done things out of my comfort zone the last few years, and I’m glad I did. The shift from doing compliance to being a trusted business advisor is one example. I’ve experienced cloud accounting, and the view is wonderful. Discovering new software integrations and accounting efficiencies has proved to be impactful for businesses I work with. Diving into social networking and creating this blog was scary at first, but it led to meeting some next-gen CPAs who I’ve been able to collaborate with and it’s made learning more fun. I still have many other comfort zones to break out of to achieve my goals, but in the process I’ll do the best to enjoy the ride.
#Hawkins2015Retreat Getting ready to jump off the Mountain A photo posted by @dustinwcpa on

How to handle a LinkedIn connection request from someone you don’t know

A couple of years ago, I wrote LinkedIn Questionsabout the LinkedIn connection dilemma I face when I receive a request from someone I don’t know.  Back then, I would just hit the “ignore” button because I have no idea who John Doe is, nor do I know any tire salesmen across the country in Maine. I have taken a different approach after reading a few blog posts by Joel Ungar in AccountingWEB.  Joel is a principal with Silberstein Ungar, PLLC in the Detroit area and a CPA who really understands social media. Like me, Joel sometimes receives LinkedIn connection invitations from people he doesn’t know with the generic text, “I’d like to add you to my professional network.”  However, he doesn’t ignore all of them.  He has a rule for requests from the Detroit area: if he meets them first, he’ll accept.  He replies to invitations (without initially accepting them) to explain his rule and suggest meeting for lunch, breakfast or coffee.  Joel says that he has developed some great relationships from this rule. Be sure to read Joel’s excellent advice for how to make a connection on LinkedIn.  He also has several examples of how NOT to make a connection on LinkedIn (sales pitch, not taking time to learn about a person, and starting a relationship with a falsehood). Many of his replies to LinkedIn invitations go unanswered, which is unfortunate.  He is a nice guy and fun to talk to.  I met Joel briefly last year when he came to Las Vegas for a conference and look forward to meeting up with him again next month. If you’re ready to make a LinkedIn connection the right way and you’re willing to meet in some shape or form, you can find me at http://www.linkedin.com/in/dustinwheeler.

My LinkedIn Connection Dilemma

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I have a little debate going on in my head about who should be included in my LinkedIn network. LinkedIn seems to suggest that connections should represent a “real-world” network and be limited to trusted friends and colleagues.  I have discovered, though, that some people are looking to connect to everybody.  Some even go so far as to have LION (LinkedIn Open Networker) or “I accept all invites” in their headlines. I have received several invitations to connect from people I don’t know with the standard message ,”I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn.”  I haven’t accepted them.  Are these people really interested in connecting with me?  If they are, why don’t they call me to introduce themselves, invite me out to lunch, or at least send me a personalized message? I think that most LIONs are just seeking as many connections as possible without the intent of getting to know them.  What is their motivation?  I can think of a few advantages of being an open networker:
  • On the surface, they appear to be really popular – most have 500+ connections.
  • Their news feed (status updates, blog posts, etc.) is broadcast to a large number of people.
  • They are more likely to rank higher in search results as a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd level connection.
Those advantages may sound great, but are they really beneficial?  I doubt it.  Their LinkedIn networks are made up of a bunch of useless connections. I am not an open networker on LinkedIn, but  I am open to networking and meeting new people.  I just don’t think that extending an invitation to connect on LinkedIn should be the first step in the process. Then again, sometimes I wonder if I am missing out on potential business opportunities by not connecting to everyone on LinkedIn.  The little devil on my left shoulder makes a tempting argument, but I’m siding with the little angel on my right shoulder.
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Why Would a CPA Want to Use Twitter?

I know several people that make fun of Twitter much like they make fun of a teenager that ends up in the news for sending thousands of text messages per month racking up a huge phone bill.  They certainly can make a good argument.  A recent study concluded that more than 40 percent of tweets are “pointless babble.”  If you look at the public timeline or trending topics on the Twitter webpage, you’ll see spam, self-promotion, and mundane tweets like “I’m having a ham sandwich for lunch.” I agree that Twitter has its problems, but I believe that it does have a business application as a powerful educational and collaborative tool.  As with any technology, any benefit you derive from Twitter depends on your use of it. If you’re looking for meaningful information on Twitter, you have to follow the right people.  If you’re a CPA or work in accounting, you could start with the Journal of Accountancy, the AICPA, and your state CPA society.  You can find most accounting software vendors on Twitter sharing good information.  There are hundreds of other CPAs and CPA firms that offer insight in the latest news, and many of them are among the brightest in the profession (I won’t list names here, but they’re not hard to find).  Hey, even the IRS is on Twitter. I’ve learned that there are many benefits to Twitter besides using it as a news feed.  I have asked questions on Twitter and received helpful responses, sometimes within a few minutes.  I’ve been able to get in contact with many of the leaders in the accounting profession who I wouldn’t have been able to meet otherwise.  By joining the conversation, a handful of people have been able to get to know me (sort of – well, at least they know that I’m a tech-savvy accountant that shares good information, and that’s a good start). About a year ago, when I began using Twitter, I asked myself, “why would a CPA want to use Twitter?”  The answer, at least for the first few weeks, was unclear while I tried to figure the whole Twitter thing out, but now I understand why.