Month: January 2012

A February experiment: curtailing social media

Update: Minutes after posting this announcement for all the world to see, I receive word from the good folks at HighEdWeb Arkansas, where I presented last summer, that I won the coveted Red Stapler award. So, before the calendar page turns, I had to update with a bit of blatant self-congratulation. Now, see you in March, or, you know, on Words With Friends and maybe occasionally on Twitter. – AC

Beginning Feb. 1 and lasting throughout the month, I am planning to dramatically curtail my social media usage. I have already posted my plans for a Facebook-free February. This means no posting on my Facebook page, no wishing all you February babies a happy birthday (sorry), and very minimal posting on our university’s official Facebook site. Other admins can pick up the slack for me.

As for this blog, I also plan to not post here at all during the month of February. We’ll see how that goes.

The most challenging curtailment will likely be my use of Twitter. I may not completely stay away from that network, as it is the most gratifying (and, alas, addictive) social media tool in my toolkit. Which probably means I should try to avoid it at all costs.

Why this monthlong social media fast of sorts? Two primary reasons:

  1. I want to see if I can do it. That’s really the main challenge of this contest with myself.
  2. I recall, somewhat dimly, a life before social media. I want to re-experience what that is like. Sometimes I forget, in my hyperconnected world, that there are many people who don’t even use Facebook or Twitter, and they seem to get along just fine.

I am not giving up email. Which is too bad, because that’s the biggest drag of any connectivity in my life. Work-related email is the most life-sucking component of all online communications. But it’s a necessary evil in my work. I will do my best to curtail it, but I know I cannot avoid it altogether.

I’ll also be reading on my Kindle app for iPad, which may make access to social media just a little too tempting.

As for Facebook, Instagram, Google Plus — those are the easy ones to ignore. Avoiding this blog will also be a challenge. Avoiding Twitter will be impossible, I think.

See you on the other side, on March 1, if not before.

Friday Five: Seth Godin, content marketing, social media lessons from the GOP and more

Recent picks from my ginormous Twitter favorites files:

1. Must-read: Seth Godin on higher ed. This post appeared earlier this month in Rob Zinkan’s blog University Advancement, but I don’t think it’s gotten enough attention. Godin, whose 2010 piece on the coming meltdown in higher education generated enormous chatter, digs a little deeper into this subject thanks to Zinkan’s great interview. If you read nothing else today, read this post.

2. 7 content marketing articles worth reading from the always insightful CopyBlogger. My pick of the seven is this piece on creating a content marketing plan.

3. Social media lessons from the GOP race. Great insights, as usual, from Marketing Profs. Learn how the front-runners have leveraged social media and what lessons you can take away from their campaigns.

4. Stress kills creativity and 14 other scientific facts about creativity.

And speaking of stress…

5. What makes PR so darn stressful? The post is actually a question. And here are the top five reasons, based on comments responding to that question.