I recently took the family on a vacation to the lovely beaches of Cancun, Mexico. We had a great time and got a little sunburned, but I can’t tell you how great it was to get away from the computer, put my toes in the sand, and hold a cold drink in my hand. While I was there I read some books on social media that I have been trying to get around to reading, and it spurred me to think about some things.
One day, while standing around at the pool I overheard a couple of guys talking about other resorts in Mexico. From what I gathered from the conversation, they had just met. They were sharing with each other the best places to go for scuba diving, the best restaurant in the local town, the best resort to go to if you wanted a couples’ getaway, and so on. They were sharing with each other the names of the people that you need to ask for, and what you needed to say when you showed up at a certain place to get the best deal, or the best table, or the best whatever.
It reminded me why social networking is so very powerful. Now, mind you, these guys were engaged in what we call ‘old school’ social networking… there was no computer, no Yelp, no Twitter posts… it was just one guy to another guy, sharing some juicy tidbits about how to find the ‘best’ this or that. But that is why today’s technological social networking works so well. It allows people to share those types of things without having to go all the way to Mexico to get it. Using any of the hundreds, yea thousands, of outlets/tools available to you, social networking can connect you to people and information like never before in history.
On the flight back home we were sitting in the coach section of the plane and I looked forward toward the first class section of the plane. The flight attendant was coming down the aisle with the beverage cart and when she got through first class, she turned around and closed the curtain between first class and the rest of the cabin. I guess it was to keep those first class folks safe from the rabble rousers like me. But I’ll say this… it seemed awfully quiet up there in first class. And the seats are so big, plush, and spacious, that you can’t hardly interact with anyone but the person sitting next to you.
That reminded me why open social networks are also very powerful. When you participate in an open environment (not closed behind that darn curtain!) you have access to so much more experiences and people and information. It is also much more fun! I guarantee you that the folks sitting around my kids on that flight knew what was going on in my kid’s lives and what they were experiencing, whether they wanted to or not! I made friends with the folks sitting around me and engaged in conversations with them about their lives. Perhaps it was because we were all sitting shoulder to shoulder and didn’t have any other choice, but that is beside the point!
I tell people all the time that social media is more about the ‘social’ than the ‘media’. And while it sure would be fun to have your toes in the sand while doing it, you don’t have to go all the way to Cancun.
I do miss that sand though.
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