I have a series of these posts where I believe, if you read well, you can polish off the post in about 2 minutes. I’m doing it this time because that previous post was so long. It was so long that I’m giving it an extra day as well, and I’m once again on an airplane as you read this.
 |
Once again these are my opinion, but I tend to believe that the majority of people who read these will agree with me. Those other folks… well, they just ain’t no good! 🙂 Here we go:
1. Don’t steal someone else’s stuff. Don’t plagiarize or use without attribution. That’s content or images.
2. Don’t be a nuisance. I could have said don’t spam but I wanted to reach a broader spectrum. Don’t overdo advertising, contacting people, etc.
3. Don’t be a troll. This is worse than being a nuisance because you’re probably just trying to cause trouble for no reason other than your own pleasure.
4. Don’t be too sensitive. Just because you feel you can identify with something doesn’t mean it’s for or about you.
5. Don’t wuss out on your morals or principles. I get it, peer pressure can be strong. Truth be told, standing up for your principles and the rights of others is a lot easier than living with guilt.
6. Don’t bully others. Sometimes you might feel like you have to call someone out. That’s fine, but know where and when to draw the line; words can kill.
7. Don’t ramble. If you have something to say just say it and move on. Don’t spend 10 minutes repeating one thing over and over, whether it’s blogging or on social media.
8. Don’t stalk. Yes, there are some attractive people out there, or some famous people you enjoy. Sometimes people go too far and they don’t know they’re doing it; self control is always a good thing.
9. Don’t forget you’re in public. How do you want people to perceive you? Always think of that before you say or put anything on the internet.
10. Don’t forget that once it’s out there, it’s out there forever. If you think you can do something stupid now & in 10 years it’ll be forgotten, please! Notice how fewer people are putting those drunken party photos of themselves on Facebook now?
If you couldn’t read this in 2 minutes… well, that’s on you. 🙂
My attention, immediately stumbled on the first point. I am following few of so called experts. Honestly these guys and girls, share things, ask questions like they are in 2nd grade and they are successful. How is this possible? Are majority of people level so low? Other than that, I agree should not push the limits, being social not not sharing just things related to business is better way to do things. Well, this also depend on the niche. In some cases can’t go too much on personal stuff and fun.
I have to say that I have seen some very sensitive people, especially in Facebook that doesn’t accept any critics.
Carl, I have to admit that at times I’m a pretty sensitive guy; that’s why I’ll never go into politics. lol I don’t think it’s criticism itself but how things are sometimes delivered. Overall, social media does begin with the word “social” so people trying some of that isn’t a bad idea.
Politics, religion and sports are tought topics. Excepts trying to make a scandal and huge discussion, I don’t see any other benefits of sharing posts with these topics, if so than many people can become sensitive.
Well, I’ll be contrarian as always…
Why write on politics, religion, or sports?
– To meet and chat with like-minded people;
– To discuss and debate with people who hold different viewpoints;
– To learn from each other and expand our understanding of a topic;
– To teach others what we understand, from our unique perspective, about a topic;
Oh, wait, is it really all about SEO? That actually works, too. But it usually makes you look like a jerk, if – as you point out – it’s just to make a scandal. A huge discussion? So long as it’s not a war, I think that can actually help civilization. But it has to be a well-moderated discussion.
I should add that in order to moderate any discussion effectively, you should probably have an interest in the topic. This is why I don’t write about sports. Because really, my biggest delight in sports is trolling the enthusiasts, saying things like “So, which team’s playing tonight – is that the Dallas Buckaroos?”
Yeah, I don’t blog about sports. Although I do think Roller Derby and Fencing are pretty cool. And Chess. Chess is good.
What do you mean, that’s not a sport?
These types of posts can definitely get conversations started, though if you the writer aren’t ready for it they can be disconcerting. For some folks though, like Holly said, they might find like-minded thinkers.
Quite a list, I would like to leave a comment on the first number shared. “Don’t steal someone else’s stuff.”
Plagiarism on and offline is a no no. It is prohibited. But giving credit to the author or the post when you use their content is a sign of respect and it is like telling them that you wanted to share the idea that you learned.
While, Flickr.com is a website where you can use pictures for your blog. Don’t just filch images anywhere on the internet.
If you take someone else’s stuff, without their express permission, it’s a copyright violation EVEN IF YOU GIVE CREDIT. Now, that said, you can QUOTE a snippet of their stuff, included it in your stuff, give them credit and a link back, and they’ll love you for it. But don’t make the mistake of thinking you can lift a whole post and it’s okay so long as you say, “I don’t own this, it was written by marvelous author Richard Smith.”
On Flickr, you can use others’ images IF they’ve marked them with the Creative Commons license and IF you use them in accordance with their specifications.
True dat Metz. The images thing takes some time to get used to which is unfortunate, but there’s always a fine line between sharing and stealing for some.
#1 – Absolutely agree!! HOWEVER, anything that’s out there is fair game to be LINKED to – provided the original creator or licensee maintains control.
#2 – You’re no fun.
#3 – See #2. Can I be a troll BACK, if someone else starts it? Because, you know, depending on the phase of the moon and whether my claws need sharpening…
#4 – Yeah, yeah. As my daughter said, yesterday, enough with the Vaguebooking already. “You walked into the party, like you were walking onto a yacht…”
#5 – I totally agree. But some folks out there would have to get and grow a couple before they’d have anything to wuss out ON.
#6 – See #3.
#7 – This is why I should never, ever, ever, EVER do video. I don’t know how to get in and get out gracefully, do I?
#8 – But what if I want to hunt the wascally wabbit? See #3.
#9 – Oh, @#$%!!!
#10 – ForEVER? Remember back in the day, when we figured anything would vanish in a couple of years because digital storage was so fallible and so expensive? Yeah, now they store those bits in the RAIN. OMG – is your data secure? What happens if there’s a storm, and it rains your data on your neighbor’s satellite dish and…OMG!! Where’s my tinfoil hat?
#11 – No one’s truly anonymous on the Internet, even Anonymous. See #5.
1. I agree back.
2. Someone’s gotta make the rules. lol
3. You can, but you have to remember that there are some trolls who are pretty knowledgeable themselves and could make your life miserable for making their lives miserable.
4. Well, this one is dicey. Sometimes it’s not about you so you shouldn’t be thinking that way. But sometimes it’s definitely about you; that’s when the rules change.
5. True dat.
6. Ditto.
7. With practice you’d be fine; you’re already fine with blogging.
8. Remember, consequences…
9. LOL
10. Well, it’s not quite THAT bad lol
11. How’d you get 11 out of 10? 😉
1. Well, aren’t we just the little mutual admiration society?
2. And someone’s gotta see that as a challenge…
3. Well, some of them are gonna do that ANYWAY, so…well, it’s true that the cops don’t like to get involved if you’ve got dirty hands, yourself, so…yeah.
4. So, #3?
5. Now and then I do get one right.
6. Goodness, but you’re agreeable tonight!
7. Yes, but still have trouble with getting on/off the phone gracefully. It’s either “blah, blah, blah, yes, it’s been nice talking to you, too, blah, blah, blah, we should definitely do it more often, blah, blah, blah, but I’m not sure how we can do it more often if we don’t end THIS call first, blah, blah, blah” – or “Sure, hey, it’s been great tal–“*click!*. Done and done. I’m lacking in social skills.
8. I’ll try not to shoot myself in the foot. Or maybe I’ll just use rubber bullets.
9. The NSA is just rolling their eyes at this one. They’ve been waiting 25+ years for me to get interesting enough to listen to in real time.
10. Yes it is. This guy says so: http://youtu.be/ApQlMm39xr0
11. New math. Tom Lehrer taught me: http://youtu.be/DfCJgC2zezw
1. No, we’re just both correct.
2. Haters gonna hate lol
3. As long as you’re not the first troll, you might have a legal advantage… might that is
4. No, it’s still #4
5. Where morals are concerned, you probably get more than once in a while correct
6. Well, you did agree with me first
7. That sounds like my mom; maybe it’s a mother thing? lol
8. By the way, in Cali it’s a state felony, just so you know…
9. I’ve been on their list for a while
10. Goodness; they’re everywhere…
11. Sounds like my college statistics class; now my head hurts… lol
Great post Mitch. I really hate trolls. I see that alot on facebook and also on youtube. People seem to have nothing better to do but to put people down and that just shows their character and the fact they need to do this, just makes me block them, because I don’t want to read the non sense that trolls post.
Thanks Joanne. I can’t say I’ve ever seen it on Facebook but I certainly see it on blogs, Instagram and YouTube, and recently I’m seeing it on G+, which is really interesting because of all the filters people can set up against that. I hate trolls! 😉
Don’t be a hater, tater! 😉
LOL! Sometimes I just can’t stop myself.
Hi Mitch,
You said it all within these 10 points and I agree with all of them 🙂
I think if you are writing something, it should be because you want to write about it, and when that will is there, why go and cheat someone else’s stuff?
Yes, perhaps you are researching for things, and in that case do your research well but put it in your own words, or if you must add what others write, give them due credit. I get a few people who link up to my posts, but they are kind enough to give the credit at least, while the others are reported! There is no other way I’d say.
Thanks for sharing. Happy weekend 🙂
Thanks Harleena. I like giving credit where credit is due and I think seeing one’s name on someone else’s site engenders good feelings all around, like your recent post highlighting women bloggers.
Great points, Mitch 🙂
Although I don’t agree with all of them, but I do understand what you are saying.
#1 – I think we should steal (ideas, I mean). Of course, give credit where it is due (and with stuff like images, we should never steal. The best option to create images for ourselves. If that’s not possible, let’s get images that are free to use..or perhaps buy some images?).
#9 – I do agree with your point, but we should never let others dictate who we are…or how we act (of course, we should watch our behavior. It’s best if we respect everyone, even if we don’t agree with them). Calling them names isn’t going to solve anything.
Anyways, thank you for sharing this, Mitch 😀 Hope you are enjoying your weekend!
Interesting stuff Jeevan. You actually didn’t disagree with my first post since even you owned up to not stealing what I told people not to steal. lol Ideas are one thing but if you’re saying exactly what someone else said… bad juju!
On the second point, I don’t think being perspicacious with one’s words is worrying about others dictating what you have to say as much as making sure if you say something that’s going to be controversial and is going to generate a lot of heat and bad publicity that you’re ready to deal with it. I’ve shared on multiple posts on this blog over the years how someone who was very popular said something so outrageously stupid that they engendered lots of hate, even more than the norm because of how many people they were connected with and how people had perceived them in one way and suddenly saw a different side of them, and how all those people eventually came out and apologized and how sometimes it was too late to stem the tide of defections. And even if it’s removed it’s always online somewhere; the internet never forgets.
So, never let it deter you if you’re committed; just be ready to deal with the consequences if it goes wrong. 🙂
This post is great and as many mentioned before I like number 1 – without any ideas nobody should start a blog. Thinking that copy/paste is creative is dumb. If it comes to me I like to read blogs when I can detect a personal touch – and this personal touch will disappear as soon as someone is stealing.
Good point Miss. We really can tell when something doesn’t look right on a blog. In my own way I called another blogger who I’d been having contact with out on something like this because I’d recognized it from someone else. He eventually shut his blog down because he just didn’t have any more ideas to share of his own.
Mitch you described the 10 most important Don’ts about social networking. From the list, the most attractive is #7. Because time management is a big factor of everything. I’ve been facing time management issues when I started my blog and I used to spend more than 20 minutes reading a blog post thoroughly and then commenting. But form now on I will try to decrease my time to 10 minutes as per your 7th point. Thanks for sharing your ideas.
Have a nice day! 🙂
Well Mainak, this is time spent in your own space, not others. If it takes you 30 minutes to write a blog post you’re comfortable with then by all means take all that time. However, one hopes that if you’re taking all that time that most of what you say is something new as opposed to being redundant.
Hey Mitch,
Well every single one of those is definitely spot on. My favorite though is #10 and I keep telling “certain people” to tone it down now.
They’re in the moment and go blast certain things on the social sites and I tell them they’re going to regret it tomorrow. There is one girl who was ticked at her husband and had the nerve to share ALL her problems on Facebook only to regret it later. She got pissed at those who were giving her advice. She didn’t like the advice so she should have kept it at home. What’s wrong with these people! You don’t put that on the internet!
Now let’s go improve the world shall we Mitch! 🙂
~Adrienne
Adrienne, I keep trying to help improve the world, but no one’s listening! lol Your point is solid, airing your own dirty laundry to that degree makes no sense, and having other people disagree with you… well, no one ever thinks they’re wrong do they?
Hi Mitch,
Well said. Plagiarism is the worst behavior of some bloggers. Mostly newbie bloggers are doing this. Because they don’t know how to create a content and how to promote them. So, they just copy and paste the post of others to their blog. Nice Share Mitch.
Hi Mitch,
Plagiarism is the one “don’t” that irritates me the most. Far too often I come across sites where you know the content was a copy and paste and to make it worse they’ll run it through a spinner and make the article pure gibberish. They would be better off to just leave the article alone, although plagiarized, at least it made sense. To try and reduce image plagiarism I often imprint my url on an image, this way if it’s used without permission at least people know where it came from.
Sam, I know people who do that or add some kind of watermark. I don’t have those skills but most of the images I share I don’t care about and if they’re personal I always seem to find them and those are the easiest blogs to shut down later on… and I will go after folks here and there. 🙂