I Don't Want to be an Expert, or Why I Put All This Personal Stuff Out There

I recently read an article about "how to know when you are a social media expert". One of the 'signs' was that you have a good following- the author said that if you still get excited about every new follower or comment on a blog posting, you're not an expert yet.

I also read someone's Twitter policy, and they explained how they follow everyone (nice) and they manage their feed by searching keywords and following trends etc. that interest them. Makes sense, but the more I thought about it, the more I kind of didn't think it really fit for me. I like seeing what people are talking about even if it might not be something I think I'm interested in. I've found a lot of really cool stuff that way, and I've found stuff for other people that way- which is really even more fun for me.

So  I've decided that I don't want to be an expert. I love social media just for that, for the followers and for the comments, and don't want to be doing it anymore if I ever lose that excitement. Yeah, there's the business and marketing side to it, which I also find fascinating, but I LOVE social media because I think it brings people together in a way that nothing else can.

I remember once hearing a story about a woman who started using Twitter, and by beginning to connect with people through that, was able to come out of  a deep depression that had previously kept her from interacting with others.

I have darn near a dozen ways to follow me if not more, and I'm pretty open and honest on all of them. I don't think it's because I'm so egotistical that I think that many people want to know about me, or so narcissistic that I want to see ME all over the place. 

What it comes down to is that I just don't think anyone should ever feel alone if at all possible.

Someone once said to me that it's the worst thing to be alone in the middle of the night and feel like you have no one to call.

I haven't been in that position, but man, I bet it is.

I can't be that person that everyone can call in the middle of the night. I can't even be that person that can reply to everyone's mentions on twitter. But if someone can read something I post and say "oh thank god, I thought I was the only one!", then at least they know they are not the only one. They're not alone.

And that's something.