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Home Insider Blogs Ellen Thompson's Blog Take the 7-Day Social Networking Challenge
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May 27
2010

Take the 7-Day Social Networking Challenge

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Posted by: Ellen Thompson on May 27, 2010 12:03

The other day, I was on my own to set up our trade show booth at the New Jersey Apartment Association conference. Our trade show gear consists of a giant rolling trade show booth carrier and an oversized rolling suitcase. Any normal human being would have taken two trips to bring everything in, but since it was physically possible to roll both at the same time, you know I didn't take that option.

What amazed me was how smoothly everything went. Every time I reached a door, someone was magically there to open it for me. By the time I pulled the booth frame out of its case, Doug Berger magically appeared to help me out. I was grateful, and we had everything set up in record time. Then, when someone came up to me looking for tape, I was happy to share mine and continue the virtuous cycle of giving.

I was overburdened and the universe conspired in my favor, which it always seems to do. It's truly reassuring when people reach out to help when they see you are struggling.

Somehow, kindness doesn't flow as consistently on a day-to-day basis. It seems as though we're all too busy to look around and see the small things around us. But the reality is that the bulk of relationship building with residents, business associates, colleagues, and loved ones happens on the uneventful days when nothing is happening.

The world would be a better place if we took the same time it takes to make one Twitter and Facebook post to do something nice for someone in the physical world. So why not take the 7-Day Social Networking Challenge? For 7 days, try to find an opportunity during your physical interactions with others to do something nice for someone that takes three minutes or less. There are plenty of opportunities to help if you look for them—even just saying something nice to someone counts.

Building relationships using online social networking tools is fun and potentially profitable, but it’s important that we don't get so plugged into the virtual world that we forget the real world around us.


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written by Jonathan Saar, June 01, 2010
I like this post Ellen, but I would take the challenge beyond the 7 days. You are so correct that we can get engrossed in our own little world and wind up not seeing the forest for the trees. Social networking is designed to pull us out of our rut and see the world for what it is. Paying it forward should never be a sometime thing. I hope your post inspires folks to think outside the box.
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