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!
Comments 6
What I like about Social Media sharing is that I am getting to know people better than I normally would. Getting to see another side of people I work with / for is very amazing to me. It gives you so much more perspective and changes your response to them in the work environment.
People get tired of always having their “professional” face on… nice to just chat and hang out and express oneself on a casual level.
Great post!
Author
I totally agree! It’s personalizes people and humanizes brands… it’s nice to see! Thanks for commenting!
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I know a person who is scared to death of sharing. She doesn’t want to “expose” herself to anyone. She feels privacy is the real issue and wants to protect herself and her family from the predators on the internet. Is she paranoid, careful or does she just not understand social networking? Thoughts?
Author
Good question. I think it’s a little bit of both. Some people are just not comfortable on social networking sites, and that’s fine, but they are really missing out. Also, people tend to be scared of things that they don’t understand. Did you read my blog about converting social media skeptics? Maybe some of those tips can be used to convince your friend: http://jcsocial.wpengine.com/2012/02/22/how-to-convert-social-media-skeptics-into-believers/
Let me know what happens…
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