Have you gotten anything out of it?
Google has hosted the world’s greatest cocktail party. They have invited people from all of the world, of all sorts of different disciplines. From astronomy with +Fraser Cain, to technology startups with +Robert Scoble, and even journalists doing amazing things from Small Town, USA like +Sarah Hill. Through all of this, you have all been given the incredible opportunity to network, share your thoughts and ideas and create relationships.
There are those of us that have embraced the hangout platform and have shown other users how to communicate with new and exciting people. There are others that have started “blogging” without ever having a blog.
People have challenged ideas and conducted thorough debates within the comments of a post.
People have created YouTube videos and discovered audiences that would never have existed otherwise.
People have traveled around the country (and the world) to meet complete strangers they already called their “friends.”
People have forged partnerships and connections that will last for the rest of their lives.
If tomorrow Google were to decide, “social isn’t right for us,” and shut down this network, would you have gained anything?
Are there relationships that you have built? Are there partnerships you have forged? Are there things you have discovered about yourself?
I spent most of the day thinking about what’s next. Where to go from here.
Since joining and becoming active in sharing and discussing with people from all over the world, I have met some incredible individuals, built some relationships and hopefully created some opportunities for further down the road.
There are people that I talk to constantly and consider friends that I would not have discovered otherwise.
As the media continues to portray this space as a “ghost town” and “just for geeks,” who cares? This, as any other opportunity is what you make of it. If you’re not interested, don’t bother. But if you are, then the skies the limit.
Reach out, find someone to share your thoughts and ideas with. Find someone that shares your passion. Find people that you will continue to carry on with whether or not this space exists.
I’m so grateful for the relationships I’ve formed and the opportunities to talk to people I never would have dreamed of speaking with and I hope you are too.
Don’t worry, I don’t think this space is going to go anywhere anytime soon, but I just want to encourage you all to get everything out of it you can. A great forum for discovery has been built here, and not just for discovery of content, but for discovery of other people.
It’s true, you really only get from this what you put in, but if you put a lot in, you can certainly get a lot…
Photo from +Daria Musk.