Self-reflection on why do I share
At work our dormant 3D Animation CoP just got a comment on a past blog post by someone from the Machine Design CoP saying they have also done a bit of 3D work.
That’s great; our CoPs are a grounds for discovery, connection, diversity, re-use/remixing..but that’s not what this post is about…
On the same day the 3D Animation CoP posted 3 new blog posts…
Why is that so?
It’s like that commenter came to the table for a feed, and the blogger realised his CoP table was empty so he thought he better put more food on the table, as it’s the right thing a host should do…I mean the more people eat, the more the aim of the CoP becomes fulfilled ie. generates a community spirit.
It means so much when you have an audience…when you are being heard…I have impact (made a difference)…people like what I say…hey I know this…glad it helped you…connection is happiness…mutual fulfillment…building something together…personal and group progress. All this motivates you to share.
Sure a motivation to share can be "I know this…", but not everyone cares to think out loud and share what they know as it happens. I think a more common motivation can happen in a reactionary way…people like what I wrote, they have used what I said in a positive action, the realisation of wow I know stuff and people are listening to me…maybe I could indeed be DIY subject matter expert.
The more people comment on my stuff the more I feel compelled to share, it almost becomes an obligation, but I think it’s just the essence of what it is to be human…having purpose and social connection…engagement.
See Nancy Dixon’s post on a company commander who became an active participant after he found out that other people were getting valuable use from his AAR document
It got me thinking about why I share, which I guess is a re-visit to my post on what blogging does for me
NOTE: this is not a post on why people share in general, for that see some points here about participation
NOTE: there’s also a heap of research on the physiology and psychology of why people share, but maybe I’ll collect and post these links another time
Anyway, here’s my self-reflection…
Interest
- I read so many great blogs and wanted to be a part of that
Express my thinking and clarify my understanding
- The act of posting is "learning" as you are going one step further than thinking…you compare, associate, correlate, analyse, etc…
Feedback
- In my context, who needs to pay for university teachers when you get people adding to and refining your thoughts…the most simplest comment by an unknown, or even someone in another discipline are often the best
- This feedback helps me grow and understand
Memory management
- I don’t want to forget what I read, I like to clip things and then correlate (especially inter-discipline connections)
Research
- Not all people are researchers, but I am…I don’t formally study…I’m just personally motivated by being passionate about certain topics
Impact
- I want to know I make a difference in the world; I don’t want to be just a work slave/consumer
Belonging
- I want to be a part of something…social connection makes me feel good
Audience
- Knowing you have subscribers and commenters just makes you want to post more as it’s an indicator that your purpose is being fulfilled ie. many of the points described above
- I used to post according to what the audience like (via comments on particular topics), but now I just post on what I’m interested in right now
Help others
- This is unconditional for me…but it does depend on time availability
- I co-facilitate the vendor CoP we use at work…I spend some of my time helping others…I do this for free…I’ve experienced many things with the product so for me helping people on the forums is the right thing to do…the by-product of this behaviour is you become known as a subject matter expert whether you like it or not
Habit/addiction
- I’m prone to be a blogger…it makes me feel good…but it’s also addictive
Showing-off
- But not really…it’s more clearing up old modes of thinking…maybe this is related to "advocacy"’
- I am a naturally inclined to be currently aware off all the latest stuff for self-interest, but also like to tell people about it when the occassion arises (BTW - I used to be a current awareness librarian)
- I think stuff is so cool, I just want to share it especially when it comes to music….I guess this is a natural trait of being an enthusiast, early adopter, connoisseur…maybe I’m a cool hunter…hmmm, I’m not a mainstream person eg. I don’t just like what they feed me on the mainstream radio, I go and hunt for stuff…more underground
Messenger
- Noise comes across my radar…the glass half-full is that what was once noise is a new topic I now like to read… a little noise is good…but it also means that when I come across posts about iPad I send them to my friend Gerry…I unconditionally send people links cause I know it’s what they like…I guess this is gifting
Career development
- This realisation came later on
Let’s finish with a snippet from the insightful Andrew Gent:
| "People share openly when they feel they are part of a community Not a member of the community, a part of the community. They share because they are assisting the community, even if the sharing is one-to-one with another member. …incentives cannot alter the psychological affinity an individual feels towards to community. At best, the incentive may spur an initial (and temporary) jump from lurker to participant, which the individual then finds satisfying. This success may spur them to try again, and over time start to develop a sense of ownership in the group. (In other words, become part of the community.) This, I believe, is what advocates of incentives are aiming for." |
I’m not going to tag people to pass this on, but I recommend "reflection" as a good experience in self-development… or simply growing your grey matter 
Hmm…maybe I’ll tag Harold Jarche, as he recently posted on reflection
…also see my post on meditation as reflection.
![email.png](http://services.nexodyne.com/email/icon/GxbiQvgbwBgCnw%3D%3D/oIp%2BJMQ%3D/R01haWw%3D/0/image.png"){kind=icon}
I came to this post via @timkastelle. I’d just Tweeted him some moments earlier about a link I’d sent him on ‘combinatorial creativity’ and copyright, which I know he’s interested in.
He thanked me and I joked that I use him as a Tag.
It’s not a joke, though. I do - Tim = combinatorial creativity (which, in my head, is vernacular materials, but this is another story…)
The fact is, sharing stuff with Tim is what I do to think. Information comes my way and part of the triage process is tagging and labelling. I have a very poor memory for tags - as my various bookmarking accounts will testify - but a good memory for people I like and admire.
You, for example, own the space in my head roughly equivalent to ‘Dave Snowden made practicable’. If this were a tag, it would be something like - all that really complicated technical KM stuff that the more intellectual information and organisational theory people talk about on the web, in human readable form.
I once worked on an intranet which nobody used. (I realise that this doesn’t narrow it down). The HR department spent too much time fielding telephone queries from staff who could have just done what they wanted by self-service. So, all I did was rename the bits of the intranet related to HR after the individuals who worked there. Problem solved, literally overnight.
What I’m saying is, for me sharing is an act of supreme selfishness. You are my tag.
BTW I wrote this as a joke a while back. But a few of us still play it a year or so on:
http://rtbc.tumblr.com/post/240089374/the-game-of-skinner
Comment by Simon Bostock — October 26, 2010 @ 12:34 am
I find it very recognisable! I feel guilty when I still blog but when I’m behind in reading other blogs. Twitter has definitely made it harder to keep up with both reading and writing, but doesn’t replace my bloggers fun. I guess I also enjoy making the posts look attractive, an aspect missing in twitter…
Comment by Joitske Hulsebosch — November 16, 2010 @ 10:15 pm
Hi Joitske,
Glad you dropped by…I don’t find much time to blog now that we have a new addition to our family. But I’m really enjoying link blogging…it’s filling my gap
http://johntropea.tumblr.com/
Comment by John Tropea — November 24, 2010 @ 10:23 pm