How Do We Build Connections

The lack of punctuation in the headline is intentional. Sometimes I do that to remind myself that I am asking a question and making a statement. Think of it as being similar to a play with multiple acts.

Act One:

Why Josh.

Act Two:

Why Josh?

Act Three:

Why Josh!

It doesn’t take much to change the meaning and direction of a few words. It is one of the things that fascinates me about language.

How Do We Build Connections

On a professional level I think about this daily. What do my clients need to do to reach out and touch someone. How do they do more than just broadcast news and information about whatever products/services they offer.

The simple answer is always the same. They tell their story in a way that helps their customers and prospective customers understand what they offer and how it will help them.

But the rub comes down to what methods to use and how to it in a way that makes people buy what they are selling.

Those last five words are sometimes the fly in the ointment because when I say it like that people sometimes push back and tell me they want to be authentic and that this particular expression makes it seem…less authentic.

Honest, Open and Transparent

We live in funny times in which we like to demand that people live honest, open and transparent lives but complain if someone tries to hold our feet to the fire. We live during times when people work hard to catch politicians and brands doing things that aren’t any of those three.

One of the challenges of being in the public eye is that when you do slip up you can find yourself the object of a piranha like feeding frenzy.

And under some circumstances you can be the victim of a modern day witch hunt. Think about what happened after the Boston Marathon and the frenzied approach that was taken to identify the terrorists in pictures.

Building Connections Online

Social media is a big contradiction. It has made the world into a global village and in some ways it has made it a colder and lonelier place.

I think I am more cognizant now of how easy it is to feel alone in a crowd. I went to Mayfest today and I had a great time. But when I wasn’t with my colleagues it was very apparent to me that there were lots of groups of people around and that I was alone.

It is not something I think about real often. I eat almost all of my meals by myself and spend most of my time outside of work by myself. It is a temporary thing and mostly my choice, but from time to time you notice.

Social media can build connections between people but if you aren’t good at it you can create a situation in which it feels like you are among the few people who don’t know anyone. Or if you are new to a blog or online community you can feel like the person who is standing on the outside looking in.

The best way to break through this feeling is to start commenting and interacting with people, but that is not always easy. Some people are shy and don’t want to be the only one speaking and others aren’t quite sure how to insert themselves into the conversation.

Building Connections With Bloggers

I haven’t had as much time to visit and interact with other bloggers as I would like to. There has been a lot going on and I have had to focus my attention elsewhere.

In concept it is not a huge problem because every week I see growth here. The pageviews continues to go up, subscriptions have increased and overall more people are paying attention to and reading than ever before.

But I wonder about this. I wonder because part of rhythm and flow of the blogosphere comes from comments and writing. Part of how you grow a blog is by building your engagement on the blog and off.

So if you aren’t visiting other blogs you might find some additional challenges and missed opportunities.

There is untapped gold in a good commenting crew. Part of the development comes from spending time building connections elsewhere.

And those are my thoughts on a Saturday night.

What say you?