Way too many networks!

Wow! I am part of so many networks that I would only have an hour/day left to work if I kept up with them all! Is this a common problem for online networkers?
I remember a heavy social life when I did most of my networking through groups and events (that time in my life is now a blur)... Though that was total chaos at times, I feel I gained better contacts and had more fun doing it... Or maybe the year I have been doing this hasn't been a fair shot... either way, the old face-to-face costs too much in childcare so this will have to do. Any suggestions out there to help me feel like I actually "know" the people I am networking with?
-s

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Comment by Kara D. on September 25, 2008 at 12:23pm: Be choosy...I am very particular in which groups I network in because, as you said, it is so time consuming! I like the niche groups that help be gain an advantage in technique or ideas - and also someplace that I can vent frustrations. We all want to be everywhere - all the time. Technology allows us to do this in some aspect but then we have to be careful not to neglect the job at hand. Choose ones that put some passion into your job and re-invigorate your calling. You will connect with those who feel the same way and really get to "know" them. Good luck.

Comment by Slouch on September 25, 2008 at 1:13pm: There are a lot out there these days and it is real easy to start new ones. I think for this site because there are lots of people here and there are lots of active people here, it just takes time and a desire to get to know people. maybe like the real world. I would start by running some member searches under the member tab at the top people in your business or things like that. There are lots of different things here and not everyone is interested in everything. you can always send me a note and we can connect and I can help you with some of the navigation here if you want. thanks

Comment by Jordan Shaw on September 25, 2008 at 7:20pm: I personally have my favorite's such as RecruitingBlogs, Facebook, Twitter etc where I cross pollinate my contacts and spend the majority of my efforts in relationship building.

I do give new networks a chance, if they fail or I loose interest in updating I chalk it up to the fact that I did reach a greater audience than I had prior to joining the network. The next step needs to be tying all networks together into one master online profile and sharing it with your co-workers similar to what BearingPoint does.

Comment by Sarah M on October 14, 2008 at 12:40pm: Thanks for all the great comments! Currently, I have bookmarked all my networks and try to log into each one at least once a week... if any particular one gets me going, I stick with it until I lose interest/value and then maybe check back the next week or month... hopefully this is where I will find the best balance! Now - to keep me focused is another story... I am easily distracted! When something interests me... I will follow the tangent and sometimes be off track for an hour!!!! :( So the second part of this is now limiting the amount of time I spend checking on each!