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Hey, Check out this post by Lifehacker

Hey, Check out this post by Seth Godin

Hey, Check out this post by myself…

SHUT UP.

Honestly, it seems like everyone is sharing everything they possibly can find.  All in the name of content curation. Let me say this though: Nobody seems to get it right. And even if you do know, you could probably use a refresher.

Here’s what you should and shouldn’t do:

Don’t link content from major blogs – Blogs like Lifehacker, Problogger and the like often have great content to give to the masses. It’s why they got so damn popular in the first place. The thing is, they’re already the top dogs in their respective niches. And I’m sure you have a few high-powered blogs in your own. However, they’re not the only players in the Internets, which brings me to point #2:

Look for blog articles that could use the love –  Just because a blog isn’t popular doesn’t mean that its writer has nothing good to say. In fact, many of these bloggers take what the big boys and girls say and go one step further, adding to the wheel of invention. So they might have something interesting to say after all.

Stop being self-centered –  Here’s something a lot of people on Twitter could learn: It’s not all about you. Stop only sharing links about things YOU write or contribute to. It makes you look shallow. Instead, focus on blogs written by other people. In fact, consider commenting on those blogs as well. That way, not only do you share useful content, you also contribute to it, fulfilling that self-centered need.

Don’t be afraid to RT/Share -  There’s a mentality around of stealing news from other people via social networks and the like. That’s not true. If someone else is passionate about something, do them a favor and share the content. Even if they have zounds more followers than you do, you still have a different circle from them.

Give credit to the author/sharer –  Piggybacking on the other point, remember to give credit to who wrote the content you’re sharing. On twitter, you can say “by @authorname” if they have an account. If you can’t do that, thank the person who shared the content by either RTing them or saying “via @sharername.”

Don’t share everything –  This may seem a little contradictory, but you can’t share every single thing you find on the Internet. While there’s plenty of wonderful things online, don’t let your links be one thing after another. Think about it…what kind of Twitter accounts have link after link of stuff? Spambots. Not that you ARE one, but you WILL look like one if you do that.

Your turn –  What tips do YOU have for sharing effectively?

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