That has an entirely new meaning this past decade.
And with that statement, I suddenly felt a bit old.
To me “being social” has always meant that you are physically in a group of people interacting. Now, being social is most often referencing online interaction.
Social Media is an amazing tool that has evolved over the years but, (yeah there is always a but) I truly believe we as humans need physical touch and the ability to see one another in the flesh.
Not only to make sure we understand each other but research shows that
55% of conversation is nonverbal
38% is vocal
with only 7% as words!
Let that sink in…
I mean, thank goodness for emojicons! 🤪
No but seriously, 55% is what we see; body language, style, colors, shapes, placement, etc. as a Brand Designer that is beyond fascinating (might be even if you are not 😉 ).
What does that mean though? It means it is essential to show up online in a way that represents you while creating an experience your people want. If you meet in person the same thing holds true, but you have a larger chance of understanding and being understood by whomever you are communicating with.
Communicating on the interwebs is an excellent tool, however, being social in real life may be easier despite sometimes being uncomfortable and potentially even scary to walk up to someone.
Whether you connect online or in person it all works the same way; relate, be interested/curious, listen and engage.
Person: “What do you do?”
Me: “I’m a designer.”
OR
Person: “What do you do?”
Me: “I support service-based businesses to feel more confident in connecting with their audience and growing their business to make a greater impact.”
Person: “Oh how do you do that?”
Me: “We build brands and websites to get their services and processes organized, so they don’t feel overwhelmed, but rather put together (and slightly braggadocious), have clarity, and can easily focus their precious time on what they like to do and what they do best.”
As an entrepreneur it’s even more important to be social, you have solutions that people need and want to know about. If you take that perspective to networking and connecting it might actually be exciting (unless you already are excited to network, then just keep sharing all your goodness) to be social. And all it comes down to is being present and looking for opportunities to do better.
Side note:
For the day when we are allowed to be more social in person, here is another “fact”, probably more of a sweet saying I like, how essential it is to meet people in person:
4 hugs a day for survival
8 hugs to sustain
12 hugs for growth
To hugs and connections,
