I was reading a blog the other day titled, “The 20 minute social media solution”. Pfft! I call, well I call bull poop (watching my language) on that statement. There are folks out there who only spend 20 minutes a day on their social media accounts? Not humanly possible.
This is a glimpse into my reality:
Sign onto Facebook and read timeline: 5 minutes
Read funny story about dog that dances and share with friends: 2 minutes
Phone daughter and tell her to check Facebook because I have just shared really funny story about dog that dances: 5 minutes
Read timelines again – see if there is anything new: 3 minutes
Post question of the day on Facebook status: 5 minutes
Minimize Facebook and sign onto Twitter: 2 minutes
I have just wasted 20 minutes on Facebook! I haven’t even begun to lose myself in the Twitterverse while Facebook remains open on my desktop because, well, because I am not quite ready to say goodbye yet and I want to be able to tab in and out when folks respond to my question of the day.
Darn it, my coffee has gone cold.
This is my morning every morning. Yes, it is sad and yes, I think I am addicted, but my social media addiction isn’t the focus of this story/article/fable/editorial.
I am going to commence with a little, “Do as I say, not as I do” preaching.
The folks that only spend 20 minutes a day on managing their social media are probably not doing a very good job. The folks that spend as much time as I do on their social media are not doing a very good job of managing their lives.
Where is the middle ground? What is the RIGHT amount of time to spend.
Here is the answer.
The right amount of time is different for everyone. Those who manage a business account and are therefore responding to customer concerns and providing feedback, must always be connected to their social media accounts. Folks like my Dad who have one social media account (facebook) do not have to be wired in 24 hours a day. Dad logs in after breakfast and reads his timeline, making comments and then updating his own status with something that always ends with, “Life is great, you have a good day”.
What about the rest of us? You know what I mean, the ones who land in the middle of these two examples?
We have Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and Instagram on our smartphones. Our heads whip around like a rattlesnake when we hear the “ding” or see the blinking light of our blackberry. It is just so easy so be “on” all of the time.
Do you have a problem dividing up your time between reading funny Facebook status’, posting close up Instagram photos of your eye and getting to work on time? Perhaps some of these tips will be helpful. If
Here are a few tips that I try my hardest to follow, although I have problems with the second one and the last one:
- Turn your smart phone off when you go to bed. Why? Because that damn “ding” will wake you up out of a deep sleep and honestly….it is probably just an incoming spam email (This is one of the tips I actually follow).
- Turn off your smart phone when you are having a meal.
- Slice up the time: Divide up your time on social media according to the value of the media. For some it will be Facebook, others it will be Twitter or Linkedin.
- Engage, Inform, Retweet: I didn’t dream this one up, my friend Jenise Fryatt (a social media rock star) did. What does it mean? It means that when connecting on social media, you need to engage (start conversations), inform (share valuable/timely information) and retweet (share what they are sharing). The same rule applies with Facebook. If everyone was only posting updates and not having conversations and sharing photos, information and yes….funny videos of dogs dancing, then Facebook wouldn’t be as valuable as it is.
- Subscribe to a RSS feed: When you subscribe to a RSS feed, it means that you don’t have to individually visit all of your favourite sites, wasting valuable time every day. For example, a blog that you love doesn’t have a new post every day, but you check it every day just in case. The RSS feed would automatically identify the new blog post – you need only check your RSS feed to find out. Note: You will need to also subscribe to a RSS feed reader
Hope these tips are helpful. If not, perhaps a support group for some of us is necessary.
Judy Kucharuk is owner of Footprint Management Systems Inc. and specializes in Green Meetings and Event Innovation. Currently President of GMIC Canada Chapter in Formation. For more info log onto her blog www.managefootprint.blogspot.com or follow her on twitter @judylaine
