My name is Julia and I am an over-sharer.
I post pictures of my daughter eating breakfast on Facebook, I check into places on Foursquare, I pin beautiful photographs on Pinterest, I post my blog to LinkedIn, and I tweet about politics, social media and nonprofits on Twitter.
The only time I am not sharing something is when I’m asleep (and even then I schedule posts and tweets to go out – thanks Hootsuite!)
This level of sharing makes some people uncomfortable. They don’t understand why I would want to “expose” myself in such a way.
Am I a narcissist? No. Do I think I am super important and that everyone is going to be interested in everything that I post/share/tweet? Not really.
I realize and embrace that there is a new normal in our world, and it is sharing things online. I read a great blog post by Seth Godin that asked the question – If you aren’t sharing anything online, why aren’t you? There isn’t anything wrong with the medium – rather, there may be something wrong with you.
I’d rather over-share than share nothing at all.
Some of the reasons why I share:
Connections. I like to connect with people, to discuss and to build relationships.
Community. I enjoy keeping in touch with my community and seeing what’s happening in real time.
Feedback. I can get feedback on a topic or issue.
Validation and/or debate. If people agree with me on an issue, great. I don’t shy away from debate though!
Advice. I often need help figuring something out, and I want to hear what like-minded people are doing or thinking.
Humor. Maybe I need a laugh, or I want to share something to make someone laugh.
Emotion. Most times I share news articles or photos that evoke an emotion, and I want others to feel that way too.
Altruism. I want to assist others, to help others and to share information I think will be of value. Not everything I share relates back to me – in fact, most of what I post is external and promoting others.
What motivates you to share online? Or are you hesitant to join the online conversation? What’s holding you back or pushing you forward?
Please post any feedback or comments in the section below. Thanks!