Hey y'all, happy Tuesday!
I just wanted to share a snip of a tweet I saw last week that really resonated with me. I don't even follow @veekster, but her tweet has been liked and re-shared all over twitter AND other platforms (I originally saw it on IG).
I thought this tied really well to my last few tweets about reaching out to accounts I follow. It's really easy to think that "influencers" are major figures, or that popular accounts are run by huge teams of people. However, one important idea of produsage is that we as individuals are often contributing knowledge, skills, and content to our online communities. That account you follow could be a labor of love by one person trying to make their own corner of the world a little bit better, and your comment or show of support could really boost their confidence and reinforce why they started posting in the first place.
This shouldn't even need to apply exclusively to accounts with big followings -- Just take a moment to tell someone in your life you appreciate them! You never know how much someone needs to hear it.
-Ello
Hello Ello,
ReplyDeleteLove your post! Yes, produsage is not always about making a huge contribution to the learning community. It could be just a note of encouragement or simple feedback, to further someone's hard work and show appreciation. If we simply consume someone's work, we are just an audience. Engaging in feedback is a step towards building a community.
Tatyana
That is so true, Tatyana! Not everyone is here for community, but personally it is why I choose to engage. thank you so much for stopping by!
DeleteHi, Ello and Tatyana!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with all of the thoughts presented here, from both of you! I have tried, like many, to get a social media presence to really take off and it is HARD work! Not only do you need the feedback from community but it requires lots and lots of feedback on your part, as well. To be honest, I don't love spending that amount of time/energy on social media, making my efforts tiring and unrewarding. Ello, I can confirm that, were more people to come to my page and express their interest, I would be touched. However, I've never invested too much emotion into my social media presence so I'm not devastated that it hasn't worked out. Thanks for sharing!
He Caitlin! I definitely hear you re: hard work. While I enjoy engaging with others, my own posts are often intermittent, and I don't know how some people find the time or energy to post as much as they do. Once a random person (probably a bot in my opinion) left a comment complimenting my "content" -- and all I could think was "this isn't content, it's just my life!" Social media isn't everything, and as long as we find ways to engage with people in some form (especially IRL), we have the possibility of building community. Thanks for your comment!
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