Christina Hernandez
Christina Hernandez is new media coordinator at GES, where she manages GES’ corporate blog and their social media community.
I’m not a fan of resolutions … Why? I never keep them! Each year, I type a list and hang it in places I’ll have to look at every day. It’s very motivating for the first few months until my resolutions become a daily reminder of how I can never keep them … And they get ripped down.
This year, I decided to forget accomplishing XYZ by the end of 2014; why not just set goals that I want to meet? Realistic goals satisfy my competitive nature and eliminate the hovering resolution cloud that haunts me and makes me feel defeated.
Personally, a few of my goals for the year include diving into the juicing world, building my endurance athletically, crossing an item off my bucket list and spending more quality time with family and friends.
How do my goals differ from my usual resolutions? They aren’t unattainable. I’m not saying lose X amount of pounds or travel to this destination, I’m giving my “changing on a daily basis” life the freedom to grow with my goals, and the flexibility to reach them by the end of the year.
Professionally, my goals involve social media. I bet you couldn’t have guessed that one, right? Social media is a cluster, to be honest. It’s always changing and unless you’re as obsessed as I am, it’s nearly impossible to keep up with.
With that in mind, here are my three social media goals for 2014:
1. Out with the old and in with the new- I know … I can never completely rid myself of Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter (it scares me to think of a world without them), but I need to branch out and try something new. Well, keeping in mind that it’s a goal and not a resolution … I have signed up for Snapchat and Vine (personally). Cheers to wasting seconds of my life at a time watching hilarious videos and mildly inappropriate photos that disappear in seconds … No, but really, I’m excited about this one and how social media like them can work for events.
2. Branching out of current professional circles - Whether this means joining new LinkedIn groups, using new #hashtags and/or liking new pages on Facebook. Fresh perspectives are needed in 2014. Who knows, it may lead to interesting and shareable content.
3. Reevaluate the way I use each channel- LinkedIn has always been seen as the “place to network,” but what about the new company pages that allow updates like Facebook? Does that change the way I use it professionally? Also, Facebook now allows searchable #hashtags and company pages have inboxes. Should I be leveraging the content I share better? Still thinking through this monstrous goal.
I have to admit, starting a new year is always frightening and exciting. I never know what to expect, but always keep my options open to anything that comes my way. I hope my goals have inspired you to not be so hard on yourself.
At the end of the day, no one is keeping score, but you, why not hit the ground at a realistic pace and keep it up throughout the year? You know what they say, slow and steady always wins the race. I choose the tortoise in 2014.
Any big plans for your social media presence in 2014? Share your thoughts below; I’d love to hear what’s on your mind.
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