Yesterday I had a very salient moment regarding my use of social media. Until now my use of it has been very conspicuous and conscious; social media is something that has been an add-on in my life and in my work.
Currently, among other initiatives in the formal learning space I am also deeply engaged in exploring enterprise 2.0 tool use at my organization. In addition to tinkering around with Chatter (SalesForce) features, I’m am also using it and promoting it’s use to exclusively communicate with various individuals in the pilot effort we are crafting. I firmly believe these tools are not something to be trained in but rather believe all must jump in to really learn them and see their value (learn by doing).
In addition to discussing features and functions of this particular tool, I am also raising issues related to culture, transparency, and the philosophy of networked community for 21st century organizational learning. I am sharing and discussing articles, and posting findings from my Twitter PLN in an effort to show value outside the island that is enterprise social media tools. I am using the chat feature with key people in marketing to drill down about video creation, style guides and debate intranet pros and cons. I am sharing stories and humor with business analysts I’ve never physically met and this is all happening each day, sporadically, as the need arises or as a new discovery drives me to share with this new network. These are the things I engage in outside of my work context, with my PLN, speaking at conferences, educating my peers, etc.
Yesterday, in a teleconference meeting with another group, I was asked to share what I’ve been working on. Without pause I launched into details regarding the work I am doing in supporting a new software roll out and its performance support. I briefed them on the self-paced orientation I created and plans for future needs analysis. However I left off the very item I am most immersed in, the one which I believe can transform the organization, the very thing that is threaded continuously in each and every day…only until prompted did I remember!
Why didn’t I lead with it?
In short I think it’s that social media and the social learning and networking it enhances and empowers has simply become a part of me. Social media, like mobile devises that support it, has become ubiquitous to me as it has for many others. So I didn’t see the internal social media effort as being a project…because social media for me just is.
Have you experienced the Oneness?
