Let me start this post by making a sweeping generalization:

• If you're 40 years or younger, you're all there in the social media world.

• 40-plus? Not so much.

Ah, the great social media divide.

But this post is for both groups, so please read on.

Social media is here, whether we like it or not. Whether we're familiar with it, or not. Whether we use it, or not. Whether we understand its value, or not. So with this blog post, I intend to convince you of its value....and if you're already a regular user of these social tools, to encourage you to broaden the scope of its use in your daily routine.

Here's a high impact video on the subject from my friend Connie Podesta.

Take two minutes to watch here:

TEXTING HARRY - Connie Podesta

Do you recognize yourself in this context? If you're over 40, maybe you're Harry. Younger? Then perhaps you're grandson, Chad. Of if you're a frequent flyer like me, maybe you're even Connie.

In the not too distant past, I was reluctant to tune in and turn on to the value of  social media. And then I remembered a hard lesson learned....

A hundred years ago -- otherwise known as the 1980s -- I got a call from my Dallas office. My staff there asked for my permission to buy something they called a “FAX machine”, which was cutting edge communications technology at the time.

“We have to start FAXING resumes to our clients or we will lose business” the branch manager shared. "You don't need one," I replied, “FAXING is just a phase; the latest craze. We can conduct business just fine without one."

Almost immediately, we started losing business. Why? Because we were being left behind. Our competitors were far more responsive to clients because the FAX machine allowed them to react so much more quickly.

Taking a longer view, turns out I was right. Faxing WAS a phase.... for a quarter century, that is. Enter all the social media tools of today that don't just give us quick access to customers, friends and family... they give us INSTANT access.

Here's to the powerful connections now available to each of us through today's technology.

Let me hear how things like YouTube, Facebook, Linked In, Twitter and the rest of these tools are improving your ability to connect and communicate.

Till next time I say stay warm, stay connected and stay OPEN to change.....

Cheers!

Mary B. Lucas