From the most amazing connection you can make, to the weirdest and most inappropriate question asked in public, here are my 100 thoughts on social media:
- step into the conversation realizing that not everything needs to be more dramatic online
- be alright with the idea that relationships may be temporary
- don't let judgment guide the next step all the time
- share experiences, in moderation
- use multimedia for learners and readers with different styles/preferences
- use your content and smarts to elevate the other
- be helpful
- care
- realize that the most important person is the other
- make the content rock
- help readers rock
- listen and ask questions
- stay humble
- keep learning
- participate sincerely, and not to brown nose
- connect
- take responsibility
- resist copying
- liberate your inner fan
- transform your attitude
- challenge your assumptions
- think community vs. self
- collaborate freely
- develop opportunity
- stay passionate
- insist on authenticity
- stay open to changing your mind
- provide a platform for others to find people with like interests
- build interactions in your conversations
- stay curious
- stay offline when you're tired or argumentative
- dream, think, do
- facilitate conversations
- build prototypes
- invent possibilities
- use engagement to accelerate learning
- brag about your fans products and services
- evangelize your employees
- observe more, judge less
- see the social triggers that make stuff happen
- be more transparent
- choose teaching over winning
- open communication lines
- prefer open understanding
- keep your promises
- build an extra mile on someone else's runway
- laugh more, especially about yourself
- be courageous
- stay with it through the thick and thin
- tell stories
- respect private
- find a cause for the fire in your belly
- be original, be yourself
- celebrate common traits
- want less, do more
- become the person you'd like to be
- stay soft on people when you're hard on issues
- appreciate the small gestures, they are a big deal
- communicate more, when in doubt
- amaze yourself
- recognize talent
- take more walks
- connect because you want to, not because you feel you have to
- discover and highlight worthy projects
- understand the power of silence
- stay hungry
- thank often and liberally
- be patient
- encourage exploration
- make your writing a work of art
- find mentors
- practice what you preach
- be flexible
- adopt and credit good ideas
- break down elitist walls
- step out of formulas
- reinvent joy
- earn your stripes
- face your responsibilities
- recognize and celebrate differences
- learn to think with your own experience
- invest in building something
- appreciate success is several years in the making
- know your values
- work with others, it's not a competition
- make someone's day
- put people first
- read more, react less
- know your limits
- find inspiration
- experiment
- adjust
- be ready to be surprised
- get to know your peers
- inspire and find inspiration
- know you make a difference
- forget the numbers, you count
- let others opt in
- set a good example, thank often
- raise your industry, community, readers
The highly capable people, the "power users", are not those who mastered the tools, those who make perfect, know all the answers, and tower over it all. They're those who elevate others. One last thought: when you know why you're going, you can move fast.
Your turn now. What are your thoughts on social media? Have they changed over time?
[updated from archives]
[image courtesy of cobalt123]
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Valeria is an experienced listener. She is also frequent speaker at conferences and companies on a variety of topics. To book her for a speaking engagement click here.