I know it’s trendy to disrespect social media, to blame it for the ironic social isolation it can create and for the obsessive time suck it can become. I actually don’t disagree with the red flags good critics raise about the topic. However, I can also safely say hardly a day goes by that I do not feel better informed and inspired by something served up by Facebook or Tumblr, which are my personal favorites.
Why? As a good Jungian, I would have to posit the social aspect of “social media” has its root in our collective unconscious. As millions upon millions of people daily make posts, they are writing the story of our species with all of its tragedy, comedy, pathos and humanity. As we respond to those same posts we raise to an individual conscious level what is simmering just below the surface and give expression to the best and the worst in our character.
On occasion, those posts provide inspiration.
It’s the same inspiration I get when I see a great travel quote, or when I see a pictorial essay on the most wondrous places on the planet to visit. I feel inspired when I see a story on individual bravery and determination and even when I see the hateful and hurtful comments inevitably following even the best of such posts. I’m inspired to be a different type of person from the haters, I’m inspired to be part of the solution to whatever pathologies we suffer.
This 365 Marketing Tip is sponsored by:
My guess is your clients are similarly affected and your participation with them creates important relationship bonds.
Surely an obsession with social media is problematic much as any compulsive activity might be. But a judicious and selective viewing of the world’s storyline can be the inspiration you need to keep your finger on the pulse of culture and current with the wave lengths of where your own interests may be shifting.
Here’s the latest bit of inspiration provided by my social media observations. It’s a bit hard to watch but it gave me a new perspective and determination. Maybe good medicine for what ails us all?
