15.7.11

Google+ Hits 10 Million Users - Time to consider a move?

Picture: via http://bit.ly/qXbAoK 
My name is Kevin Pashuk, and I'm a move-aholic.

Over the years of our marriage, we have moved an average of once every two years. Sometimes it was down the street. Other times, across town. But there have also been moves to another province thousands of kilometres away, or even to a different country.

Let me state emphatically that I am not on the run from the law. We have followed my work and my career in technology. More realistically, I am one move away from a divorce, but that's another story.

Almost every time we moved, we had to build a new network of friends, communities (church, sports leagues for the kids), and service providers (good hair cuts, cheap breakfasts, etc.).  I once read it takes three years to get integrated into a community - where you feel like it's home, and I believe it.  It is a lot of work to move.

We have retained great friends from these former communities but the reality is, we no longer have a true connection with the towns we used to live. We can't vote, we don't know all the current buzz, and we only get back on occasion - as a visitor.

There are strong parallels in the Social Networking space.  Larry Page announced yesterday that Google Plus' limited deployment now had ten million users.  Even Mark Zuckerberg had an account for a while. (Aside: In an irony of all ironies, Mark Z had the most followers on G+, an honor that now goes to Robert Scoble).

In amongst those ten million users is me.  My initial reaction was "Meh".

I'm not sure I will switch in the near future from my current mix of social media platforms.

Why?

Moving is a lot of work.  I know.

If you read my previous post (Time for a Friendectomy) you know my position on collecting friends.

Social Media is about relationships. It's about developing professional and personal relationships.  It's a highly effective tool in the arsenal of the IT leader.  You need fluency and presence on social media platforms.  I'll expand on this in future postings.

So far, all the people I can find on G+ are the same keeners on all the other platforms.  I don't need another SM platform to build these connections.  Building a new community of connections takes time and energy - something I don't have an excess of these days since I still have all the duties of my career, and I'm still unpacking from my last move.

It's best summarized by a Tweet I received this morning via @erwinmcmanus;

"A live well lived isn't about who walks the fastest but about who has the most people walking with them".

How about you?  Are you planning a move to Google Plus?

4 comments:

  1. A good question to also ask is - which platform makes it easy to interact with these same connections in a way that best suits your needs? Twitter stream is wonderful, Facebook walls and groups/pages are also great, LinkedIn offers yet another style and layout for posts and updates.

    I'm not sure I'll make any moves yet, I'm still learning what G+ can offer me that other spaces have not. Will it combine the best of all into one? I don't know. I think it has some developing to do, some expansions, and I accept that it is in beta and I'll be waiting to see what comes.

    A personal note? I'm gun-shy on Google after Wave and Buzz. I do not want to invest a LOT of time into a new product, only to have it cancelled just as it was gaining traction.

    Just sayin'...

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  2. Pam,
    Thanks for your comment. This is a great lead in to the topic of "Should an organization have a Facebook strategy?" or "a Social Media strategy".

    Based on the turn around times of some organizations, building their strategies, policies and initiatives around a single platform (e.g. Facebook or G+), the world could well have moved on to another platform.

    Can we say "MySpace"?

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  3. I hear ya, Pam. I've got one Googley word for you: KNOL!

    Kevin, you're talking - writing- to a woman who's still thinks that calling media which have the consequence of keeping millions of people typing away in isolation 'social' is a bit of a giggle - or would be, if the social effect weren't so serious.

    My answer to your question is an unequivocal 'I don't know'. Sure, I've signed up for Google+, but that doesn't count as a 'move'; I have no expectations. Just waiting to see what develops....

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  4. I'll admit that I'm getting more active on G+ as the days go on but haven't fully decided yet.

    I agree the word "social" has been commandeered just like the word "community"... Which gives me an idea for another post... Stay tuned.

    Kevin

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