Trackback URI | Comments are closed.
Cleaning Out Your Social Media Closet Part II
July 3rd, 2009
by John R. Sedivy
In “Cleaning Out Your Social Media Closet Part I” I had discussed my personal evolution with social media and areas of discontent I had encountered. Today I will discuss how I plan on addressing these issues and further tailoring social media to meet my needs.
The Next Evolution
Prior to the release of “Twitter’s Fundamental Flaw” I was seriously considering what to do with social media. What’s next? I have become pretty burned out on the scene, and my use on all platforms has dropped dramatically. I was just tired of all the spam, irrelevant details, and sometimes too much information posted by contacts. I have noticed that that the more that these tools are adopted by the masses, the messier they have become. Is there any value under all this mess?
Yes, but your social media closet is likely too cluttered to see it. When I had moved from Boston’s North End to Cape Cod last year I initially had a difficult time figuring out what to do next. I had too much stuff and way too much to do. I immediately started selling and donating unneeded items – cleaning out my closets in order to lighten my load. This had an immediate and drastic effect. By removing items from my residence, I was readily able to see what I had of value and how it was of use. I view the answer to my social media woes in much the same light.
By having a large number of connections or friends I am diluting the power of these tools. I need to clean out my social media closet. This requires drastic action, such as removing excess connections and friends from social media. This may sound cruel and uncaring, but I assure you it is not. Throughout my life I have noticed that people come and go depending on what phase I (or they) are in. People come and go for a wide variety of reasons. There is, after all, such a thing as too much of a good thing.
This brings me to another difficulty of having too many social media connections. Prior to social media, a person would hold a job, attend a university, or live in an area and spend quite a bit of time with a group of people. After a certain point, it becomes time to move on – either because of graduation, a change in job, or just moving to experience something new. This allowed for people to drift apart – which isn’t always bad. In the past I had found that reconnecting with old friends would be refreshing – we would meet up, have a drink, discuss the past and what has happened since. In a sense I feel that social media may be robbing us of that opportunity by being too connected. What is the point of catching up if we are already caught up?
A False Sense
With too many connections I believe that there is a false sense of value being portrayed. How many “followers” are truly “following” you? How many actually care about what you are doing? How many “friends” are actually “friends?” My solution is to seriously consider each and every contact in your social media closet, and do some cleaning. Is the contact still relevant? Is it time for a break and possible reconnection at a later point? By holding on too tightly to too many contacts you are not making room for new friends and connections. By cleaning out your social media closet you can find mutually beneficial value in your remaining contacts and spend your time wisely and perhaps gain new relationships!
Your Personal Evolution
My solution may not be the same as yours. My intent is to make you consider how you are currently using social media. Are you receiving the most possible value from each social media site or is it simply a false sense of value? Your answer may in fact be different, and it will likely be different at various points of your life – if in fact social media is here for the long term. Consider your personal evolution and how social media fits in to support your goals and objectives.
Clean out your social media closet to re-energize your social media experience!
-John R. Sedivy of Cape Cod Branding
Similar articles you may also enjoy...Social Media Part I (100%) Social Media Part II (100%) Social Media Part III (100%) The Groundswell Effect Part I (100%) The Groundswell Effect Part II (100%) Thanks for visiting CCBbuzz!
Filed under John's Articles, Social Media | Comments (2)
2 Responses to “Cleaning Out Your Social Media Closet Part II”
I am coming at it from a job seeker state of mind. I think the louder your message the more people who see it may be able to help in this new community of ours. Though I am continually going to networking meetings and amplifying the message it is also another way of connecting with people. Some of it is nostalgic and you don’t really become “friends” with them again but it is nice to see what has happened.
Gen Y does not have this issue because they grew up in the digital age. Not that GEN X didn’t have the technology because we are adapters but the Gen Y has the advantage because their entire life has been on the social networks so they don’t have to lose the connections that Gen X did.
I guess it comes down to what you are trying to accomplish and how you manage the tools which allow us to network the way we are.
Hi Jamie,
It appears our perspectives are different – yours from a job seeker, and mine from a GEN X small business owner, so your points are valid based on your value from the social media tools – which may of course evolve over time. Of course, as I had mentioned, value is subjective and that being said we likely value different aspects of social media as well.
Keep this in mind – I have been receiving many “loud” messages from job seekers, new business opportunities, etc. which has led to my decreasing use of these tools – although some are better than others. These messages have been increasing over time, and many of the messages have no business coming to me – they are little better than spam. As with any communications it is best to match your message with the audience, to ensure that the message is warmly received.
Best,
John