This is one of the best common sense articles I've come across on social media and even mentions two of my favorite authors (Seth Godin and Michael Lewis) and those legends don't bother with social media. Apple Inc also doesn't bother much.
When Tim Ferriss asked Seth how he deals with overwhelm, he didn’t offer a productivity hack. Instead, he shared his essential priorities. One of those priorities was to show up and write a blog post every single day. To honor that commitment, he doesn’t watch TV or use social media which gives him the time to do something rare and valuable. I think all of us who are fans of Seth can agree that we’d much rather have him write a blog post every day than be active on social media.
The two most popular things I’ve ever posted on Facebook were pictures of my finished books. For about a day, I was insanely popular on Facebook. But, the hundreds of likes and comments I received did almost nothing to move the needle on book sales. And 24 hours later, I was an afterthought.
I normally get a little abstract/philosophical with these topics. But these are some really good examples that hits the point really well.
Confusing attention with accomplishment causes us to measure meaningless metrics. Likes, hearts, and comments don’t do shit for the bottom line of business. They don’t allow you to keep the lights on, put food on your table, or pay for things you need. Seven hundred dollars in your bank account is far more valuable than 700 likes on your Facebook post.
Just because somebody is wildly popular on social media, it doesn’t mean they are rich or successful. This became quite clear to me when I was having breakfast at a dinner with my friend Brian, and he pointed out one of the waitresses who had a massive Instagram following. I’ve also heard stories about “social media celebrities” who are baristas at Starbucks. Don’t be fooled by the carefully edited and deliberately curated avatars of people. Remember, there’s a lot you don’t see.
Some do become real models and I once heard that Abigail Ratchford makes 250K and she has 8.7 million followers on Instagram. Sure there are free parties and perks. But Charlize Theron only has 3.7 million followers and just think about what she is making with her movies alone.
