Sometimes the inspiration for blog posts come from the strangest of places. For example, while on Twitter this evening my eye was caught by something that Amber Naslund said: “Balance is a precarious thing. Presumption sucks. That is all.” And now here I am writing about it.
(Just goes to show how brilliant Amber is even when she’s not trying to be).
Such an innocuous collection of short sentences, yet sentences that have relevance in everything we do. We’re always battling some kind of balancing act – finances versus wants/needs, further education versus joining the workforce, overtime at work versus time with our families.
Sometimes we make the right decisions, sometimes we don’t.
This is just as true with our online personas, and how we portray ourselves in our interaction with others. Whether it’s on Twitter, via our blog, on Facebook or otherwise, what we do and say defines us. Sure, we want to share a bit of ourself and show people we’re worth knowing – that’s only human.
But getting the balance right is a precarious thing.
Broadcast too much and your worth diminishes. Converse too little and people forget about you. Getting the mix right is tough; presuming you have it right isn’t a guarantee that you have.
Someone else I respect greatly said something to me that complements Amber’s statement perfectly. Chris Brogan said, “People bring their auto-biography with them to every conversation.”
I guess the trick is making sure people want to read it.
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Boy, it sure goes to show that someone is always listening.
And truly, you nailed exactly the sentiment behind my little tweet. There are so many things to consider with each and every interaction online that sometimes it’s easy to draw conclusions based on micro-pretenses. It’s tough to know sometimes just how much of who you are can and should be available for public consumption, and how to strike the balance of the many facets of your personality. I suppose it’s an evolution of sorts, but boy sometimes these unfiltered interactions can bring perspective – or the lack of it – into very sharp relief.
Thanks for posting.
Amber Naslund´s last blog post..Don’t just listen. Observe.
Yep, you’ve caught an essence. Everything, no matter how small, contributes to the total picture that forms around each of us.
MK (Casey) van Bronkhorst´s last blog post..Expecting-Again Back-to-Work Barbara Says Dress Me UP
Nice post. Thanks.
Very nice catch. I have spent some significant time on “balance” in my own life. Here’s what I came up with
“On the tightrope of life, only one thing allows us to move forward, and that one thing is balance. Without balance we fall into chaos, we fall behind, we miss out on what true choices we have in life.”
but your thoughts here have shown me another way of looking at balance and it’s relationship in the outer world. Thanks for another perspective.
Those words have stayed with me all day as they came twittering by at a time balance was somewhat elusive to me. And, the presumption sucks was perfect as my balance had been teetering due to false presumptions; so presumptions realigned with reality and balance seemed to return. Thanks for the thoughts.
@ Amber. I guess it’s true that social media never sleeps.
Although this was a positive result, I guess it also goes to show just how important it is to show a little “care” about how you handle yourself on line. Although we don’t want to move to a society where everything needs to be thought through first, maybe it shows just how social media and online interactions have cause and effect. Something brands in particular may have to watch more. Thanks for the reason behind the post. 
@ MK. I agree. And with the likes of BackType and Disqus allowing people to view blog comments whenever they want, it’s even truer.
@ Laura. Thank you for sharing that insight – that’s the wonderful thing about balance, there’s no defined right or wrong definition. We all have our own views on what balance is to ourselves and mixing them with those of others can only help us learn and grow more.
@ uberbabyboomer. Your story is one of the reasons that I love Twitter as a communications medium – something that may seem irrelevant and just another comment to one person can implement change and reason in another. Glad to hear that it seems to have been a positive one for you.
Thanks for taking the time to share your views, guys, I appreciate it.