A lot of people joke about the things people feel compelled to disclose on social networking sites for good reason. For example, here’s a sampling of status updates filling my Facebook feed now: “Baby just sat up and spit up;” “Going for a walk;” “I <3 and miss Boyfriend;” and “Working.” Even though they’re my friends, these updates don’t interest even me. Baby spitting up? Gross. Going for a walk? OK. You <3 and miss your boyfriend? Tell Boyfriend, not me. You’re working? Well, it looks like you’re just playing on Facebook.
I’ve been guilty of a “#GoodMorning” or a “Just landed” Tweet that aren’t slightly interesting for most people. But I think we can do better. Twitter and Facebook are sites that allow us to connect to people we don’t see everyday. That’s what we should be doing – connecting. I think we should put content out there that creates a dialogue rather than just posts and tweets that push information one way.
I found this useful a time or two. For example, I’m planning my wedding and when I wanted to hear others’ opinions about hiring a professional to do my hair and makeup, I went to Facebook where I have the largest online network of friends. And it worked! I got feedback from several of my recently married friends that helped make my decision. Here’s another example. When one of my friends used the word ‘cattywampus’ in a recent conversation, I took to my Facebook page to (hopefully) find I wasn’t the only one with a limited vocabulary that didn’t involve this word I swore was made up. My Facebook post created the longest string of interaction on one topic I’ve ever had on my page. Apparently my friend isn’t the only one with an unusual vocabulary.
I don’t think the diary updates (that are mixed in with a lot of useful information!) are going anywhere. But let’s at least share our lives online in a more interesting, social way.
Reader Comments
There are no comments yet. Be the first to create one!