Today is the third installment of our 10 in 10 series and the focus is on LinkedIn. If you missed the the first two posts you can find the links here.

Everyone talks about how the new year allows each of us to start with a clean slate.  We can make a resolution to lose weight, get in shape, or become a better person.  The same can be said for our social media activities as well.  The new year brings the opportunity for us to change some things about our online identity in much the same way as we do offline.  In that spirit we have compiled a list of the top 5 New Year’s Resolutions for LinkedIn:

1. I will recommend contacts to others. One of the unique features of LinkedIn is the ability to tell someone how great of a job they did via a recommendation.  However, from what I have seen there aren't a lot of people showing the love.  Let's all decide that 2010 is going to be the year that we start taking 5 minutes to post a recommendation for our contacts on LinkedIn.  Your contacts will appreciate it and others will want to do business with you because they know if they perform you will give them some credit for their hard work.
2. I will participate in groups and discussions. It kind of goes without saying that the purpose of social media is to BE SOCIAL!  In my experience many people on LinkedIn aren't social and they don't participate in groups that pertain to their industry.  It is a great place to provide some new ideas and learn something from others.  Think of it as a virtual networking opportunity.  The more you participate the larger your network grows.
3. I will clean up my contacts list. Unlike Facebook or Twitter the number of contacts that you have on LinkedIn doesn't matter as much as the quality of those contacts.  So, take a few minutes and run through your contacts and purge the contacts that you have a hard time remembering.  (As an alternative you can reach out to them and ask them to refresh your memory.)
4. I will complete my profile. LinkedIn is unique in that it computes a percentage of completion for your profile.  They have some predetermined metrics that are used to determine whether or not someone's profile is complete.  These metrics reward experience and quality of work which is a good thing.  So, make sure this year you get those recommendations and put your relevant work experience on your profile to really make LinkedIn work for you.
5. I will use LinkedIn as a hiring tool. Probably the best part about LinkedIn is the ability to see the profile of a large pool of candidates.  These profiles are like virtual resumes with references attached.  At this point LinkedIn doesn't take the place of a traditional interview and resume, however, it does provide enough information about a potential candidate to avoid some unnecessary interviews.

Okay, that's our list for LinkedIn, what did we miss?  Anything on LinkedIn that you think should have made our list?  Let us know in the comments below!