Social Media: Is it Worth the Time?

Photo credit: Tom Raftery on Flickr
When discussing time management and writing, I often joke about the hazards of the time-sucking internet, usually citing Twitter and tumblr as top offenders.

To anyone who has logged on to either of those sites (or onto just about any social media site, for that matter) it’s no secret that a so-called five minute break can quickly become a half hour excursion or even longer if your self-control fails you. If you’re not careful, social media can very easily suck up time that could be spent writing, or working on a plethora of other important things.

That being said, it’s not unreasonable to start to wonder if social media is worth the time. And to that I answer a very assured yes.

You see, while (most) social media is free of charge, it does come at the cost of our time. But the investment you put into your online presence absolutely does reap rewards, and I’ve broken them down into five categories.

Five Rewards from Social Media Investment: 

  1. Exposure. Whether you’re a writer or an artist, an editor or a musician, social media allows you to freely distribute your work to the masses. For some, that means blogs, for others it means being ridiculous witty (or kind) on Twitter. Point is that it allows you to get out there and show the world what you have to offer. 

  2. Inspiration. This is huge. While inspiration-searching is often what can lead to the time-suck of doom, social media brings inspiration to all types in many different formats—whether it’s links to incredible posts on Twitter, beautiful pictures on tumblr or Pinterest, or touching videos on Youtube, social media is an endless source of inspiration. 

  3. Connections. Relationships. People. I’ve written about the heart of social media before, and this right here is it. 

  4. Opportunities. You know those pitch contests I’ve been raving about as of late? I never would have heard about them without Twitter. And those Twitter pitch fests that have garnered more than a handful of agent requests for writers? Also would be impossible without social media. Opportunities are everywhere and social media makes them even easier to find.

  5. Growth. A combination of the above four elements leads to one thing: growth. Social media allows us to learn from each other, to learn from sharing our work and making mistakes and seeing how others succeed. It creates experiences we can learn from that we would not have had without it. 

What do you think? Is social media worth the time? Why or why not? 


10 comments:

Tony Dutson said...

Uhg. Social media can be a big time sink for me. But I love the contacts I've made, so it's worth it! ;)

Ava Jae said...

Agreed! It can sometimes be difficult to make the time, but it's still absolutely worth it. :)

Cloudy Wolf said...

Oh, the curse of the social media >_< As a frequent user of Facebook and Deviant Art my time can quickly get sucked up. Still I don't regret adding myself as a member on those sites as I have met many interesting people that share my interests. Also via my other site Fanfiction.net and the sister site Fictionpress. As an artist I think social media is neccesary, but yet I wish it didn't suck so much of my time :P

Lisa Buben said...

I get lost on Twitter sometimes, so many connections I've met and enjoy chatting with. I have limited myself to several vs every social site out there. It can be overwhelming. Twitter is by far my favorite.

Ava Jae said...

It does take a lot of time, although if it starts to take up too much time, I find that timers can be very helpful. You set however much time you're willing to spend online (i.e.: an hour) and when the timer goes off you actually go do something else.

Ava Jae said...

Agreed! Twitter and tumblr are my favorites, but I usually spend more time on Twitter. :)

Carissa Taylor said...

I've just recently entered the world of twitter. It's too fun! I've met so many great people there.

And Pinterest. Some people knock it, and I myself only use it in fits and spurts, but it's a great place to get "accidental" exposure, IMO

Ava Jae said...

I love Twitter and probably spend way too much time on it, but I regret nothing. I haven't really given Pinterest much of a try, but I probably ought to give it a chance at some point...

Carissa Taylor said...

Warning: if you like pretty pictures, it will be a time suck for several days, weeks, months etc.

I have finally pruned back my usage, but it was painful! Favorite thing is the "Pin It" button for my browser toolbar - so I can pin from whatever site I'm browsing =)

Ava Jae said...

I tried it once for a couple days, then deleted my account, but I've considered giving it a second shot. I DO suspect it would probably suck me in once I got the hang of it, though...

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