It can be a lonely place when you run your own business, especially if you are a solopreneur or work from home.
No more popping by your colleagues’ desks for a quick chat, no more gossiping around the coffee machine, no more witty banter with the guys/girls from accounts and no more getting the latest updates from that one person every office has; the know-it-all!
If you’ve started your business after working in a larger company, as I have, it can be easy to miss all of these things (maybe not the gossip though!)
People think of places such as Facebook and Twitter as being great marketing tools; and they are, but more and more they’re taking the place of the ‘water cooler’ for solo entrepreneurs who work from home.
Twitter, for example, is a great place to find the greatest news – more and more the latest big stories are breaking on there. I have used it in the past, when I needed a quick answer with something I was struggling to do in a computer programme.
Facebook is fab for seeing what’s going on in your friends’ lives and chatting to them about it.
Forums and blogs are great places to chat and catch up, especially if they are relevant to your industry.
When it all gets a little much and you need a break, a quick 10 minutes on Twitter with a cup of coffee can be as therapeutic as any ‘real life’ interaction.
Great friendships have been made via Social Media; and you may also witness the odd ‘office romance’! Tell me in the comments below whether you use or how you use Social Media in place of the office camaraderie.
It would also be lovely to connect with you on either Facebook or Twitter for a quick coffee break chat. For the team at Your Executive Secretary, both of these social media platforms are great for being social and learning more about each other.
Love your piece. It’s very true how social media has replaced much of the traditional interaction. I kept in touch with friends I used to see in the school playground by the odd line on facebook, without the risk of inconveniencing them with a phone call. I have forged new friendships via Twitter and today, hearing the news of SilverLine, a phone support line for the senior generation, I couldnt help thinking that all they need is a twitter and facebook account! Ours will be the geriatric generation of social media groups!
Angela, Thank you for your kind words. It is really pleasing to hear that Social Media has not only allowed you to keep in touch with “old friends” and create “new friends”. I love that it is about being social – and it is better on the waistline as “virtual cake with coffee on social media” is less fattening than physical ones……..
As I work from home a lot of the time, and in an office on my own the rest, my SocMed friends are the ONLY people I speak to during most days!
Nikki, Thank you for your comments – its true working from home or by oneself can be very isolating and therefore the relationships that we build on social media can help us get through the day. I find myself in the offices of Your Executive Secretary actually talking to the computer sometimes as I compile my responses! (Should I really admit that…….)