If you don’t think social networking is on an intergalactic trajectory, you haven’t met my nieces and nephews. Ages 8-11-14. NOT from a technology-driven family … so for those of you who are, strap in!
Facebook – old news! Facebook chat – “call me on my cell, Uncle Lary, and I’ll boot up my laptop so we can chat,” my 8 year old nephew proclaimed. Download apps to turn your phone into a walkie-talkie? Check. Waiting at the front door all day for the delivery of your new cell phone, in the color purple? Check. Kick your uncle’s butt in every video game, including the slower ones that I actually understood like golf? Check.
Their grasp of technology is not what’s remarkable. It’s how deeply embedded it is in their DNA that they don’t … and won’t … know that communication and sharing and socializing don’t have to include technology. Won’t they be shocked to learn that our forefathers sent mail via ship to Europe .. or that there are telephones that actually require wires … or that we never knew if anyone called us because there were no answering machines … and when there were, we had to get back home before we could check the machine.
So, keep the pedal pressed to the metal. Take the long view, know with absolute certainty that you can … and MUST … build your online community. It will take time but you need to persevere.
Don’t despair because there’s always this side benefit: you’ll be able to spend less time on your professional legacy. You won’t have one.