It’s happening – and it’s happening FAST.  Facebook is becoming a legitimate networking tool for grown-ups and youngsters alike.  It’s everywhere and there’s no turning back.  Our personal lives and work lives are merging and I love it!  But, now what?

So many questions are running through my head?  Should I reset all of my personal privacy settings?  Should I review every picture that my crazy friends have tagged of me?  How much of my “real” personality should I expose?  Should I leave any group that might give the impression of any scandalous elements in my real life?  Can I “friend” clients and key media professionals?  Unfortunately, we’re all still so new at this “Professional Facebook” thing to really have the answers.  It’s exciting, but scary all at the same time.

In a recent blog post, Career Columnist Penelope Trunk encouraged readers to “facebook” their Company CEOs, stating that employees should start living an “authentic, transparent” work life.

As of right now, I say we should be as transparent as possible, go with it and embrace Facebook for what it is and what it’s becoming.  There are so many awesome reasons to join and participate.  For a nice summary of “12 Ways to Use Facebook Professionally,” check out the Web Worker Daily blog.

On a side note, I encourage younger members of the workforce to use this opportunity to emerge as leaders in your agency.  You stand at an advantage over many of your coworkers, having spent the past four years getting to know the ins and outs of Facebook.  What are your ideas for using Facebook professionally?  You might not have much time though; according to a recent MarketingVox report I recently read about on Paul Fabretti's Blending the Mix blog, Facebook’s fastest-growing demographic is the 25+ age group.

By the way, my mom is on Facebook – go ahead and friend her.  Tell her I said hello!