June 14, 2011
The Internet: Keep It New, Keep It Fresh.
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The Internet changed my life. Totally, utterly transformed it. Of course it did. In a very short period of time. A couple of years, tops.
And then there’s also my Internet-famous rockstar friends: Those who, similar to myself, somehow managed to create these interesting, web-enabled, prosperous, functioning little online micro-empires of their own. Internet mavens like Robert Scoble, Doc Searls, Mike Arrington, Seth Godin, Brian Clark, Sonia Simone, Loic Le Meur etc etc.
If you read gapingvoid, chances are you know what I’m talking about. You’re probably one yourself, or if you’re not, you’re probably aspiring to be more like that. At the very least, you’ll probably have a few friends like that.
In other words, this “Internet-Transformed Life” is not something alien to you. You GET it. It’s around you all the time.
And heck, even of you’re not one of these so-called rockstar folk, your life has still been transformed utterly, whether you’re aware of it or not. You may not be “Internet-famous”, but try imagining your life without it. Try going a year without Facebook or Google or Twitter or even even email and Internet access. Imagine going without it while still holding down your current job and getting your bills paid.
I’m guessing that would be difficult.
It certainly would be impossible for me. I don’t even want to think about it.
Hey, guess what? This state of affairs is permanent. It’s never NOT going to be transformative, it’s never NOT going to be changing everything and utterly central to fulfilling your needs. Certainly not in our lifetimes.
The Internet is here to stay, and it’s constantly re-inventing itself, and the world that surrounds it.
And yet we still take it for granted, even after all it’s done for us. It’s only been available en masse for little over a decade and already it’s no big deal. Twitter and Facebook? Dude! That’s so 2007!
It’s a mistake to think like that. So blogging is past-tense. Same with Facebook or Twitter. Who cares? The Internet is SO MUCH BIGGER and long-term than any of that. That’s like comparing a bottle of Perrier with the Pacific Ocean.
If the Internet doesn’t seem new and fresh to you, you’re doing something wrong, end of story. You are basically extinct, end of story.
That’s my advice to any adult, regardless of age, class, race, nationality or gender.
Keep it new. Keep it fresh. By any means necessary.
There, I’ve said my piece. Thanks for listening.
[PS: This blog post is dedicated to my old friend, the wonderful Doc Searls, legendary co-author of The Cluetrain, the first person to REALLY open my eyes to all this. Thanks, Doc!]
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Tags: blogging, Doc Searls, Internet, The Cluetrain, Twitter-Facebook
Completely agree. The internet is only a teenager, as Gary V would say. Throughout our lifetime we’re going to see so many cool internet-enabled revolutions. And I agree about the “so 2004″ stuff like blogging and Facebook. I’m just getting into blogging and while it might not be cutting edge it’s still transformative in the whole scheme of things. A decade ago I wouldn’t have been able to push my thoughts and connect with people at the click of the WordPress button. It’s really amazing. Your post reminds me of the mountains here in Colorado. All of us who live in this awesome state take them for granted. I have a mountain less than a mile from my house, I can see it out my window every day, yet months go by where I forget to go hike up the damn things! Love this post!
Hey Casey,
Yeah, well, nature programmed us to take the familiar stuff for granted, however majestic the mountains may be.
Nature hardwired us instead to pay close attention the the new and unfamiliar. It kept our ancestors from getting eaten by saber-tooth tigers.
It is what it is…
You are so right on!
Hugh should that be “Keep it new”?
The Internet began to change my life in late 1991, before it was “the Internet.”
Not because it made me a rock star. Because it enabled me to form connections with people I never could have met otherwise. It gave me a different place to put some of those eggs I’d been storing in one basket.
In retrospect, it’s hard to believe that I didn’t realize that it was going to change the whole world.
Your best quote: “The Internet is here to stay, and it’s constantly re-inventing itself, and the world that surrounds it.” That’s a fact.
It’s also a warning because if we want to be “here to stay”, we must also be “constantly reinventing” ourselves.