Musings of a Marketing Maven

Yes, I confess to suffering social media fatigue this summer. I went into stealth mode on Twitter and hardly blogged at all. (And to be honest, I didn’t miss it!)

Instead I spent loads of time online with my family collaborating via Basecamp, a “closed community.” We shared memories, photos, laughs and tears as we got ready to help my mother and her twin brother celebrate their 80th birthday. It became addictive – each morning we rushed to our computer to see who had written what last night. We laughed and cried. We dragged our spouse and the kids into the mix.

Tweeting and blogging simply couldn’t compare to the appeal of our real-world social network. Time I might have invested there went into the family memories project.

A week after the big birthday party – the 50-person family reunion – we’re still collaborating via Basecamp. Everyday, we’re still talking.

As my brother Dana wrote so eloquently today, sharing is the secret to a thriving family community:

Recipe for Memories

1 part shared experience
2 parts (or more) of laughter
(optional) 1 part surprise/OMG’s!
Many parts LOVE
1 freedom to share
2 (or more) people to giggle/guffaw/pee pants about the memory later

Take experience and roll out onto life’s table using both hands. Shape with words of awe and laughter, surprise (or any other emotion handy). Mix in the love—-fold gently but don’t be afraid and be too gentle. Love can handle the rough stuff.
Now, this is the tricky part: take 2 or more people and have both of them put their fingerprints all over the experience. Really get into it and make it their own. Twist it, turn it, shake it up, turn it over, run towards it and then embrace it for all you got.

Next, allow it to sit for awhile to “percolate”.
Come back to it later-in some cases, YEARS later. Add the freedom to share.
Slice it, serve it up and allow others to enjoy with you with a dash more of laughter, some tears and lots of love.
Laughter, tears and love are the spices that make it a gourmet meal.

Bon Appetit. This is your life served up just the way you lived it. Eat well.

Thanks, Dana.

Print PDF