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| Friendship Starts with a Loving Heart (1) |
Number Crunching and Social Media: Is it Business or Friendship?
In my tenure as a financial analyst, you can say twenty plus
years, I have been involved in many buying and selling product activities for
principals of various organizations. It was nothing outwardly illegal, just the
ability to manipulate the numbers to the story that was being told or more
literally “sold”. If a product was being sold for profit, financial investment
or refinance, then market growth expectations and long term investment
viability were perhaps more aggressively assessed. If on the other hand, one
was trying to reduce the asset value and or expectation due to pending
restructure, weak markets, bankruptcy, the growth model would be evaluated in a
more prudent and conservative manner. Either way number crunching is a flexing of
market variables that directly or indirectly impact investment products in
order to meet the needs representing company strategies, long term growth planning
and investor expectations. This is business!
So what’s the point? Well now we have a new forum “Social
Media” and of course it is all number manipulation. At least this is from a personal
observation and I am not going make this my PHD essay or thesis where there
will be cited educators, media gurus and referenced material, no this
discussion is strictly based on my opinion. I, for one, have the following
social media site established or in progress, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Google
Plus, Pinterest, YouTube and my very own personal blog housed by Google. How
does this have anything to do with number manipulation or crunching? Why lecture on
my experience? Please be patient, I will get to my point.
Let’s start with Facebook. I have an active account and just
loved it until I experienced the freedom offered by Google Plus. Facebook is
where my family circle resides. It rarely grows in membership unless we have a
marriage or find a family member that has been lost to us. Occasionally, I will
add a friend or two, because they ask, but remind them this is an account where
my family resides. Remember we are talking about my accounts and the honor bestowed
upon family relationships. They would absolutely go nuts with all the Google
Plus activity.
LinkedIn: my son loves this site but he is young and wants
to be connected to the important people of this world. Me, it is important to
be connected with peers and have public experience or background
listed, in a reputable place in order to be a marketable individual. I also
belong to various intellectual groups within this prestigious community. I occasionally
hobnob with the rich and famous business folk; however I drawn more to a
relaxed open and creative setting. LinkedIn is more about who you know vs. how
many people you can collect.
Twitter: to me, it is a conduit to other social media sites
that I have connected. I rarely interact with folks on twitter; however I do
agree that the numbers game is particularly important in this venue for my
purposes. Being an introvert, this forum is difficult because if it is not my
blog posts what do you say that is exciting and tantamount. Anyway, I do try.
Especially love the ability to get frustrated and be instantly heard about some
political personality in Washington. You can’t beat that!
Pinterest: Yes there are boards and their all a statement of
my passions and images that I find beautiful. It’s an added link on my blog and
Google profile. I follow a few folks because they have the same taste in photography
as I do but that is it.
YouTube, Sound Cloud, and VEVO: love, love, and love the
music videos and it is ninety percent of where I select sourced videos for my
blog. I just barely started learning how to make a video and have your own
channel. Pretty cool stuff but no number there yet!
Google Plus: twenty times the power of Facebook and I will
tell you why. Yes, there is a limit on the number of friends like Facebook, but
they offer blog sites for free and you have access to Google “Public” as a
forum for free, as well. Believe me, because I started out developing a web
site and had to pay for this Google interphase and analytics. You, also, have a
connectively with the world that does not seem apparent in Facebook, you do not
have to know the person to be a friend. I am relatively new in
Google Plus but, for some, it is a numbers driven game as well. I believe it is
in the circle sharing and this is strictly a theory. To me Google Plus and my
blog are not conduits, it is where I reside. I want my blog to grow in popularity
but not to the expense of losing friends or gaining folks that have no curtsey,
manners or social grace. When starting I joined all the circle sharing groups
because I didn’t know any better. These same folks driving the circles could
not give me the time of day after their circle drive and still don't but I am in their circle. So being an experience
numbers manipulator, I will no longer join circle sharing unless the person
offering the circle takes the time to get to know me as person and potential
friend or I know them. For me, the wonderful aspect to Google Plus are all the
communities large or small. This is where you find your lasting friendships and
share the fun of social interaction. Getting to know people takes time, energy,
commitment and it is not a selfish act. It cannot be done in a day or week at
least not for me.
Mainly, I want to thank my friends and followers for taking
the time in their busy day to read and share my posts. I want to apologizes, if
I have been abrupt or absent at times please just remind me, friendship is not
about number manipulation it is about the love and support we give one another
and it is a two way street.
It's not suposed to be business it's supposed to be about friendship!
Peace Diana
References
1). Photography: Friendship Starts with a Loving Heart. http://debbie-debbiedoos.com/2013/04/just-because.html
