Despite my job and despite my generally curious nature on all things online/social, I still haven’t bothered to know enough about how to share stuff on Google Reader. I presume Google found a lot of people like me and perhaps that is why they removed that feature recently, much to the annoyance of a lot of people. It’s a pity that I may never know what sharing was, on Google Reader, now.
But it’s quite alright, actually. My sharing was on different platforms; Google Reader was my primary content consumption platform.
I’m a compulsive sharer.
Why do I share? And what do I share? Here are some observations on one of more ignored and under-rated social activities.
1. I have a daily routine for consuming content. There are so many things I read online all through the day. My main sources of content are Google Reader (where I have assembled a set of choice feeds that best adds value to my knowledge) and LinkedIn Today, that recently became my second most-reliable source of good, relevant content. While reading each piece, sentences worth about 140 or less characters start forming in my mind…as also the kind of people who may interested in them. It has almost become a natural part of my reading…content consumption pattern. And strangely, this is not restricted to just the stuff I read online; this has started happening even with things I observe around me. But, while I do exercise some level of discretion before sharing the things I see around me (see my 5 point criteria to know what and when to share online), it is true that most of what I observe start forming themselves into sentences that I may eventually share socially, online. The subconscious act of noting them down, remembering them or indulgently reformatting them to make them sound interesting is quite wonderful.
2. I don’t expect anything back when I share. Yes, that’s true – I just share as if I’m doing it for myself. That others read it, find some use out of it and perhaps enjoy it is nothing but a bonus. I share because I like the act of sharing. I have found something useful out of the source piece online or the thing I observed and I don’t lose anything out of sharing it in an interestingly packaged sentence. I may gain something out of it, but that is largely fluid and not specifically quantifiable. I’m not too worried about it either.
3. Now, sharing something without expecting anything in return, specifically, is a very powerful thing. It doesn’t become apparent to people immediately and they may assume that you are doing it with a specific objective, but over time, when they notice that you are just sharing…and sharing…and sharing, that changes perspectives. The things you expect may not really bother your readers – page views, ad clicks etc. for example. It is more like a print publication that is given to people completely free of any charge and continues to provide wonderfully relevant content!
4. So, what does one gain from sharing things socially, online? If you sit and think about it carefully, there’s quite a bit to gain!
One, you create an association between yourself (your personality) and the things you share. The more consistently you share things around a topic (or a set of topics), more the chances of you being associated with it (those topics) by those who find your sharing useful.
Two, when you share something with appropriate context (for instance, you don’t share a link with the default headline, but you pick a quote from the piece, instead, to go with the URL), you tell your readers that you have read the piece, understood it, are taking the time to make it really worthwhile to pick the best part (according to you) and giving people a compelling reason to click on that link. That’s almost an editorial process, all in a tweet, sometimes!
Three, when you share something that you take the time to customize (like the things you observe), you leave a piece of yourself in everything you share. As you craft the sentence that you eventually share, it holds a particular style…your style of narrating things. For a basic example, I’m a stickler for proper, functional English (not the pedantic one) – so, my sentences usually always start with capital, even if it is a tweet; my grammar is largely clean and I avoid using sms lingo unless I’m doing it with a specific purpose. That’s how I am in real life and I’m merely taking the same style online too. Besides the format, even the way you craft your sentences…the words you choose to use…and the emotions/feelings that you choose to highlight…all say a lot of things about you, as a person, over a period of time.
5. That said, I do know, at least to some basic extent, the kind of reactions that the things I share may evoke. I don’t generally plan my sharing based on possible reactions it may get, but I’m cognizant of those reactions. I’m also generally aware, observing over a period of time, of the kind of people who may react. That helps across many levels – it is almost like knowing that person from real life while knowing them exclusively through our online interactions. That level of connection is quite amazing to build and experience!
So, do you share things online? What do you share? Do you have a plan for sharing or is it just impromptu, impulsive sharing?
That wonderful photo courtesy, Meric Kara!