Has Web 2.0 Made You Happier?

Have all the social bookmarking services brought you closer to great content, or has it just added to your workload?

Are your online relationships as productive or satisfying as your real ones? And if the answer here is "yes," do you have many real relationships? This week Marcus Brown, alias The Kaiser, resigned all of his posts in his social media presence in favor of real life interaction.

Has Web 2.0 empowered your customer service people -- or just thinned out traditional marketing and personnel budgets?

Are email, Twitter, and IM services helping you to communicate better -- or just flooding you with noise?

There's a lot great about new web tools. But unless we master them -- and not the other way around -- Web 2.0 will be remembered as just another fad.

[As a side note, the recent change to TyepPad composition page has me scrambling to figure out how to post again. The system has been unstable for over a week now, splitting my URL again and again despite the full domain mapping. This has required a constant remapping and coordination with FeedBurner on my part, which I should not have to do on a hosted solution. This morning, for example, I woke up to the feed reverting to he clunky TypePad URL for no reason at all. Ticket submitted once more...]

What works for you in Web 2.0 -- and what doesn't?

Comments

[Luis Sandoval]

Good Morning,

Just subscribed to your feed last night and started pouring through your past archives, thanks to Chris Brogan's recommendation!

Your post is very thought provoking. Every time a new Web 2.0 solution comes out I think people try hard to find ways to configure it to their lifestyle, more often than not alienating a process the previously worked and stretching for something that actually drives people away.

I for one have limited time with a career, family, blog, and freelance design firm, I only utilize options that I don't have to twist to make usable. Any more effort into making something work for me just discourages me.

Your example of your TypePad situation brings to mind that just because something is new and great, even updated, does not mean it's better.

Social networks just don't work for me! Too many out there practically doing all the same thing. I stick to Facebook and LinkedIn, and even then I cultivate my community on there, but I do not spend hours adding useless add-ons or silly videos that just take up time. Myspace never worked for me, perhaps at 30 I have gotten old, but it seems targeted to younger kids that don't fit my customer demographic...for now.

Web 2.0 has always been promising, don't get me wrong. The expansion of ideas is great, but there seems to be more emphasis now on be the "It" thing that users are left behind to deal with the confusing aspects of adapting.

Just my thoughts...

[Ricardo Bueno]

I've always been a people person (networking events, social gatherings, discussion groups in college though I also liked to work alone)...

When it comes to business, I'm a very kitchen table top kinda guy which means I like to sit with a client, look them in the eye and shake their hand (Kind of old fashioned I guess). Though this is good (I think) it's also inefficient in that there are only so many hours in the day and so many people you can meet.

I started blogging as a way to streamline my communications and make myself (somewhat) accessible throughout the day. Now, if someone has a question, I blog about it and email them my response so that they (and others) can read about it. This way, I don't have to repeat myself over and over and I can focus on the things that are going to make me more productive.

There are only so many hours in the day and your blog is a resource that's available 24/7. When you think about it, it's a unique resource that way. I like it for that reason but I also don't let it eliminate the personal aspect of my marketing (I still like to meet face-to-face).

[Jé Maverick]

I really love this post, and thank you for raising the questions. Does it add noise? Yes. Is this noise enriching? No. It has arrested my focus. Web 2.0 as we know it has only delivered a lot of extra task management quandaries to me. I would prefer to shift my focus back to delivering content. I can only say that it is not marketing - it is advertising.

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Luis - good morning to you. You have a great way of putting it - the new tool needs to configure to our lifestyle (and be useful), not the other way around. When asked about what would make them happy, most people will tell you that it is spending more time with family and friends, not more time reconfiguring a tool. My philosophy is "if it ain't broken, don't fix it!" TypePad compose was working just fine. Adding bells and whistles a-la-MS Word for Windows has not made it more appealing (or easier) for me to use. Our contraire. In a future post I will talk about productivity and Web 2.0. Whenever I travel, I make it a point to meet professionals I link to online face-to-face.

@Ricardo - which brings me to your comment. I love the image of "being a kitchen table kind of guy." As for networks, there is a time to expand, and there is a time to get to know the people you already met. Weak ties, that is acquaintances with shared experiences/preferences, are a great way to broaden reach - as in having a blog and other tools. In the end, we connect through affinity and face-to-face.

@Je' - a poet! Poetry is one of my loves. I was a liberal arts major. Poetry needs time (and living, experiencing) to surface. Copy in general gets better over time, through feeling more than doing, which has become an imperative (the doing), at times to the detriment of the "being".

[Jé Maverick]

Oh, it does need time. I told a friend of mine recently that I did not expect to do my best work for at another 30 years. She was flabbergasted! I am confident that I will have the time. In a Web 2.0 world, time has taken on a different meaning, so I am conscious of my need to distance myself from the concept of immediacy.

[Austin]

I think in any emerging marketplace there are many new products, all competing for share of mind and adoption. What is interesting in the Web 2.0/social media space is that while so many of these products integrate they may not be relevant and are simply part and parcel of natural market evolution. For example, I haven't (yet?)adopted Twitter as I barely have time to blog. Is it a cool technology? Sure. Is it going to improve my bottom line? Probably not. In time things will coalesce, until then we have an arsenal of cool tools to experiment with to try and improve our bottom lines. The ones that do, will survive.

[jkh]

does it make you happier?
yes, it does.

because it tears down - or at least fundamentally challenges - some old parameters of identity construction, which in simple words are build on "the others" versus "you (and your buddies)".

the web as we can experience it today shows us that we are the others and that the others are us.

orientation within the new web - and amongst all of its players - puts more of an emphasis on similarities to ourselves (which make us come back to a site) rather than on dissimilarities (which do not attract us and which for us in consequence make a certain web offer disappear forever in the infinite space of the internet).

so - and this is terribly important - we consciously build our identity on similarities=love=acceptance rather than on "you are different from me because you look different, you speak different, you are not me and THEREFORE i am me" (this is basic sociology on identity building).

the new web globally challenges this. not only does it challenge these modalities of identity building - it qualifies them as belonging to a time past.

the new equation goes: i am because you are.
- i am me because you are like me.

-
this is a tremendous difference.
and, yes, it makes us - and everybody - fundamentally more happy.

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Je' - I can learn from you about "distancing from the concept of immediacy" ;-) I can be impatient at times. The first step is in recognizing it, right?

@Austin - relevance and usefulness are key. I approach business books the same way. I relented on Twitter last October and I have not regretted it. There are many ways to join it and participate and I've met many talented professional there I would not have met through blogging (so fast). I try new technology when I am ready to use it enough to drive its usefulness to me.

@Jens - It is so good hearing from you! "we are the others and that the others are us." That is a beautiful thought. There are a few writers and speakers I met over time who can get that across without effort. I tend to gravitate towards them. It comes down to using the tools to serve that growth and expansion in thinking and not let the tools run us into a corner.

[jkh]

thanks valeria.

the glory is all yours. - you asked the very right question. - ...which provoked - so it seems to me - an astonishingly right answer.

effortlessly written... yes. - but only because the question was 100% precise.

the new web may not fulfill everybody's expectations but it is changing our definition of happiness and of being ourselves for the better.

[Mike Wagner]

Valeria, this is the right question.

And you know you've got a hold of the right subject when you get Jens (one of my favorite thinkers) joining in!

I especially liked this observation:

"There's a lot great about new web tools. But unless we master them -- and not the other way around -- Web 2.0 will be remembered as just another fad. "

Web 2.0 is a great servant but a terrible master!

Which is true of technology in general.

Keep creating...the "social" in social media,
Mike

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Jens - these are wise words and they come to me at precisely the right time. Thank you again for making it look so effortless.

@Mike - Jens is one of my favorite thinkers, too. It is astonishing how one can have moments of exact clarity and see through the clouds. This conversation and the gift of your comments has been one such moment. I am not nearly as smart as all of us are, when we build on what we see and are - each other. Web 2.0 or anything that does not come from the ki, from deep inside your centered core, is a terrible master.

[Chris Baskind]

Web 2.0 would be awesome if it actually worked. ;-)

I've said this before: It's a fool's game to create content for other entities. Unless, of course, you're just feeling charitable. That's the crux of Web 2.0 -- user-created content. And bright icons.

Pity. Not only is it an inequitable transaction, most "user created content" is total crap. Which is why the web is becoming a sewer, at least in some neighborhoods.

But not here. A thoughtful post and equally thoughtful commenters. Very nice, everyone. :-)

[Derrick Kwa]

Great discussion going on. Here's my thoughts.

I think Web 2.0 doesn't necessarily bring about deeper relationships. But what it allows is a broader range of relationships. Without Web 2.0, for example, I would never have been able to connect with you. The value comes in that it breaks down practically all barriers for connecting with others.

Yes, the relationships may not be as deep or as "real" as offline ones. But to me, Web 2.0 tools are just starting points - from which real relationships can be built, and with people you wouldn't have known otherwise.

[jon burg]

Love the post, just one quick word.

Happiness is a state of mind. Web 2.0 cannot make anyone happier. People can and should be happy because of who they are, despite any hardships and frustrations they endure in their lives. Many people will find this to be a frustrating endeavor, but those who I have met who have embraced this philosophy have a piece of mind and general happiness and contentment in life that technology cannot hope to create.

Web 2.0, and all technology and communications advancements enable people to live their lives in a different manner. I say different, because while pervasive connectivity may make life "easier", it hasn't made us happier (with the exception of the lonely and socially challenged who find great fulfillment in communication in the connected environment).

Personally, I enjoy web 2.0. It has been a pleasure getting to know the greater community, to share ideas, to learn, to experience the wonder that is mass personal and social communication. But I don't know that even the greatest communications tools can bring happiness. In today's busy world, it's often hard to find the time to think about the relationship between pleasure and happiness. But I personally have found, that this pursuit is one well worth exploring.

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Chris - there isn't a day that goes by without a publication asking me to contribute to their site. It seems like the new business model is to get other people to create your content. I thought about this last night and will be posting today shortly.

@Derrick - greater exposure to more ideas = more opportunities. Fleshing out those still requires willingness to make the connection. I would probably not have met you, or Jens, who lives in Spain, Mike, or Chris, Luis, Je' or Jon had it not been for this blog and Twitter.

@Jon - granted. Rationally we know that. What about emotionally? Also, to me more choices = more opportunities, which can in turn lead to greater satisfaction. Competitive marketplaces, for example, are happier places for customers. And so are democratic places for citizens. With one caveat - more choices = more responsibility to figure out why we chose what we choose.

[jkh]

valeria and mike. thanks for friendly teasing and pushing me.
- i promised a book long time ago - i know. -
appreciated!

[James Connors]

Valeria,

I know we've been talking about the issues you're having re: domain binding and I think that's rotten.

As far as web 2.0 goes - it definitely has thinned my attention span. Fortunately, I've found a path that allows me to screen the services, claim my name online, and then really invest in the ones that are important.

I think it's important to have a presence in many places just so you're found but choose your battles when it comes to really engaging in the services.

-James

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Jens - looking forward to news about your book.

@James - the issues with TypePad is not resolved, alas. And I am not getting any answers. It looks like I am learning WordPress after all. If you are anywhere online, with the privacy-infringing aggregators that popped up chances are you are everywhere. I am looking to the day when they get regulated as they are in Europe. Call me old fashioned, I still like to engage with people vs. services ;-)