It's been a long run, guys. I'm sad to say that this will be my last blog post since I will be heading off to college soon (and Google Reader is shutting down :/ ). Chances are, if you are reading this blog, you are an active user of social media and you communicate with others in some way, shape, or form. Hopefully you've gained something valuable from following all my blog, but I'd like to leave you all with 3 rules to guide your future as powerful leaders in the social media world.
Rule 1: If it's too good to be true, it's usually too good to be true
If you don't know what I'm talking about, you might want to reread my post on Manti Te-O for a bit of a refresher.
Most of us can tell apart the Chase Bank impostor asking for a social security number from the actual bank asking to verify previous transactions. Obviously, stay away from spam, scams, and the like, but what's more important is that you judge people on more than their profile picture or social media activity. As I will be attending Northwestern University in the fall, I've been actively looking for a roommate. After posting my bio on the roommate page, one kid messaged me who I thought seemed pretty cool. But I met up with him at a business competition in California and my initial impressions did not exactly hold true. However, recently I found a roommate who shared similar interests to me, but when we met up in person I knew he was a perfect fit. So lesson to be learned, it's better to doubt everything than accept everything as the truth.
Rule 2: Balance your real time and your fake time
At the risk of sounding cliche, I'm not going to preach how it's important to make time to see people face-to-face or read the newspaper. Some people read Reddit or Twitter like it's the Bible, as if some how the random disjointed posts or tweets somehow fill in all the hidden cracks in your knowledge that the NY Times could not. I'm a strong believer that the greatest things in life are our relationships with other people, and these virtual relationships simply don't cut it. Touch, smell, sight, emotions. These things help form memories of those important to us in our lives. While iPhone's FaceTime or Skype allows us to communicate, it is impossible to involve these other powerful senses.
Rule 3: Let the force be with you
As much as you should be cautious of social media and communication, my final point is definitely to remember that these tools can be agents of change. Internet has become the first communication method that allows groups of people to communicate with other groups of people. If you're passionate about an idea (see my blog on gay rights), make it known. Use the small sphere you've created in the social world to spread your ideas and ambitions. My dream is to one day start my own business, and I've been absolutely amazed at a website called Kickstarter which helps young minds with creative ideas receive funding to start a business. With high speed communication, ideas travel faster and farther. It seems foolish to let that go to waste.
Rule 1: If it's too good to be true, it's usually too good to be true
If you don't know what I'm talking about, you might want to reread my post on Manti Te-O for a bit of a refresher.
Most of us can tell apart the Chase Bank impostor asking for a social security number from the actual bank asking to verify previous transactions. Obviously, stay away from spam, scams, and the like, but what's more important is that you judge people on more than their profile picture or social media activity. As I will be attending Northwestern University in the fall, I've been actively looking for a roommate. After posting my bio on the roommate page, one kid messaged me who I thought seemed pretty cool. But I met up with him at a business competition in California and my initial impressions did not exactly hold true. However, recently I found a roommate who shared similar interests to me, but when we met up in person I knew he was a perfect fit. So lesson to be learned, it's better to doubt everything than accept everything as the truth.
Rule 2: Balance your real time and your fake time
At the risk of sounding cliche, I'm not going to preach how it's important to make time to see people face-to-face or read the newspaper. Some people read Reddit or Twitter like it's the Bible, as if some how the random disjointed posts or tweets somehow fill in all the hidden cracks in your knowledge that the NY Times could not. I'm a strong believer that the greatest things in life are our relationships with other people, and these virtual relationships simply don't cut it. Touch, smell, sight, emotions. These things help form memories of those important to us in our lives. While iPhone's FaceTime or Skype allows us to communicate, it is impossible to involve these other powerful senses.
Rule 3: Let the force be with you
As much as you should be cautious of social media and communication, my final point is definitely to remember that these tools can be agents of change. Internet has become the first communication method that allows groups of people to communicate with other groups of people. If you're passionate about an idea (see my blog on gay rights), make it known. Use the small sphere you've created in the social world to spread your ideas and ambitions. My dream is to one day start my own business, and I've been absolutely amazed at a website called Kickstarter which helps young minds with creative ideas receive funding to start a business. With high speed communication, ideas travel faster and farther. It seems foolish to let that go to waste.
No comments:
Post a Comment