You are only 6 degrees of separation away from the 1 person who will change your life on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or any other large social network. This person could be the investor that drops a bundle in your business to make you the next Google or the swimsuit model that proves to be the love of your life. OK, thats reaching a bit, youre on Twitter (AKA youre a geek) and unless you are @johncmayer, you are not getting the swimsuit model. And yes, this is another Mary teaches sociology through pop culture post.

So, now lets delve into another social theory that can help you to interact best with your online network. Lets start with a social network we all know and love - LinkedIn, the entire network is built around the six degrees of separation principle (and, no, not the movie where Will Smith plays a gay grifter). This theory, more commonly known in sociology as the "small world phenomenon," states that if a person is one step away from each person they know and two steps away from each person who is known by one of the people they know, then everyone is at most six steps away from any other person on Earth. LinkedIn capitalizes on the theory by allowing you to connect with the connections of your existing network, thereby expanding your personal network and bringing you closer to more influential people that can help to forward your career. There is great value in the theory behind LinkedIn, however few people actually use the network effectively and instead are happy to remain connected to their existing network rather than begin the process of expanding it to reach those more influential members.

References from Wikipedia:

• Social Network
• Six Degrees of Separation/Small World Theory/Shrinking World Theory

Just for Fun: The 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon

OK, because this is a long post and I cant resist because I am such a 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon Master Playa... here is my Mecca... the Oracle of Bacon. This site will blow your mind. And please, ladies, let's here is for this boy - he is still smokin after all this time! And I always thought bacon was fatty, this looks like a nice lean meal.

Back to the point of this post - Now, the small world theory not only applies to LinkedIn but also to the whole of social networking. You need to use your tight sphere of influence, your Dunbar circle to reach the outer acquaintances and friends of friends to effectively network your way to real power and influence. So, whether you consider influence fame or simply leads, your ability to network effectively is critical to your success.

Read also: How Your Personal Dunbar Number Effects Your Ability to Effectively Network Online

Where did the Small World Originate and How Does it Apply to the Digital Age?

Interestingly, The Small World Theory is a product of World War I. As Europe began to rebuild itself, understanding the optimal design of a city, its traffic flows and neighborhood dynamics became critical to effectively building city infrastructures. Hence a committed group of scientists began studying demographics and the inter connectedness of people in communities. Around 1929, Hungarian author Frigyes Karinthy, published a collection of short stories titled "Everything is Different." One of these pieces was titled "Chains." The story proposed that due to technological advances in communications and travel, friendship networks could grow larger and span greater distances. In particular, Karinthy believed that the modern world was 'shrinking' due to this ever-increasing connectedness of human beings. He argued that despite great physical distances between the globe's individuals, the growing density of human networks made the actual social distance far smaller. This idea both directly and indirectly influenced a great deal of early thought on social networks. Karinthy has been regarded by some as the originator of the notion of Six Degrees of Separation. (Yes, seriously a real theory was born out of fiction.)

Since Karthinthy, several studies, such as Milgram's small world experiment, have been conducted to empirically measure this connectedness. While the exact number of links between people differs depending on the population measured and the types of links used, it is generally found to be relatively small and between 6 and 7. Most interestingly, In 2001, Duncan Watts, a professor at Columbia University, attempted to recreate Milgram's experiment on the internet, using an e-mail message as the "package" that needed to be delivered, with 48,000 senders and 19 targets (in 157 countries). Watts found that the average (though not maximum) number of intermediaries was around six. A more recent, 2007 study by Jure Leskovec and Eric Horvitz examined a data set of instant messages composed of 30 billion conversations among 240 million people. They found the average path length among Microsoft Messenger users to be 6.6 (some now call the theory, "the seven degrees of separation" because of this.)

Microsoft Proves There Are only 6 Degrees of Separation Between People:

• After checking 30 billion electronic messages, Microsoft researchers say the theory stands up

Consider the value of the technologies and communication methods available on online networks:

1 to 1 :: this would be chat, email, private messages. It is pretty immediate so you can connect more fully than you would be able to through letters. The responsiveness of the technologies involved make this a robust form of communication for both business and personal needs. 1:1 instantaneous communication helps you to get your questions answered faster and improves the speed of a relationship or business communication. On a side note, I also believe it is a contributing factor to the lack of patience in society.

1 to many :: a blog, a status update, a tweet. This is interesting because it is where you can begin to stream the minor details and thoughts of your life. It is a good way to acquire new friends by broadcasting things of interest to you. When you post information about your interests or share knowledge you find interesting, you now have put bait out for other people that find that content interesting to being communicating with you. Remember people like people that are like them and share similar interests. So, instead of updating your status with every detail of your life, start injecting humor into it or begin sharing things you find online. If you count ROI in terms of new friendships (which is what it should be on social networks) then you will begin to see far greater returns by using this method.

1 to 1 but broadcast to many :: a reply on Twitter, a post on someones wall on Facebook, etc. This is where things get interesting this is where you have a 1 on 1 conversation with someone in a public forum for others to view. Its essentially a voyeur/exhibitionist experience. However, the value of it is it can introduce you to the connections through interaction of your existing relationships. By watching the interactions your friends have with others, you can vet new people that you might want to begin in following and turn friends of friends into just friends. Most people are too shy to ask people they dont know to be their friend on networks, so heres a tip: start interacting with people you think you might want to be friends with in the comments of blogs, Facebook status updates and on Twitter. Also, make sure people that find you interesting can easily connect with you on various networks by always including your social network profiles in the signature of your emails, on your blog and on your other various profiles.

Tool: Retagger social network online business card creator

Acquaintances are the very key to the 6 degrees that separate you from the 1 person that can change your life forever.

Now, lets bring it all back around. By connecting with more people and watching their interactions with others, you can get closer and closer to the people that will really matter in your life. You can form new relationships that can change your business, your lifestyle, your attitude and even your love life, but it is all a matter of opening up your sphere of influence and being willing to connect with people on the periphery of that sphere. For those of you that dont like to "friend" everyone that asks consider this most peoples strongest connections in life (their mate, their business partner, their best friend, their investor) are introduced to them by mutual acquaintance. So, those weaker connections that you may not consider "friends" could be the link you need to reach your next life or professional goal.

A very special thank you to Teresa Boardman - St Paul Realtor and fellow sociologist - for inspiring this post.

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