We watch as busy attorney, Tracy mashing her iPhone into her shoulder and ear talking non stop while attempting to fill her cup full of liquid caffeine to go.
“Send the reports and I will sign them,” she says into the phone.
We make eye contact. I nod. She is in my book club with our branch library.
“No, send the files. I need to review them.” She says this again as she makes her way to the door and where I am seated.
“No, send…Hey are you going to be at book club? My son and I missed you last month.”
“Yes,” I say
She nods and in a flash she is out the door. Too bad White Way has no saloon doors.
“She did not pay,” I say to my breakfast cohorts.
“She pays once a month. It is understood,” says one.
“Is that your photo I saw in the local “Resident” Newspaper ma’am?
“It was, the photo was for our Willowbranch Library winning an award from the historical preservation group in our neighborhood. “Thank you for noticing,” I say as I head into my local Publix, where interactions like this certainly makes shopping a pleasure.
“Roxanne, it’s me Amanda!”
“I know,” I smile, as I greet an old client and friend, giving her a hug at my field office at Bold Bean Coffee.
“Betty and I are having lunch with Blair but, would love to have coffee with you later.”
“How about three o’clock?” We make that happen.
“Hi Cookie,” I call out while biking on my home for lunch. We stand on the busy street and get caught up. We chat about the Friends of the Library Group I belong to. that helps our library. She tells me she would like to be a member. I always have membership envelopes handy. I hand her an envelope and wish her a to have a great day.
The above interactions run through a course of my day. I call it real social media. My day starts with an interaction with a shout out from Tracy, complete with making plans for an event in a few days. A “liked” photo from an employe at Publix who reads our neighborhood paper. The day continues with creating a meet up with Amanda. Finally, I have a real life “Kick Starter” or “GoFund” me interaction with a potential donor for the library organization I am part of.
There is much discussion about the pros and cons about online social media vs. real life. The savvy person needs to weigh both with skill. I do connect with many people online but, I have made a point to try and meet many of my online friends in person. Putting a voice to the picture as I like to think. Doing this allows you to visualize the person’s voice and mannerism in their posts or emails. It certainly is not fool proof but, you gain so much more when you make the effort to create a physical connection.