An application introvert, that’s what I am. I’ve been on Facebook for years—I love connecting with friends and colleagues there. It’s comfortable and informal, and I’ve learned how to interact without stepping on too many toes or getting my own stepped on. LinkedIn is a place I go to update my resume (but not very often, and I should really add a portfolio). I regularly use apps that help me keep track of time (Toggl), manage my projects (Scrivener), and remind me of things I need to do (Todoist). But when it comes to interacting with the wild world of Web at large, I get a scary feeling inside. Twitter and Google+, I’m looking at you.
Today I recommended that a self-publishing client take a look at Google+. His book is nearly ready to be released to the world, and it is so good. It deserves a solid fan base—it’s the kind of book some readers have been wanting to read forever. I’ve heard that Google+ works well for book promotion because it integrates with Google search so easily. Then I click on over to it myself, because I haven’t been there in forever. Oops. There he is, my client, with not one but two beautifully done pages, one for himself and one for his pen name. Uh, hi! Let me add you to my circles!
I also was reminded that Google+ has a good Scrivener users’ group, and I popped by there. Sure enough, there were some posts that proved to be useful, some answers to questions I’d been wrestling with. But I still felt odd posting a request, not quite understanding who was watching, not quite knowing what I was getting into. I don’t want to stumble into some place and irritate the regulars, you know?
Worse, I don’t know how to use it well. I am fine being stuck with accepting whatever comes at you in Facebook—at least it’s all coming from your friends—but in Google+ I want to see only a little bit of what the world has to offer. It overwhelms me every time I go there, as if I’m at a huge party with brilliant people and a scrumptious buffet and I can only huddle in my corner.
Everyone looks like they’re having so much fun!
Resolved: I will try to visit Google+ at least once a week for the next month. I’ve put it on my Todoist. Maybe someday I’ll also get over my Twitter trauma, caused when someone or something called Bruno Jaquet hacked into my account and broadcast about a thousand ugly tweets.