Social Media Day

Today is my learn new social media day. It's too cold to play outside, and the malls are too packed to shop, so my laptop & I are ensconced on the couch checking out a variety of social media sites. I've been using ShareThis today to promote an upcoming DAR event at my local chapter. The list of sites to share your posts via ShareThis seems to have exploded since I last paid attention. This post is to test two new sites I've joined: Tumblr and IFTTT. Apparently Tumblr and Blogger don't talk to each other directly, so it was recommended that I try IFTT which stands for If This, Then That. If then statements? I haven't used them since high school!? Luckily, they use icons and simple words to guide me through setting up the "recipe". If you have a Tumblr account or follow me on Twitter, we can see together if I remember enough of high school math to get the equation right.

Aha-Ha Moment

A conversation with a Lisa, a fellow book club member created a mini aha ha moment yesterday. This month my book club is reading “The Happiness Project” by Gretchen Rubin. Disclosure: I haven’t read it yet as I’m still waiting for my copy from the library. The book has led many people to alter their lives for the better. Another one of our book club members wants the club to do a happiness project together. Since I haven’t read the book yet, Lisa gave me a quick rundown starting with the challenge to change 5 things in your life a month. My stomach started to clench with the stress of a) coming up with 5 things b) the upheaval in my life to change 5 things in a month and c) oh God I’ll have to come up with ANOTHER 5 things for the next month. With these thoughts swirling around in my head, I zoned out on the recap of the rest of the book. Then I tuned back in to hear Lisa admit how changing 5 things was beyond her at this point.

Wait a minute, what? This is a very organized and together lady we’re talking about. I’ve lost count at the number of self-help books and organizational blogs I read, while my life and house remain a mess. This is not a knock on any of the authors I’ve read, this is all about me. Why is it when I go in with such good intentions about implementing all the fabulous ideas, nothing happens. Oh a pile of stuff might be cleaned up or I create my affirmations list, then… I get overwhelmed and nada. Oh wait this was about her response not mine. Without guilt my friend said since 5 changes were to overwhelming, she decided to pick one thing to change a month to create more happiness in her life. Hmm, pick ONE thing to change in my life and do it for a month. Well yeah, that I should be able to manage. (As soon as I decide what that change should be). The aha-ha for me is I can take a piece from a self-help book or blog and just do that piece. AND thats OK! I don’t have to implement the entire process, just incorporate the part that really resonates with me. 

Writing Skills

I have not done any consistent writing since college. In today’s world it is becoming more imperative that I hone my writing skills. Social Media such as, Facebook, Twitter and blogs are becoming critical venues for any marketing plan.  The ability to communicate in a concise, informative and engaging way will be determining factors in how well a marketing plan succeeds.

So the question is – can I write for the new media world we now live in?  I have been working on a number of events for the Friends of the Roxbury Library. I will be tweeting and blogging about these events in the next few months. How well I succeed has yet to be seen.