Social Media – Are we more concerned with falling behind or leading?

Point# 1. Social media is perpetuating a culture of immediacy.

This is not anything new…since newspapers, radio, television, fast food, highways and the internet we have been a culture of “quicker, faster, better”. The problem is we continue to get further away from personal communication. When was the last time you could get a “vibe” or “gut” feeling from a text message? How can you interpret body language from a tweet? As we continue to feed this generations thirst for immediate gratification…where does it end. How is this going to impact our ability to develop strong leaders? Diving even deeper, what is the impact of immediate gratification on our economy? I think we are in a Spontaneous Reactionary Economic Condition. This can’t be good, but don’t get too worried, you won’t find that term anywhere…I just made it up.

Point# 2. Please just stay the course.

Social media is feeding an already increasing trend of “job hopping”. Today, employees are bombarded with opportunities that provide bigger titles, corner office and fatter paychecks. Heck, I get daily updates in my mailbox of jobs in my field and in my city. Since the mid 90’s I have seen resume’s change. No longer do you see people working for a company for 7, 10, 15 years. I understand the value of taking new positions and moving your career forward, but when times are tough and things get hard, leaders emerge. Leaders develop from learning to manage through crisis. The best leaders don’t react they transform. How can you be an effective leader if you continue to live off of your successes? How can you develop talent and leaders when employees are constantly on the move?

Point# 3. We just react.

In the course of business, effective leaders have always surrounded themselves with people they trust, people that are forthright with thoughts and information. These are people that can be counted on to listen to every hair brained idea and give you fair and constructive feedback. Maybe it’s a board of directors or an inner circle, whatever you call it; a leader needs PEOPLE to make decisions. I see a dangerous trend of discounting personal interaction. You cannot effectively have a conversation and make good decisions via email or instant messaging. We are creating an environment that discounts personal interaction. Our culture today seems to be all about making decisions on the fly.…a click of a mouse or slight movement of thumbs and you react. Let’s not forget about work ethic; when did learning to worker smarter not harder, turn into, just not working?…hmmm. Email, Facebook, Myspace, Twitter are prime examples of how we are cultivating a spontaneous reactionary culture. Are we more afraid of falling behind than leading?

Point# 4. Convergence of worlds.

Maybe I am the only one that is uncomfortable with my clients and prospect seeing my vacation photos, but when did it become OK to mix work circles, social circles, and inner circles? I realize this point is probably pointing to more of a health/wellness issue rather than economics, but companies need to be cautious here. The old cliché “it only takes one bad apple to spoil the bunch” is certainly worth a look. Why would you want your employees listing their employers on social media sites? I realize the ability to expand you network and reaching potential clients is huge, but what about the pitfalls. People make mistakes every day, do you want those mistakes instantly available to the world.

I have a hard time seeing through all the clutter, but for my time, the juice is not worth the squeeze.

Nathan