There was once a frightening period in our history, my friend. It was a sad time (although we did wear colorful clothes…). You may have seen pictures of our past, though we shudder when we recall. It was a time when we used faxes (I’ll explain that word at a later date) as a speedy way to communicate, and even used paper that would yellow and dissolve quickly, though it was not a spy-esque mechanism… It was a time where people would actually stay home to watch a TV show they liked (OK, I’ll explain TV later too) or even wait a week or more for written correspondence.

And yes, there was a time before we had the “tubes” of the internet. And before social media. But you can put all those years of inefficiency and dismay behind you, because that time has passed.

So you are probably wondering how does social media improve my life? Here are just a few benefits:

1. Say Connected

At a recent conference, Cultural Anthropologist Grant McCracken pointed out that Facebook means your contacts are always warm. You’re always in touch with them in a subtle yet meaningful way. “This is communication with little hard, informational content, but lots of emotional and social content. Phatic communications doesn’t get much said, but it has social effects so powerful, it gets lots done.”

While you may not have seen that co-worker from a few years back, your newsfeed tells you what she’s been up to. Or you read that your friend is planning a trip to Boston so you decide to send her the email address for that couple you know who also enjoys Melanesian Throat Singing. And your Facebook status can inform business contacts that you’re “excited about the new job” – which subtly clues them in to the fact that you have changed workplaces - without any drama. And as Chris Brogan puts it, social networks can be as connective as a local pub.
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When it comes to blogging, there are endless decisions to be made. How you approach these decisions can be the difference between the success and failure of your blog (of course these words “success” and “failure” will have different definitions to different people).

One thing I have come to realize is that many bloggers simply rely on truthiness when making decisions. For those readers unfamiliar with Stephen Colbert and The Colbert Report, “truthiness” is a satirical term defined as “the quality by which one purports to know something emotionally or instinctively, without regard to evidence or intellectual examination.”

Of course some people have a natural instinct for blogging and it therefore makes perfect sense to follow their gut - Leo Babauta and Seth Godin instantly come to mind as examples. But if your blog is drifting in the doldrums, or even if it has achieved a moderate level of success, what would happen if you relied less on truthiness, and more on the truth?

To help you better understand what I mean, the following are some ways that you can stop relying on start relying on solid evidence and facts with your blogging:
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Well, the StumbleUpon community has read my post on how to become a top user and started discussing my tactics.

Also, I’ve been taken off the Top Stumbler page. I haven’t received a notice but I’m inclined to believe the events are connected. It will be interesting to see how my StumbleUpon traffic is affected. Click here to continue »