The REAL social standards of Social Networking

I love social networking. I love new, online and digital media. I hate faxing a press release or even putting one together in general. I think they are useless. I think they will be useless completely in a good 10 years.

However, where are the social and etiquette practices of networks like Facebook, Twitter, Linked In and yes, even MySpace. I treat each of those type of networks like I would someone I trusted as a friend. Quite frankly, I've done some friend purging every so often. If I haven't talked to you in a few months, you most likely don't really care about my life both professional and personal. And really you are looking for a way to cyber-stalk me. Yes...I mean you.

Now what do you do if someone wants to follow you on Twitter and really they were never that friendly to you in person anyways?

First I got the Facebook following and now its the Twitter thing.

(I'd like to add that nor do I claim to have a "following" in any aspect of my life, both on social networks and real life, but you know where I'm going)

Do we go so far as to ask, "What are your exact reasons you feel the need to add me as a friend?" I don't so much do this for someone I've never met before in my life, to be honest I've forged some really great connections and relationships with those who just liked my blog or followed my Tweets, more on the professional front.

What about those people that you've actually met sometime in your life whether professionally or personally and maybe you never saw eye to eye or you in fact never trusted them? IF and this is a big IF I find someone who I knew in a past lifetime, I do the common courtesy to actually make a personal note. I think that's just good etiquette. Same goes with professional contacts.

While I love this social networking boom, I think it may just be one way that people can stalk one another. I don't like people stalking me. Which is why I make my Facebook and MySpace private.

So stalker or follower?

You decide.