Social media has, for some people, about the same attraction as getting a root canal.
I’ve got a friend who refuses to “get on Twitter” or be active on Facebook (although he is a bit of a Facebook lurker (stalker?) – you know, like somebody who mingles at a party, dropping in and out of conversations but never really says much. “I don’t want everyone to know when I go to the bathroom,” he says.
Image courtesy of www.FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Guess what? Seems obvious, but what isn’t shared on Twitter, well, isn’t shared on Twitter.
But that’s just it. There is a lot that could be shared on Twitter, Facebook, Weblogs and through other social media vehicles (YouTube, Vimeo, podcasting, etc.). In fact, there’s a lot that should be shared through social media.
The Big Three (as I call them) – Twitter, Facebook, blogs – offer a socially linked virtual community in which we can share knowledge with one another, allowing people to learn from each other; to learn from people who have a particular expertise in an area. (For instance, I cook about four things really well, chicken enchiladas being one of them. I posted a picture of my enchiladas on Facebook and soon had requests for the recipe and cooking instructions. Guaranteed: they won’t disappoint!).
So who are these so called, “experts?”
- Business leaders
- Professional journalists
- Accountants
- Auto mechanics
- IT professionals
- Handymen (and women)
- Ministers
- Doctors
- Staff secretaries
- Moms who bake
- Dads who grill
- The list goes on and on and on and…!
Basically, people who have something they can offer the “community,” instructing the rest of us in a particular area in which they have insight. It is recognizing that each individual does have influence. John Maxwell, in his book titled, Becoming a Person of Influence, states that “If your life in any way connects with other people, you are an influencer.”
Facebook is approaching a billion worldwide users and Twitter is over 500 million users. Granted, not everything shared is worth sharing. That said, there is already vast amounts of worthwhile and helpful content, and a significant amount of useful content waiting to be added…if people who can share it will just “get on” social media.
