More to Pick From
Dawud is back, a proud dad of a new baby, and we’re picking up the conversation where we left off.
At the end of his recent post, Dawud asked me a question is far simpler than its answer.
What’s one way you’d say social media has changed the way you do business?
Forgive me Joyce Kilmer,
I think that I shall never see
a clock as hungry as social me – dia.An activity whose hungry mouth is prest
Against my blog’s flowing breast.A front page that looks out all day
While bloggers talk, submit, and pray.
How Has Social Media Changed the Way I Work?
When I turn on my computer, it’s not really that unusually that within a few seconds I might get a Twitter message. I jump on and say, “Hi Tweeple!” And folks answer with their greetings. We pass messages that eventually become conversations about what we’re doing.
Some Twitter folks are folks I’ve met. Some are folks who visit my blog. Some are neither one. Some are folks I’ve wanted to meet for a long, long time. We all message to each other in the same 140 characters. Occasionally that leads to a telephone call or an email.
When I Digg, I don’t break a sweat. And when I Stumble, I don’t fall. I find myself among a group of people who surf the Net and serve me up a menu of ideas and inspiration in the form of articles and blog posts that they have found. Sometimes we meet under the surface by way of a message to discuss what we do when we’re apart. I’ve done business, been introduced, and gotten beautiful picture gifts from folks I’ve met in those two places.
Over at the local Facebook and down at the Linkedin location, I connect with folks I know and meet new ones. I especially look for folks who live in Chicago or who are coming to visit. It’s a good thing to get a chance to have a sit down with a new friend face to face. I never know where such a meeting will lead me, but those hellos usually become important working friendships.
Those are just five, but I think you see the patterns.
Of course, it happens that people I meet in those places often tell other folks about me, and everyone knows I just can’t keep quiet about the cool folks who cross my radar. They come to visit my blog. I go to visit theirs. More than anything we share ideas in every way we can.
It’s time invested in new places, but going to the same end . . . relationships.
Speaking of relationships, I ask Dawud and everyone reading . . .
What do you find is the key to great relationships with social media friends?
One2One is a cross-blog conversation. Find the answer at dawud miracle on Monday. You can see the entire One-2-One Conversation series on the Successful Series page.
In Case You Missed It: Writing 06-13-07
Hello Liz
I’d say…
Listening
Smiling
Giving
Joanna
PS Could Open Mic nights be added to the list of social media?
Hi Joanna,
Teresa Valdez Klien said, “You don’t need social media sites your blog is one.” when we did the interview for blog business summit.
I think the most important thing is being there for your social media friends when they need some help. Kinda like being there for any friend!
Hi Liz,
Social media makes the relationship easier and healthy.
Hi K,
I agree!
Valuing our social network friends is incredibly important for the reason you say — because they’re our friends. 🙂
Hi Joshua!
I’d sure love to know what you mean by healthy.
Hi Liz,
This is such a timely post for me, thank you! I’m a social media newbie but I think supporting one another is a key to making the relationship work. Thanks again for the timely, informative post!
Karen
Hi Karen!
Welcome! Supporting one another is how we find our way when things get scary and how we find our joy when they’re worth celebrating!
The co-incidence 🙂 of a broken wrist, MacSpeech Dictation voice recognition software, and a spurt of connector energy gave rise to a sense of immediacy and intimacy while using social media that is profoundly changing how I work.
Because I literally speak and hear every word I write, conversations are a full body experience. Every time I dip into the tweet-stream, I emerge freshly engaged. Sometimes my brain feels like it is spontaneously combusting. (I mean that in a good sense.)
I’ve always been a bit compulsive about going to the source, so I find myself following links and tracing connections in a new way. This is deepening my reflections on community, commerce, and meaning.
Social media has shifted my use of the Internet from bottomless information source and extraordinary relationship builder to a challenging and supportive space of experimentation and exploration.
I’ve always valued not-knowing, but not always have the courage and conceptual frameworks for expressing that in my business. Engagement with others through social media is bringing me out of a closet I didn’t even know I was in.