My Imaginary Friend

I was introduced to twitter by @phdbre in the fall of last year (2008). With the encouragement of @danupoyner, I decided to give it a try.

Including that first post, I've written five posts about twitter and have tried to figure out whether it's a good thing or just a nuisance and a waste of time.

The answers went from "this is stupid" to "this is fantastic" to "everyone's gotta try this" to "why am I losing sleep over this" to "people are doing good things on here" to "I know I can find a way to make this work" to "I am really bored with this" and so on...

I think I have finally figured it out (for now :-)). In the beginning, I felt pressured to always say things that are insightful, profound, or hilarious. I thought being noticed by others was the goal of twitter, and perhaps it is for some people. I found myself pressuring myself to post things that would be worth a second look by the readers. Getting people to reply back to me became the carrot that kept me searching endlessly for something brilliant or funny to say (and increasingly feeling incompetent.)

Just like anything else that I start with good intentions, I became disillusioned and bored with the whole thing (this, by the way, is a common trait among ENTPs). I hoped I could find a great use for twitter and make a difference in people's lives. But that was exactly the problem. Meeting the impossible standard I set for myself depended largely on other people responding to me. The more I looked for attention and approval, the less I could be myself. So I mostly stayed away and almost deleted my account but chose not to because of the few inspiring (and real) people whom I follow.

Then, a few days ago, I realized that perhaps the only thing I need to do, ever... is just be myself. If something profound gets said, let it be spontaneous. If I should be judged for saying something less than brilliant, less than uber friendly, less than hilarious, or downright stupid... that should not be my concern.

I began throwing my random thoughts onto the rectangular canvas at the top of my twitter page and observing how they land... no restrictions or fear of judgment. I no longer hover my mouse over the "update" button wondering if my words are worthy to post. Twitter finally feels like a friend. It can be my thinking-out-loud space. And I'm choosing to look at any replies merely as thoughts bouncing back at me. I just bounce them back with no expectations. This seems to be working (for now.) :-)

There's something strangely freeing about releasing all the personal attachment and feelings connected to something and letting go of expectations. The anxiety lifts, and I am not afraid to be me.

UPDATE: I WAS WRONG! HERE and HERE for the latest.

Elephant in the Room

Painting - LeRoy Neiman


The following story is absolutely true, except for the parts that aren't. ;-)

A man landed at an airport in an unfamiliar city. He did a quick scan of the city on his way to meet with a big shot client, and he did not have a very good first impression of the town. This was very unfortunate, as what was about to happen was beyond his wildest imagination. This is how it all began: He posted his "140-characters-or-less" thoughts about his first impression on his personal social media account and went about his business.

An employee of the big shot client saw the man's post and immediately alerted the big shot bosses of his big shot company, who then had to take some big shot action right away. And when the big shot bosses get involved, there has to be big shot apologies, big shot hand-shakes and such… and hopefully, that would be the end… right? Wrong!

A big shot news man wrote a big shot story on his big shot blog about the big shot bosses not taking a big enough action to put an end (once and for all) to any negative comments being made about the big shot hand that feeds us. Never mind our true feelings. We must be always civil, polite, and spread fake love all around... by golly, or else!

"Off with his head!"
"Off with his head!"

The chants could be heard all over the nation.

Words to the wise: Do not, I repeat, DO NOT make less than pretty remarks when an elephant is listening. He will step on you. Why? Quite simply, because he can! And he will not hesitate to call in the rest of the herd to trample you as well.

[ADDENDUM: I'd like to add that there are always 360 degrees of very different views to every story. This is just one. Right and wrong is not my focus.]

A twitter experiment/challenge

THIS POST HAS BEEN MOVED TO (The link to come)

Having some Twitter fun

Tonight, I'm helping a friend reach the number 2,000 in followers. He is the co-creator of Nibipedia, a site that combines YouTube and Wikipedia. I love what he's doing. He's a fellow fan of TED, which speaks for itself. I'm rooting for him. Why? Because it's fun to root for and help someone achieve something that seems so important to them. As I write this, he has 7 more followers to go. I decided to give away a prize (a book) to his 2,000th follower.

I've seen other give-aways on Twitter, and I've been thinking it would be fun to give something away. And voila! An opportunity for me to help someone reach their goal and have my fun at the same time.

The lucky winner will receive this book:


It has been sitting on my book shelf waiting to be given away as a gift (I had bought five copies - as I have a habit of buying more than one of everything), and I hope I'll be mailing it out to someone tomorrow...

And I can then say: "I've given a prize away on Twitter!"

Yep. That's my goal. :-)

Fallen under the twitter spell

In a previous post, I expressed my skepticism about twitter. I did not understand what all the fuss was about. However, I was determined to have an open mind and give it a try.

After two months and 100+ followers/followees later, something strange has happened. I've become a tweep without even realizing it. The thing about twitter is that it is so multi-functional. It is your friend; it is your critic; it is your micro blog; it is your support group; it is your business coach; it is your teacher; it is your market researcher; it is your sales team; it is your counselor; it is your comic relief; it is your debate partner; it is your sounding board... etc. It is what you want it to be. (Umm... I think I vaguely remember Danu Poyner saying something to that effect when he challenged me to keep my twitter account for 30 days.) Every time you log in, you become instantly in touch with what the world is thinking, reading, watching, buying, selling, playing, eating... and so on.

"Who cares what you're doing every minute of every day?" one would ask. What I see as a common misconception about twitter is that it is a narcissistic self-promoting tool where a bunch of voyeurs/losers are following your every move for whatever reason. It really does sound rather silly from a newcomer's point of view.

The funny thing is... once you start throwing your thoughts/ideas/questions out there in the sea of minds, people respond. And you see thoughts that catch your eye which you want to respond to. You find friends who share similar ideas and interests - friends with whom you communicate with 140 characters or less at a time. No pressure and no obligations. People come and go as they please, and twitter never sleeps.

It's a world in which "unfollow" is the worst thing we can do to one another. And when you lose a follower, there's always another to follow.

Regardless of the differing opinions on the purposefulness of twitter, the fact remains that it has the internet community under its spell. Although I'm still clumsily trying to navigate my way, there's no denying that the world of twitter has grown (and still growing) too big to ignore.

Twitter seems to have its finger on the pulse of the world, and I'm finding myself humming and tweeting along.

I'm still here, twalive and twell, well beyond my challenge period... And twitter, I dedicate this song to you! ;-)

twitter dee, twitter dumb...

All those twitter fans out there, please don't be offended.

I've decided to go in and see for myself what it's all about. It's been a whole 7 hours since I signed up for a twitter account. Hmmm... still waiting for that "aha" moment. How is this different than my son's cell phone constantly beeping at him (annoyingly) with text messages?

My initial thoughts are, "This is really dumb" (probably because I don't understand it yet).

Please, please try to make me eat my words. I dare you, twitter!

I'll keep you posted...