Conversation at Caffe Nero

Originally uploaded by ktylerconk

I am so excited to be alive at this time of the world. It is a time of immense change and opportunity. One of the main drivers of that is social media.

Social media like Facebook, Twitter, Link’d in, texting and Skype make it easy to have conversations.

We have the tools to carry on conversations with people scattered all over the world. I stop into Facebook and see what my friends are up to. I can make a short comment or even hit the like button, just to let them know I read and enjoyed what’s happening with them. I see my brother in Bulgaria is on Skype and I tap out a quick conversation to catch up. My son texts just to say he saw something that reminded him of the time we….

These are informal, easy on-going ways to stay connected.

Social media is here for deeper conversations, too. I belong to an online, international book club. We get together every Friday afternoon on Skype. We choose one book and talk about a chapter a week for weeks. We get into deep meaningful conversations and we all bring our own perspectives. That’s where the magic is.

The most interesting part is that we have had several of the authors join us. Dan Pink and Mitch Joel so far and we’re talking to Chris Guillebeau and Steven Pressfield to schedule a time. There’s no way this could have happened before.

Social media also offers us contact with the leading thinkers of our time. Have a look at TED, Youtube, Vimeo, Livestream and Youstream. You can see James Cameron talk about why he chooses the movies he produces; Seth Godin talking about how you can be a Linchpin; or Elizabeth Gilbert talk about what it’s like to know that your best book is behind you.

I belong to a group called Triiibes. We are 16,000 strong from all over the world and we are connected around the theme of pushing ourselves and those around us to reach our considerable potentials. It’s the social media tools, specifically Ning, that make this possible. This is a group of amazing people from around the world who I would never have met otherwise.

Social media is changing the way we converse and more importantly, who we are conversing with. It’s making the world more accessible. It allows people to stay connected.

Who do you connect with now that you couldn’t have before?