Why You Don't Have Time NOT To Social Network

by Melanie Moore

"I'm just too busy to social network. I simply don't have the time".

I hear this many times from writers, many who come to me to help them with a blog design. They are working hard, trying to build their writing platform, expand their reach, and broaden their audience... but are coming up frustrated.

I am going to share a little secret that I wish someone had told me sooner. I happened upon this truth quite by accident over the last year when I very grudgingly joined Twitter at the urging of a mentor.

You don't have time NOT to social network.

Attending conferences, visiting and commenting on other blogs, and researching ways to build a platform are all very important tasks. I certainly do not want to cast a negative light at all over these vital tasks. However, these tasks also take a great deal of time.

Social media, on the other hand, is a rapidly growing outreach that is a "hit and run" pace. It is also free publicity! You can grow your platform in only 10 minutes a day.

I promise.

10 minutes.

Go ahead.. set a timer. I will wait here.

Here are some tips for growing your platform in 10 minutes a day on a Social Network like Twitter:

1. Sign up for Twitter and follow as many people as possible that have interests common to you. For example, you could search for "Blogger", "Author", "Southern", etc. Most people will follow you back.

2. Jump in on the conversation! Take 10 minutes to respond to every tweet that interests you. Don't be shy! I know at first it feels like you are intruding on a private conversation between two other people, but all tweets are open for everyone to see... and to respond to. This is a great way to make friends!

3. Make Twitter "Lists" -- Lists are an easy way to organize your twitter followers and to get to know others who often reply to your tweets.

4. "Follow" most people back who "follow" you first. This is basic Twitter etiquette, and is a wonderful way to connect with others. However, be sure to check their Twitter profile first to make sure that they are not spammers or trying to sell you something.

I have only been on Twitter for one year, and in only 10 minutes a day, I have seen my Twitter followers grow to almost 3000 followers. My blog pageviews and subscribers have increased, and I am contacted with more amazing opportunities since my subscriber base has grown!

More importantly, I have made some really great friends and found others who share common interests, cheer me up with their funny tweets, and have even won tickets to an awesome conference just by attending Twitter parties!

Go ahead and give 10 minutes of social media a try today! When you do, tweet me and let me know you did! I'm on Twitter at @MelanieAnneTN.
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Melanie is a full-time industrial software developer and mom of two boys. She lives in the beautiful Appalachian mountains with her husband and children and writes at Only A Breath about faith, giveaways, family, budgeting, and resources and encouragement for women.

Just Take One Block

by Shannon Milholland

When I was a kid, I was enamored with any game that fit in one can. One of those was Jenga. The object of this game is to stack all the blocks and then remove them one at a time without causing the entire structure to fall.

I don't know about you but at times I feel like Social Media is a huge towering insurmountable structure. But what if the key to success wasn't stacking more bricks but successfully navigating which ones to remove?

Use Tweetdeck to schedule all your tweets for the next two weeks in 10 minutes.


Set a timer and only spend that number of minutes on Facebook.


Plan a blog series and write it all in one morning.


What blocks could you remove from your day today? Why not start with one and see what difference it makes?

A Matter of Time

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director

Every once in a while, the subject comes up (usually after the latest Iron Man or X-Men movie), and someone will ask this question:

“If you were a superhero, what superpower would you have?”

Despite the many options one could envision, I’m kind of proud to say my answer has stayed the same over the years. The reason I’m proud is because I think it’s the most logical choice of all. My superpower would be the ability to stop time.

Imagine. If you could stop time in its tracks you’d have all the other superheroes beat by a mile. You wouldn’t need to leap tall buildings in a single bound (like Superman) because you could just walk. You wouldn’t need super strength (like, say, the Hulk on a bad day) since you could simply go get your car and push whatever’s in your way. Everything — and everybody — would simply wait until you were done.

Now, you may have come up with a superpower you think is better than mine, such as being able to go back in time and change the past. But come on, that could never happen. Let’s keep it real.

In my scenario, deadlines wouldn’t stress you out, since you’d have the power to stall them until tomorrow, or next month. Running late for a big event? Forget about it. Get there when you can, and stop for a sandwich on the way.

Seriously, marvel at this list of things you’d accomplish: you’d have time to read every book and watch every movie you ever wanted to catch up on. You could write endless novels, learn new languages, and become a master at any skill you desire. You wouldn’t even need a cape.

Unfortunately, the closest most of us will ever come to stopping time is hitting pause on the DVR. But there are, of course, ways we can take charge of the hours we have. 

Time management experts tell us to ask the “Lakein Question” (named after author Alan Lakein): “What is the best use of my time right now?” In other words, “Is this what I want or need to be doing right this minute?” If the answer to both of those questions is “no”, you’re probably wasting your time! 

Separating the urgent from the important is another staple of time management, and like most of us, I wish I was better at telling them apart. All day long our truly important tasks will be interrupted by some urgent thing that can’t wait — or can wait but we don’t let it because it seems important — such as an email or a phone call. Meanwhile, the important item is on the back burner again. 

If you have a goal, sticking with it is the way to see it through. Control your time instead of letting it take control of you.

Now that I think of it, there was an Adam Sandler movie about five years ago called Click, in which the hero was able to stop everything around him with a remote control. It was actually pretty amusing. In fact, I wouldn’t mind going and watching it right now. But I don’t have the time.