24 February 2012

Follow Friday - Who do you NOT know?

Well, made it to another Friday and my gosh, it's nearly March! Holy mackerel!! 

For those of you that follow me here, first and foremost, thank you. It's only been about six months since I've started this blog, and it's been a mix of information, searching, more information and kvetching. What I've realized is the incredible power that Social Media has, both over Society as a whole and us as individuals. I'll leave the larger Social aspect of it to the professionals; today I'd like to address the personal, individual aspect. 

In August, I attended my first tweet-up, a social event taking place during the Society of American Archivist's meeting in Chicago. At the end of March, I'll be attending the Midwest Geneabloggers first meeting in Ft. Wayne, IN where I'll be meeting a group of ardent genealogy bloggers to research and socialize. Hmmm...there's that word...socialize. Because, I believe, many of us are here to fill a social void in our lives. That's not to say that we don't HAVE social lives...LOL...just that there may be an aspect missing, or more to the point, there's something additive about being on social media.

My first foray into Social Media was in about 2007 when my husband's nephew was preparing for a May 2008 wedding. There were plans galore, and with people being strewn across the globe, everyone was getting on Facebook to stay in touch. So I thought, 'why not.' And, like many before me, I lost my mind. Heh. I allowed Facebook to take up far too much of my time. But, I was able to connect with people I would not have otherwise had the opportunity to connect with: people I'd gone to grammar and high school with, relatives in other States, people I did (and didn't) know in foreign countries. At that time, Facebook was fairly easy to use, and it was private. I could send private messages to people without concern that everyone on the Internet would be reading them. 

But then, as Facebook grew exponentially, they started to make changes. Mark Zuckerberg has notoriously said that he thinks everything on Facebook should be open and transparent (as Twitter is), and that flew in the face of many user's expectations. People started leaving Facebook looking for other social media outlets. One of my friends (@thinkstory) told me about a newer social media platform called Twitter. It wasn't anything like Facebook, yet allowed you to connect with other people. So, I tried it. And, once again, I lost my mind. Heh. 

The huge difference between Facebook and Twitter is that on Facebook you "friend" people, but on Twitter you "follow" people. People you DON'T know. And, right about now if you ask, 'why would you want to do that?', then you're missing out on a huge part of social media. I like to think of Twitter as a giant 1950's era dance party. You walk in and see all the little groups together in one big room. There's a huge variety of people, and generally speaking your instinct will be to head over to the group you already know. They welcome you warmly, and it feels good. Then someone from one of the other groups comes over and says to one of your friends, 'hey, did we meet at the soda fountain the other day?' Your friend acknowledges them, interacts with them and you feel comfortable because there's a mutual connection. But, and this is where it gets really great, the new person then says, 'Hey! I have a whole bunch of other people for you to meet!!' You have the opportunity and option to either meet them or not. It's social. All the way.

Why the heck am I bringing this up? Well, there are more and more social media platforms, with more and more ways to connect with people. I left Facebook for a while, mainly because of privacy concerns. I didn't like the fact that what had been a seemingly closed, private network became so open and transparent. But, having spent a couple of years on Twitter, I realized I could utilize Facebook in the same manner now, and so I decided to do that. A few days ago, I started sending Friend requests to people I'd connected with on Twitter and Google+. The more of those I'd sent requests to, the more suggestions I received. So, I went on a Friend spree. Except yesterday I received a nasty message from Facebook saying I had Friended too many people and/or sent Friend requests to too many people I didn't know. Well, duh. YOU suggested I Friend these people, so I did. Anyway, in the end, I received lots of messages of support when I vented my frustration about it, and I'm not going to let a silly policy stop me from 'meeting' people on Facebook.

If you're not out on Twitter, I strongly recommend you try it. There are many, many wonderful genealogy Tweeps out there, willing to follow you, if you follow them. And, if you just want to lurk, i.e. watch without participating, I have a list of genealogy tweeps you can follow: Its All In The Family. You can find me @ArchivalBiz. If you have questions or aren't sure about it, send me an email and I'll be happy to explain it. In the meantime, get out there. Socialize! You just never know who you're going to meet. :-)

10 comments:

  1. Fantastic post, Laura! And, Jen really is our glue, isn't she?! Honestly, I can't remember who I met first... I know that I met Terri through NIGS but didn't actually start connecting with her until Twitter. My life is definitely better for the three of you. Without my Chicago Contingency, I wouldn't be editing, writing like I am, the Columbus Genealogy Examiner, part of ProGen15, associating with many wonderful people that you met at a water fountain and introduced me to at a dance party... the list goes on and on. Love it. Love ya! Thanks, Social Media!

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    1. First, thanks! I'm very aware that not everyone WANTS to use Social Media in this way, but I think it's very important for people to know it's not the scary thing that it's often perceived to be. Love you, too!

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  2. Being a newbie to social media, I've been hesistant to use Twitter but your post has encouraged me to give it a try. I had to sign up for a Twitter account in order to use Pinterest. I've had a Pinterest account for one week and really enjoyed it, but it's easy to spend way too much time there. So many fun things to see and repin as well as adding what I like.

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    1. To me, Twitter is more about information. Both the kind you want, and the kind you have to give. We don't always realize that our unique perspective is just that, unique. And that there may be someone out there that values that perspective. Get out there and give it a try. And as I said in my post, feel free to ask questions if you need to! Thanks for posting your comment!!

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  3. This is a good explanation, Laura. Unless people have had a social networking experience BEYOND re-connecting with old friends, I find that they really don't get it. There is a New England genea-blogging group that I look forward to meeting this spring. When I mentioned this to someone, I said "you know, people I just know online, cyber friends" and she said "oh, you're stalking them?" Well, I hope not (!!) ... unless you've had the experience, apparently it's hard to understand.

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    1. Yes, Diane, that's true. My hope is that through OUR experiences, both good and bad, we can educate those around us to the benefits of participating in Social Media. Thanks for taking the time to comment; I really do appreciate it!

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  4. A Geneabloggers' meetup in Fort Wayne? Ooooh, I'm jealous! My fav research place, and my fav research topic!

    I'm not exactly sure why, but I've been on the fence about Twitter for a long time. Researched it, watched it, searched it (trending topics via their website), so it's not like I don't know enough. Just got to pull the trigger, I guess. Perhaps it's the time-sync thing. I can see lots of hours going down the tubes. Can't afford that. I know I'd need a "time management for social media junkies" primer, for sure!

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    1. Jacqui, I've never been to Ft. Wayne, so I'm really looking forward to it! I posted the link to the group on my FB page...check it out if you'd like to join! It is challenging keeping track of the time, but the value that I get from that time spent is the most important thing. Thanks for taking the time to comment, too!

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  5. I have been having a lot of luck with Twitter. I don't have many friends on Facebook, but more fans than I can throw a sack of bobcats at.

    Great post!

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  6. Ha! I was out of town for the weekend and am only just now seeing this. You make Twitter just that much more amazing for everyone else, I'm so glad I get credit for getting you in there!

    Smooches,
    Laura
    (@thinkStory)

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Thank you so much for taking the time to read and comment on my blog!