Maybe… I am just in a bad mood. Maybe… I am just upset because the Colt’s lost the Super Bowl last night. Maybe… I am just being honest and open with my opinions… whether right or wrong. Either way… I have a bone to pick with a certain group of people that use social media. I am going to preface this by saying that I have also been guilty of this activity and have been trying to change my ways… 🙂
There are a certain group of tweets, status updates, and posts that are sent out every day that consist of what I call “The Tony Robbin’s Smile Tweet-Post-Update.” If you are familiar with Tony Robbins… you can understand where I am coming from here… Here are some examples:
“Let’s have an awesome week! Lot’s of great stuff planned and new clients rolling in. Good luck everyone!”
“Just believe in yourself and all your wishes will come true!”
“If you don’t climb the mountain, you can’t view the plain.”
“Just talked to @abdcd and it was the best conversation ever! So Awesome!
Now… the last one in that list is not necessarily bad because you might truly think that the person was awesome (I’ve done it) but does it really have to be every person you have a phone conversation with… and do I need to know… every… time? There should come a time when you strive, yearn, and want to create something more…There should come a time when you want to create content and updates that make people think and strive to be more both intellectually and emotionally…
Where do you draw the line as a person and as a brand? I think the issue I am having with so much irrelevant content is that… it is not new… it is not fun… if I wanted an ego boost I would turn on Joel Osteen or Tony Robbins. And most of all… it is not real. So let’s talk about how we stray away from terrible human development content and get down to creating content that will be extremely beneficial to your life, business, and social media tribe.
1. Share thoughts and emotions surrounding an experience.
“This weekend’s funeral left me pondering: Do you celebrate the life lived, or mourn for what is gone and what will never be?”
This is an important development in the world of social media. You can share business and info about your company but you can go to an entirely new level with an update like the one listed above. (This is more for the personal business account than a company account) It is a tasteful update that will get a response and bring the community closer together.
2. Do NOT re-tweet, re-share, or re-post every quote on God’s green EARTH.
I am okay with one or two quotes a day but when I keep getting “live your best life now” or “this is the first day of the rest of your life” quotes it gets fairly annoying. I do appreciate the individual trying to pump me up but I don’t need self-help gurus in my face every day.
3. Share quality content around your company, service, or life.
If you are a self-help coach… I understand the concept of sharing thoughts and ideas about self improvement… when you are not in the self-help world and everything is absolutely (over-the-top) positive that flies off the keyboard… it strikes me as a little fake. I want to know real. I want to know substance! I want to know how life is being led… treated… and dealt with… We can all grow if we are honest with our positions.
4. Don’t share about every success, new client, or project development in your company.
It is okay to celebrate with your community but there is a fine line between blatant self-promotion and excitement…. because the truth of the matter remains… If you were actually signing all the clients and success under the sun… you wouldn’t have the time to use social media 14 hours a day. 🙂
5. Be real. Be real. Be real.
It is important to share information and content that excites and drives you through life. If you want to share gobs of emotionally insignificant content… that is your prerogative… but remember that the best strive to be real, honest, and raw. I want to know about the little things in life… I want to know when a community member is upset because an individual flipped them off on the road.
I want to know when they are hurt, exhausted, and emotionally raw.
I think it comes down to the point of not going over the top… everything is okay in moderation… do not share every pain and do not share every success… just be who you are… period.