Are We Living in the Matrix?

Last week I talked about my amazing online community. Invariably when I discuss social networks and the people I know online, someone chimes in, “Well, it isn’t real.”

First off, the folks I’m talking about in that post are mostly people I know “in real life”…though I originally met every single one of them via either Twitter or Facebook. They are my friends.

Perhaps there was a time not too long ago where our online lives and our real lives were separate. Not so anymore. For most of us, our “virtual” online lives are merely an extension of our real lives. This isn’t the Matrix. The communities, friendships, and business relationships that I have made online are all real. Many of us spend a lot of time online engaging and communicating with these friends.

We all have many different facets to our personalities and lives. We share varying amounts of our lives to different people. It’s all real, and it’s all us.

So perhaps now is a great time to put an end to this dichotomy, and stop separating our online selves from our “in real life” selves. The Ken Mueller you see on Twitter, Facebook, and in this blog is the real me. It’s not ALL of me, but it’s me.

And now’s also a great time to rethink how we live our lives, both online and “in real life” and how those two worlds mesh. Are we real? Transparent?

How do we choose our online friends? Are they only the people we first know “in real life” or do we meet new people via Social Media? If so, how do we develop those relationships?

Again, I’m very thankful for my community…and by community I mean ALL of my friends, whether I’ve met them in person or not. This is why I believe in Social Media, and what makes my work so rewarding.

Tagged as: blog, facebook, Marketing, Social Media, Twitter