In an industry as fast-paced as Social Media, it’s important that you always stay on the cutting edge of what’s happening. So how does one do that?

I’ve compiled a small list of what I believe to be the top sources of social media news, trends, and insights. I’ve broken them up into two different categories: Websites & People. These are the sources I go to every day to keep on top of what’s emerging in the world of Social Media.

This is part of the Becoming A Social Media Rockstar series.

Websites

MASHABLE.com

“Founded in 2005, Mashable is the top source for news in social and digital media, technology and web culture.”

This is a site I make sure to visit every day to hear the latest in social media news. It’s definitely worth bookmarking. They also have done a pretty good job at integrating a social layer called “Mashable Follow”. If you register to the site, you can follow topics, categories, or people. It’s almost like their own social network! You can follow me on Mashable Follow here!

ALLTOP.com

Specifically, social-media.alltop.com is what I’m interested in. This is an aggregated news site of the top stories in the world of Social Media.

“The purpose of Alltop is to help you answer the question, “What’s happening?” in “all the topics” that interest you.

They also have a nicely integrated social layer. Find out more here.

Social Media Examiner

Another great source that focuses more on the HOW TO’s of social media. Very good resource for learning how to make the most of the tools available. In their own words,

“Social Media Examiner is a free online magazine designed to help businesses discover how to best use social media tools like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to find leads, increase sales and generate more brand awareness.”

As with the other sites, they’ve done a great job incorporating their own social layer. (See a pattern here?)

PEOPLE (Social Media Rockstars)

These are my top picks of people who are Social Media Rockstars. They are ahead of the curve, and on the cutting edge of what’s happening in the social media world:

Chris Brogan

Definitely one of the most well known social media gurus in the industry. I’ll let his Twitter profile speak for him. You can find him under @ChrisBrogan on Twitter. He’s blogs over at ChrisBrogan.com.

Guy Kawasaki

This is one of the guys that got me really fired up about social media. I saw him fist at a conference called Catalyst West. He is definitely of the most influential leaders in the game. You can follow him at @GuyKawasaki on Twitter. He’s also the co-founder of AllTop.com, and has written a number of books on the subject of social media.

Calvin Lee

Highlighted by Klout as a “Klout Star” and recipient of more than a few KloutPerks, Calvin is definitely a stand out in the world of social media. He’s a designer and founder of MayhemStudios.com. I’ve been fortunate enough to connect with him a number of times via twitter, and he is a really cool, down to earth guy! Follow him at @MayhemStudios on Twitter and check out his blog!

Michael Hyatt

Also someone who made me realize the power of social media, and it’s potential to change the world for the better. (I also met him at the CatalystWest conference.) Michael Hyatt is one of the men who I look up to the most. He is a godly man who know’s a lot about leadership. Not necessarily a social media guru, but he does blog about it quite often. His blog is one of my daily visits. Find him at @MichaelHyatt on Twitter.

What are some of the websites or people you would add to the list?

[Infographic courtesy of digitalvidyan via Flickr]

Have you ever left a comment on someone’s blog and noticed that some people have their pictures show up, & others have some sort of generic default image?

A Gravatar is a Globally Recognizable “profile picture”, a.k.a. Avatar. Hence the name G-R-Avatar. It is a way for you to have a profile picture that will automatically show up wherever you identify yourself using the email account you’ve assigned to it. In other words:

(more…)

Before you dive into a subject, learning the complex strategies, it’s always best to start with the basics; gain a foundation of the fundamentals before you venture into the complexities.

Even the football coaching legend Vince Lombardi, believed this to be true. Season after season he would take the first meeting with his players (no matter how experienced) and start with the basics. He would start his first talk (football in hand) saying, “Gentlemen, this is a football.” Consider this our first talk.

Just FYI, this is part of my How To: Social Media series.

Before we talk about what social media is, I want to first tell you what social media is not. If you go into anything with the wrong outlook, you will not create a proper outcome. So here are 3 things social media is not:

1. Social Media is not an opportunity to SPAM

If you plan on just signing up and blasting your personal marketing agenda into the social sphere, do us a favor and save yourself some time – don’t sign up. You will end up spending a whole lot of time getting on people’s nerves and getting 0 results. There are enough spammers out there, don’t become one of them. If all you wish to do is exploit some free advertising for yourself, your business, or your brand, you’re missing it.

2. Social Media is not a FAD

I covered this in my first post of this series. Social media is a fundamental shift in the way we communicate with one another. It is a way of connecting and interacting in ways that were never possible before. It’s a shift that affects everything from the way we share photos with friends and family, to how products and services are delivered.

3. It’s not as complicated as you think

It boggles my mind every time somebody tells me, “I just don’t get it.” Listen, if you’re smart enough to sign up for a Gmail, Yahoo!, or Hotmail account, you get it. Some platforms are more complex than others, but trust me – they are all pretty much based around the same principle, communication. It only looks intimidating because it’s new to you.

Got it? Good. Now let’s talk about what Social Media is:

Not simply a 'hip' social medium.. But a global unfiltered information center that brings us closer to people and events than we have had b4

— BEN KOLARCIK (@BENKOLARCIK) March 12, 2011

According to Wikipedia: “Social media is the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into interactive dialogue.”

I love that definition, but lets break it down a little bit.

Social Media is about connecting

From the revolution of Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and the like came a way of connecting and reconnecting with family, friends, classmates, and co-workers. We are able to keep up with family across the country or across the world. We are able to find classmates who have long moved away. We can quickly see photos, share videos and have conversation with people all in a few clicks of a mouse.

Social Media is about Engagement

Not “let’s get married” engagement (although if you’re looking for a cool story about that, you can see my proposal story (here). It’s about starting and participating in conversations. It’s about interacting with people you care about, brands that you love, or topics that interest you. It’s about interacting and being (wait for it…) social. So instead of being a bystander and watching what is going on in the world, be an active participant in the conversations taking place. An easy way to practice this – write your thoughts in the comments section below!

Social Media is about GROWTH

Like my friend Ben Kolarcik said, social media is a “global unfiltered information center that brings us closer to people and events…” We can leverage this social medium to learn from one another, encourage one another, and more importantly grow from one another (which is different from learning). If used in the right way, social media can be a powerful force that propels our society to a level of interconnectivity that can be used for all kinds of good. There are already numerous causes out there using social media for good.

This is where the voice of Uncle Ben comes in…

“With great power comes great responsibility.” -Uncle Ben

It is true that the power of social media can also be used for bad. However if you start with the right outlook, and the proper mindset, with pure intentions and a heart for adding value to the social collective, then I believe we can make a positive change. I believe if we take the time to understand how to use this powerful tool of social media, we can do a whole lot of good.

What are your thoughts? Was this helpful to you? Is there anything I’ve missed?