Stop Lurking. Do Something!

I found this quote by Dumb Little Man: Thoughts for Life and thought I would share and reflect.

Thoughts are Nice, Actions Count
Have you ever had the experience of thinking of someone, and then later that day you got a phone call, E-mail, or letter from them? When it happens, it's great! So why not decided to be the person who reaches out to others. The key is to do something! If you are thinking about something, take action! Call them, write them, text them. RIGHT NOW!

Yes, I'm talking to you! If as you're reading this someone comes to mind, someone to reach out to or write to, consider stopping what you're doing, picking up the phone or writing them an e-mail. This newsletter will be here when you get back.

How many friends have you gathered on Facebook, Plaxo or LinkedIn? How many blogs have you read? How many tweets have you posted on Twitter? Now... how many friends have you actually called or blogs have you responded to or how many X have you actually engaged with? This is something that I have decided to pause and write about.

It's interesting, but as I reflect on the many social media tools I have embarked upon and the many so called "interactions" I have engaged in, other than posting my own content and friending others through invites, I haven't really reached out to anyone at all. I've read lots of posts by mandy FBs and followed "status updates" on my Facebook news feed, but I haven't actually replied to or interacted with folks that I have friended that often. I'm sure that's the case with social networks. I'm guessing we've all joined a few here and there and we "poke" around to see what's going on. I think in the old days, this was called lurking. I believe that's what a lot of us are doing today with social media. We always talk about being active participants, engage in mulitple Web 2.o environments, add value, and so on, but I think we are all just lurking or posting in isolation hoping and sometimes successfully having others view what we post. In the book titled Groundswell, the authors speak about "the ladder" and the various types of contributors. While I think critics and creators come close to actually engaging with others, I think there is a missing element.

All or any of these can be passive participants as I often find myself doing, but it seems to me that we need to create a more vibrant real level of engagement — one that's like... get out of your chair and off your computer and go "meet-up" or do something like pick up the phone, respond to a blog, reach out and Tweet someone, just do...

So a small plea to you if you are reading this, all two of you. Take a moment to respond and leave a comment to say you simply read this and you took an action. I've begun to practicing what I preach. Try it, but don't be surprised if you get no response. Sometimes, it's just a simple acceptance of being a "friend" in your Facebook or getting an email that says... "jcostilla is now following you on Twitter."

PS. Write back soon.