I'd say so.

Prior to becoming involved in social media through Twitter in February of last year, there were whole chunks of the online world I hadn't heard of.

While I knew about Twitter, I actually hadn't yet heard of Friendfeed or identi.ca.  Heck, I think I was only dimly aware of either Mashable or Techcrunch.

The people in social media?  Well, up until February 2009 I hadn't heard of Darren Rowse (@problogger), Louis Gray and the name Robert Scoble was one I'd only read about once, years ago.

The only social media I used at the time was Facebook.

I have to admit, then, that getting involved in social media opened up my eyes a bit more.  Now it's pretty standard to get involved in a Scoble discussion on Friendfeed or Buzz, read Techcrunch and Mashable on a daily basis and be aware of the latest trends and tech news.  All through finally jumping on one social media service and then expanding from there.

It definitely keeps you aware of things.

Then there's opportunities.  For me, the first opportunity was to use it to help family and community during the February 2009 Victorian bushfires.  Months later, attending the Twums social get-together gave me a new opportunity to become involved in video blogging and interviewing.

Social media, then, does create new opportunities.  I'd been using the Internet as a study/research and general information tool for twelve years prior to that.  It was Twitter and other services which opened up more than just a passive role on the Net.

The options are there.  You just have to keep your eyes open for the best way to use your own individual skills (or build some new ones) on what's now out there in the social media field.  Social media now empowers you to be able to do something new.

So, if you're hesitant about social media, I can only say:  "Jump in, the water's fine."