So just why do you recommend someone?
Is it because they recommended you? Do they owe you a favor? Do you owe them? Or do you genuinely value their work ethic and skills?
Whatever the case, a recommendation really needs to be honest and sincere and be for an ethical reason. Seriously, would you recommend someone if it didn’t up your Klout score or improve your searchability?
With the advent of LinkedIn, recommending someone has become easier and more visible than it has in some time. These days if you are not recommending someone you are conspicuously absent from the web and the work scene in general.
But let’s stick to the basics here: use the same rules of thumb for recommending someone that you would as if you were writing a good old-fashioned paper-and-pen letter:
- Have you known this person long enough to give a fair and honest judgement of their work or character?
- Are they a former co-worker, friend or business partner?
- Can you give an honest, direct recommendation?
- Are you still in regular contact with this person or did this come out of the blue?
- Do you expect something in return?
I had an experience with LinkedIn a few years back that got me to really thinking about their specific process. I met a woman at a networking event one evening. The next day we connected via LinkedIn. That evening she asked me for a recommendation. When I told her I didn’t feel comfortable giving a recommendation to someone I hardly knew, she told me to “read her profile and make something up,” and that she would write one for me, too.
Fat chance.
Seriously, recommending someone you don’t know or you can’t truthfully evaluate is the kiss of death for your credibility. So is the “exchange” of recommendations you see so often. You know, the ones that are dated on the same day or just days apart. Kind of kills the moment, wouldn’t you say?
Careful thought and action in making and receiving recommendations is key to your own credibility. Just remember that third rule: it’s not about you and things will work out in the end.
