Welcome to another edition of Journeys and Jottings.  I am on a brief sabbatical from travel (ok, I did a small weekend trip to Pondy and there is another one to Goa coming up ) and am spending as much time as possible on the blog.   I spent a lot of time last month patiently answering questions on travel blogging, but I did not post much on social media .

There are several kinds of people on social media . Some want to share their entire lives along with those of their neighbours on the social platform.  And then there are others who want to thrust their opinion on everything under the sun.Finally there are influencers.

The word ” influencer” is now applicable to anyone who has a decent following on social media. It is an opportunity to earn money using your “social assets” even if you do not own a blog. But I see every influencer selling anything and everything – from political concepts to condoms, lingerie to sanitary pads. In fact I saw a guy on twitter sharing a post on which bras should a girl wear on an occasion. The word “influencer” is now given a negative connotation because of such people. But I personally think it is an opportunity to build a career out of social media if you know how to use it strategically.

There is big money in social media. Every agency has earmarked a certain percentage of their budgets for social media campaigns . I am personally flooded by several campaigns too. However  I refuse to spam my followers if I do not see any relevance in what am sharing on social media.

I strongly believe that if you use your social assets strategically, you can build your personality and brand. But it is a double edged sword. You need to balance between sounding narcissistic and banal, between being genuine and silly, between being opinionated and having a point of view.

I usually have a strong list of dos and don’ts when it comes to social media.  I do not post anything extremely personal or family oriented and one of the cardinal rules is no politics or religious updates. Very rarely I veer away from my core, which is about travel experiences.  I also participate more in conversations and sharing other interesting posts, rather than just thrusting my thoughts down the  timeline.

And so,  before posting that opinion or rant of yours, go for a walk, jog, cook, clean your cupboard and then come back to think if your followers still need to hear that thought of yours. After all, remember that you have these “assets” thanks to them, so spare a moment before spamming their timelines.