by Edie Melson @EdieMelson
It’s October and in honor of Halloween, I just couldn’t resist a tongue-in-cheek post about something scary. After spending the fall traveling and teaching social media I have plenty of fears to share. Lest you think this is me pointing fingers, let me reassure you. EVERY single one of the things listed has been something I’ve done/struggled with at some point.
Remember, none of us is born knowing how to do this stuff. So lets laugh at our phobias together!
17 Scariest Things About Social Media
- Having to have a picture taken to use as an avatar.Someone please reassure me that I’m not the only person who hates having her picture taken!
- Trying to figure out the point of Twitter. HINT: Use Hootsuite. The columns can help you pull out what’s relevant. Otherwise you’re stuck trying to pull something meaningful from the home feed.
- The pressure of taking beautiful pictures for Instagram.I’m an amateur photographer, but at times it feels like so much pressure to make sure something is Instagram-worthy.
- Working to make my social media names match across platforms.Okay, this one wasn’t much of an issue for me – except for the fact that my memory is bad. For a while I was using Edie Melson and Edie G Melson.
- Receiving friend requests on Facebook. Have you seen some of the creepers that hang out on FB? They are sometimes the stuff of nightmares! LOL!
- Refusing friend requests on Facebook. No not the creepers from #5. The onesI feel guilty and agonize over are those where we have lots of friends in common, but I don’t actually know them. I’ve learned the hard way to say no to requests from people I don’t know.
- Political rants.’nuff said
- Taking a FB quiz and discovering your steampunk name is Dame Beatrice Kettlebottom. Seriously. It was a huge disappointment and definitely something I did NOT share on FB.
- Discovering my life isn’t beautiful enough to be on Pinterest.Where do these people find the time—not to mention the money to do this stuff???
- Finding out Facebook is changing their edgerank algorithm yet again.It seems like they have a think tank whose only goal is to think of as many ways as possible to sabotage our efforts?
- Realizing you used the word your instead of you’re in a grammar rant.I really try to avoid posing when I’m frustrated. This is the reason why.
- Posting a beautiful meme with the perfect quote and discovering you’ve got the attribution wrong.Yep, it happened to me. All I can say is be sure to check and double-check who said what you’re sharing.
- Sharing a light-hearted update and getting angry and/or weird comments. When this happens I can’t decide if what I said was unclear or the people commenting are just a little dense.
- Learning how to use hashtags.Now that I know how, they’re great. But learning the best ways took time.
- Anything to do with snap chat. If someone says Snap Chat to me, I mentally stuff my fingers in my ears and try to ignore anything that’s said.
- Trying to Find the Time to actually DO social media. My schedule is slammed full and some days it seems I can’t add one more thing.
- The scariest thing ever with social media is refusing to do it and missing out on a book contract because you have no platform!
I lost a book contract in the mid-nineties because I didn’t have a platform. That’s one of the reasons I made sure it would never happen again. But truthfully, I hear stories about this happening on a weekly basis.
This is my list. What scares you the most about social media. Leave your answers in the comments section below!
Edie Melson is a woman of faith with ink-stained fingers observing life through the lens of her camera. No matter whether she’s talking to writers, entrepreneurs, or readers, her first advice is always “Find your voice, live your story.” As an author, blogger, and speaker she’s encouraged and challenged audiences across the country and around the world. Her numerous books reflect her passion to help others develop the strength of their God-given gifts and apply them to their lives. Connect with her on her website, through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The Conversation
17 more reasons to attend Mountainside Marketing Retreat in January!
Absolutely!
I can relate to so many of these. Ok, pretty much all of them. But for me, the scariest thing is saying something stupid. It sounds great in my head (usually something humorous) but then I’m afraid it won’t come across the way I want. In general, I’m just terrible with social media.
Pam, it’s hard to switch gears from saying something to writing something. But 99% of the time we’re over-thinking it and second-guessing ourselves. Social media is about being real–being nice–but being real. Blessings, E
Yes, yes!!!! I can relate.
Melissa, I think it’s important to remember we’re not alone when it comes to the angst associated with social media! Blessings, E
Ha ha – brilliant list, Edie!
I’d probably add the scary feeling of knowing the importance and value of positive social media contributions, but having that ‘blank post’ panic when you feel you have nothing terribly important, interesting or useful to say! Terrifying.
I’ve probably begun what’s going to be the longest-running, most ignored thread on Twitter, but I’m letting that amuse me.
Here’s a suggestion for #18: That Yoast and other SEO software is turning my writing into something indistinguishable from an annoying Shoe Carnival advertisement by insistence on repeated key words.