When I was a kid, I loved to argue.To be honest, I did when I was a young adult too. Ok, to be totally honest – every now and again, I still do. It is not so much that I like the contention, I just like making a point. Sometimes that can turn ugly. Over the years, I have learned how to manage this behavior, but every now and again, I get caught up in some doozies.
Battle Bots
Sometimes I run into people who enjoy it even more than I do. I do my best to avoid taking the bait, but unfortunately, there are times when I feel like being the one to teach them a lesson with their own medicine. This never turns out well, even if I win the argument.
I have noticed that there are some people who enjoy engaging in smack down arguments through their social media networks. I find this behavior to be quite fascinating, even though I don't understand it. To me, the shield of the social network, makes it difficult for trust to be established. It also makes it easy for people to behave in an irresponsible and immature way. A heated discussion, or an argument conducted under these terms is unable to yield a productive outcome.
Rules of Engagement
I don't really understand the rules of engagement for this whole social media experience and arguments are not the only thing about it that confuse me. I also frequently receive some pretty silly and even some pretty intimate requests from people who I barely know at all.
Mafia Wars and Farmville requests come to me from all corners of the world. I don't know what to do with that. Connecting with people in this way seems kind of strange to me.
Some people in my network want to network, some don't. Some want to promote, some don't. Some claim they are in it to build connections, but do little to build connections. Does anybody really understand it? I know I don't.
Fan Pages Become Like Pages
I don't even think Facebook understands it. They recognize that they have a hold of something big, but their constant tweaking suggests that they are still figuring things out. Take the announcement they made today that they will soon be eliminating Fan Pages in favor of the term like. They said people are resistant to proclaiming themselves fans, but willing to state that they like something. What?
I guess the argument I am making here is that social medial holds a lot of promise, but so far, nobody understands it.. Just today, I posted a comment in a LinkedIn group, of which I am a founding member, and I was told, don't post things about yourself here. Huh? What the heck is a social networking group worth if we can't post information to it that introduces, exposes and promotes our efforts. Anything short of that is just a time wasting activity that allows me to hide behind the screen and pretend to be somebody I am not.
What Say Ye?
They say that social media will change our lives, but I am waiting to see how. Will it become a productive tool, or just a way to waste time? I know some are making it work and that is what encourages me to continue with this experiment.
How is social media changing your life?
What successes are you seeing from it?
How do you build trust with those new to your social network?
Relationships are important to me. I am willing to continue investing in my social media network. If you are reading and we are not connected, then please send me an invite.
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Do you think social media will ever live up to its pro
