Computers are the perfect example of something we learn about and then must constantly update that knowledge. It’s like we have all had to become scientists or doctors. Just a few years ago, computer storage was measured in megabytes. Then it reached a thousand megabytes and we moved on to gigabytes. When we reach a thousand gigabytes we need terabytes.
As a public service, here is something to memorize so you can be as smart as a fourth grader:
1 Bit = Binary Digit
8 Bits = 1 Byte
1000 Bytes = 1 Kilobyte
1000 Kilobytes = 1 Megabyte
1000 Megabytes = 1 Gigabyte
1000 Gigabytes = 1 Terabyte
1000 Terabytes = 1 Petabyte
1000 Petabytes = 1 Exabyte
1000 Exabytes = 1 Zettabyte
1000 Zettabytes = 1 Yottabyte
1000 Yottabytes = 1 Brontobyte
1000 Brontobytes = 1 Geopbyte
In the 90’s when everyone needed to have a website, we all learned the same thing…that just having a website wasn’t enough. We needed to update it every month, then every week, then every day just to keep the traffic growing.
Fast-forward to today and we have personal websites, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. The principles learned in the 90’s are still there…update, add, change, update some more, etc.
The greatest deterrent for good use of the personal media is the myth that it must start great and get greater in order to draw friends or fans. Rather, we must view all this as a marathon run one step at a time.
Marketing guru Seth Godin warns of never actually “shipping” anything because we wanted to get something perfect. Justin Lloyd states it this way…”Perfection is the enemy of progress.”
Get started in social media. Do a little today, add something small tomorrow, another couple things next week…build it brick by brick. Strong buildings are built that way. It is like writing a book and publishing a page at a time…and that’s OK in the new media world.
Suggested reading are two books by Gary Vaynerchuk… Crush It and The Thank You Economy. Gary is the king of social media. First person to max-out his friends on Facebook…he has a waiting list. There are principles in these books that can apply to any author or publisher using social media.
