How Twitter Lists Have Changed My Life

It's a big call, but I'm making it. Twitter lists have changed my life by making my social media time more efficient and interesting. 

I did not expect this small change to have such a positive effect on my life. Sure, I'd made lists before, but it was not until Sochi that I realized how darn useful they could be. Once set up with the right people (mainly sports journos); with the tap of a button I could filter my massive twitter feed with just the Winter Olympics news I wanted. 

After a blog chat a few months ago, I decided to focus on sharing fellow blogger's content from within my niche. I hoped my followers would like the improved content curation of my twitter feed. So I created a new list just made up of bloggers.  First thing in the morning I can check my list and see that morning's blog posts being flogged and any other interesting updates- all without the background noise and unending scrolling required when viewing everyone I follow. 

I save oodles of time and I also now get to see more of what each person is sharing throughout the day when I'm at work, because it's also the first thing I check when I get on the train to head home. If I only have a short amount of time I also have an "Essential reads" list of people/news outlets that gives me a quick snapshot of what's happening at any given time. 

I also now am able to read what my overseas tweeps are posting when I'm asleep, through my UK people list. Previously I would only have the patience to scroll back an hour or two in the mornings, but now I see most of what has been happening overnight. 

Yes, I do still read my whole feed - but only small chunks at a time. Lists have given me a more comprehensive view of what the people I follow are posting, and it's totally customizable for my needs. By creating lists of twitter accounts based on type of content (eg bloggers) or geographic location (another hemisphere) I save time and get to see a lot more varied tweets. 

Do you use twitter lists? What for? Do they save you time and trouble?

My social media story

 

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Today I realized I have far to many fingers in far too many social media pies. The realization came when I started looking at reddit and linkedin, just exploring as I had heard them talked about in various spheres both online and off. And then I started thinking about how many accounts I already have, how many I have tried and deleted accounts for, and how many I have yet to explore. Let’s make a list shall we?

I LIKE

Twitter – obviously a fan. Now my main source of news, I don’t watch TV news or read newspapers any more.

Facebook – have considered deleting a number of times however have stayed for the Zynga games. I also have started liking it again post-wedding as my cousins all told me it’s the only way they have of keeping up with family news. I’m reading my feed more often now to be more involved in their lives, and also actually posting status updates now after being begged to by a relative :p Considering removing everybody except family, close friends and game neighbours.

Instagram – got on the bandwagon early and stayed there. I love this app so much. I love taking iphone photos and sharing them with my followers AND with my social media networks. What I REALLY love lately are the celebrities on there. Getting a small glimpse into their lives is so interesting. I recommend: Jamie Oliver, Chris Lilley (who is an amazing photographer btw), Jessica Alba, David Blue and Kat Von D.

Tumblr – I didn’t understand it for the longest time, but now I love it for its quirkiness. Like twitter, the quality of what you see depends entirely on who you follow. I like to keep mine full of prettiness and memes. Haven’t devoted much time to it lately due to my crazy wedding frenzy.

GetGlue – I wanted something that I could use to check in to TV shows and participate in discussion and GetGlue was recommended. You can check-in to movies, books, music and “things I’m thinking about”. You collect stickers when you check into random things, or check into something a number of times. Apparently you can get these sent to you in real life via the post however I have yet to figure this part out. Thinking of deleting this one as superfluous to my social media suite at present.

I TRIED

Pinterest – it’s now incredibly popular but I started using Pinterest after getting engaged in January 2011 (does this make me an early-adopter?) after my friend recommended it for wedding planning. I recently blogged about my problemswith it and have now stopped using it. I haven’t deleted my account though, and am getting new followers and repins every day despite not being active. I am considering using it once more for business purposes in the future however.

Foursquare – I deleted Foursquare because of privacy concerns. And also because I literally never go anywhere interesting. If I do, I now use Facebook check-in instead.

Path – though it has such great potential, I had big privacy issues with this app (they had some negative media coverage regarding the way it was accessing your phone contacts to find friends). Also, despite me requesting it not to display my location, Path persisted in posting my suburb to my timeline every time I ‘slept’ or ‘woke up’. One thing I did adore about this app though was the moon rising animation when you ‘go to sleep’. It even showed what phase the moon was in that night. It also calculates how many hours you’ve slept, which is handy. That part was great. As an interactive social media platform it did have potential, with the ability to check into places and also share music, however I felt the simple addition of a few more check-in options like what book I’m reading or tv show I’m watching would make it truly unbeatable as a sharing app.

Google+ - ‘nuff said. Deleted as it was sharing my real name and I couldn’t figure out how to change it.

YET TO EXPLORE

Reddit – interested because the guy in the ‘Caine’s Arcade’ video described it as ‘the front page of the internet’. And lo, that is also their tag line. On my to-do list to check out, also because @wilw uses it.

LinkedIn – I understand this is for ‘professionals’? Has been recommended to hubby as part of his business strategy but I understand it also can help drive blog traffic.

Digg – seems to have been around forever and I keep seeing little Digg icons everywhere (like, for years) but have never really looked at it.

Delicious – again, keep seeing icons for sharing things on this site, no idea what it is

StumbleUpon – as above

Flickr – though I have an account, I rarely use it for social media purposes. I understand it has quite a strong community thing going on however

What social media platforms or applications do you use regularly? What ones have you tried and discarded?

No texting and no Twitter make Sarah something something

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From Friday last week, to yesterday afternoon, I couldn't use my iPhone. First World Problems, I know.

What I wasn't prepared for was the sense of loss and helplessness that this situation evoked in me! I would continually pick it up, start to text someone and remember. Put phone back down. Pick it up a minute later, open Echofon and try to tweet and then remember.

Due to some barring placed on it by my service provider (a little matter of an overdue bill... but we won't go into that. Suffice to say there was no notice and apparently since it wasn't a full suspension of service I don't deserve any. Not happy.) I could receive incoming calls and texts but not send anything, or access the internet. Do you know how frustrating it is to not reply to a text when you want to? And if I wasn't home I couldn't pick up the home phone (which has also had a fault on it, don't even ask!) and make an old-fashioned landline call to tell people why I couldn't respond!

Telstra couldn't seem to remove the bar, despite me complying with their billing request. So I spent the entire weekend and Monday not texting, tweeting, calling, instagramming, Path-ing, playing Words With Friends or checking into GetGlue. It was strange - I've had my iphone for only a year but it felt like my arm had been cut off. Basically it had been rendered a black brick on which I could only play Freecell.

Finally after 4 phone calls and a complaint logged via the web I rang Telstra yesterday afternoon, said "complaint" into the RVA and miraculously was put through to a person who knew what the hell they were doing. He fixed it within 5 mins, and I could use my phone again. Halle-freaking-lujah!

I spent 30 years of my life without an iPhone, and  4 days without one sent me round the twist. What has become of me?

Are you too reliant on your Smart Phone? Is your life on there? How have you coped/would you cope without it?