It's Time...

... For everyone to accept social media and jump on the bandwagon.

Hello again true believers! As always, thanks for reading this nonsense. Believe it or not, this is fun for me, and not only that, it is semi therapeutic...

Back to my point. Social media is huge, as we all know. I heard that one in 12 people in the world is a facebook user... and I heard that sometime over the summer, so the ratio could be different now. That's only facebook mind you. And that's not just the United States, which I would think would be an even crazier ratio. How many of your parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and other family members are using social media? I have all of the previously mentioned family members on facebook plus some. Co workers, family friends, childhood friends, school yard chums, and you name it, they're using social media. And social media is being used to meet future significant others, potential bosses/co workers, volunteer captains, and future amigos...

So why are the other 11 people in the group of 12 not using facebook, which we'll assume is the most popular? I've heard a number of reasons, some of which I'll address now.

- "I don't want everyone to know everything about me." To me, this is an extremely silly statement. All of these social media sites let you set your security level. You can set up who sees what, whether it's pictures, your thoughts, your location, who you interact with, and so on. Guess what? You can even customize who can see anything by reaching out to others or accepting/declining requests from others. I'll touch on why people should join later, but as you can see, this excuse doesn't hold much water with me.

- "I would never use it/update it." So? No one is asking you to update your social media sites often. Heck, you don't even sign in if you don't want to. I feel that in today's world, being a part of social media is a great way to stay in touch and have a constant point of contact with the world. Have your settings to receive e-mails, then log in when you have a certain number or a notification from certain people, whatever.

- "I'm fine without using it." Yeah, you might be. But to anyone who says this, I never, NEVER want to hear about how you missed out on an event, news, or anything really. The Nuggets recently resigned their biggest free agent, and guess how I found out about it? That's right, social media, actually quite a bit before I read more on ESPN.

Those are only a few of the examples I can think of why I have heard not to use social media... If you hear of more, let me know, I'll argue them too.

So now the fun part: Why should anyone join a social media site... here we go.

- TO STAY IN TOUCH! This is the biggest reason anyone and everyone should be a part of some social networking site. As mentioned earlier, having a social media page is an excellent source to reach out to someone. Let's face it, people move, e-mail addresses change, phones get lost, people change jobs, and names change. By having a social media interest, you can ensure you’re available to stay in the know either through watching or having a central point of contact... plus, you can use social media to log in with other sites, and I personally like the idea of having one less password to remember.

- Use the functions of social media. Facebook, Google Plus, Twitter, and others are constantly updating their platform to be more user friendly. For example, facebook just added the timeline feature, which can be neat to see when some major event happened in someone's life. You can use facebook to set up events, sharing time, location, details, and even pictures for the event with public or just those invited. I'm hoping someday Google Plus integrates Plus with Calendar and events. Twitter keeps it more simple, and I like that (you decide who to follow and if that person wants to follow you, great, but they don't have to). There are some cool ideas in the works too, so it keeps it interesting. I like how businesses are using social media in addition to their other business/marketing plans. Contests, special offers, coupons, company info, and contact options all found in the same place you can find info about your friends... One other feature, you can customize what you see and with whom you are interacting. I like that you can be friends with someone, but block their status updates (among other shared data), because, let's face it, there are some silly things people post online.

- Back up pictures. I had to mention this separately as I feel this is a huge "pro". We’re in the time of digital pictures (no idea what kind of "film" they even produce anymore). And with Camera's being AT LEAST 10 megapixels, e-mailing photos is a thing of the past... so how do we visually share memories, events, and just plain fun? That's right boys and girls, social media. Not only that, but I really like the idea of adding photos to social media sites to back them up because, let's face it, their servers and networking infrastructure are much better equipped for security and back up then our local PC hard drives...

- Niche Sites. I do like that different social networking sites are used different ways. Best example: LinkedIn. This social networking site is to be used strictly for professional networking... and is set up to strictly for that purpose. Yes, you can link it to other sites (like twitter), but you don't have to and only should if it's for professional purposes. Believe it or not, MySpace is still around. With the customization allowed for this site, I feel that this is more pointed toward the younger generations. Let’s not forget about the number of dating sites out there. Whether general, like Match.com, or more specific, like J date, there’s something there for every single it seems. There are even some set up primarily for gaming (sorry I have no examples, I haven't been using these). See? Something for everyone and every interest.

Let me know if you think of more reason to jump on the bandwagon of these social networking sites.

I'm not going to lie, social media isn't perfect. I like playing games, but their interaction with social networking sites doesn't sell me. If fact, I hate knowing how someone's farm in Farmville is doing, or what achievements someone had with Words with Friends. Also not a fan of all the spamming that can occur with fake accounts and virus links (just like instant messaging and e-mail). Additionally, some people do go overboard with it. I don't need to know how you're feeling ALL THE TIME. I don't need to know that you THINK life is constantly hard/a struggle. In fact, don't be surprised if I have a post in 2012 with the tune of "Clint Crockett's Guide to Social Networking". But, with all that said, I'm a HUGE fan of where we are going and think it's time we embrace the change and settle in, because I'm pretty confident that if a popular motion picture about one social networking site's creation is in existence, then social media isn't going anywhere.

As always, thanks for reading everyone. Love to hear back from you, so feel free to leave a comment or two :)

Clint

My Thoughts/Experience With No Shave November or "Movember"

Hello again faithful readers.

Hope this finds you well. Hope your holidays are filled with love and good cheer :)

So I think you all should be aware of, I participated in No Shave November, or "Movember" for the first year ever. An interesting experience to say the least, but worthwhile for sure. Thought I would share some thoughts about the events in the last month.

First, I have to mention how generous people were for their giving with this cause, especially a number of my co workers at Staples. I originally thought I would lucky to raise $100, then $200, then $300, then $500, and ending with aiming for $1,000. I was only $50 short as of this entry (donations still welcomed and appreciated at http://mobro.co/clintcrockett). A big thank you to all of you who have (or will) contribute. I do plan to thank you in a more personal way as well.

Second, my facial hair grows quicker than I thought. I remember growing out my beard my senior year of college and feeling like I barely made a dent... not the case anymore. Long, shaggy, itchy, I'm am truly a man's man now... Not sure how I feel about it. Either way, it is what it is.

Third, there are a lot more people doing this then I thought. And most of them are doing it to be a part of something to raise awareness and rally people together. I'm glad I raised funds in addition to the awareness part, but I am touched by how many others take it among themselves to pay tribute to men and men's health... And I hope next year will be even bigger.

Next, I do believe this is a little bit of a sacrifice. At the beginning, my skin was the works I think it's ever been... As the hair grew out, it got better, but it's tough to shave again (I'm sensitive). I never really had much of a sacrifice in the sense of looking professional, but I could see that being a barrier. The biggest obstacle though was not being able to get as close to Carolyn. She didn't complain, she grinned and "beard" it, but I know there were times when she didn't appreciate it. Heck, towards the end, there would be times I'd go in for a kiss that would be interrupted by my nose neighbor going up her nose or rubbing her the wrong way (puns are fun). Thanks for being so tolerant for the cause care :)

Yes, I will be doing this next year. My goal is already set at $1,000... for my team. That's right, I think we can get some more peeps aboard the "Mo Foos" team and raise some cash for prostate cancer foundation, LiveStrong, and other men's health organizations (don't believe me? Check out the website http://us.movember.com/about/). I also might trim and groom a little more than this past year, maybe just do the mustache, whatever it takes to get attention and sponsorship... who's in?

The Susan G. Komen for the Cure has done amazing things and raised insane amounts of money for breast cancer treatment, research, and awareness, but they've done all of this in the name of women (who are much more strongly affected by breast cancer, though men can get it too. Ask my Grandpa). I really feel like November should be Prostate Cancer awareness month (according to WebMD, "About 80 percent of men who reach age 80 have prostate cancer cells in their prostate"). But we don't need a ribbon, we have our mustaches (AKA Mos) to spread the word and show our support, but that ladies should wear a light blue ribbon, per Wikipedia. Next year, I hope to rally even more support, drum more interest, and really get the ball rolling on this movement, and I hope you'll join me.

There you go, my thoughts on the past month. Hope you agree, but if you don't, that's cool. Regardless on how you feel, I hope you keep your loved ones close and count your blessings over the holiday season... And remember, a new year is right around the corner.

Drop me a line soon amigos!

Clint

P.S. If you have a loved one fighting cancer, make sure to check out FamilyAssets.