Lesson 3: Do it in Public

As part of the Commit or Kill campaign for Book Rapper, here’s Book Rapper Lesson #3.

Publicly Private or Privately Public

The internet and social media are causing some interesting shifts in how we live. For instance, privacy and publicity have merged, blurred and swapped places. Now, some people are sharing publicly what others wouldn’t be caught doing in the first place. And, the things we do privately like buying things via credit card or searching for things online are now in the hands of public corporations.

Going Public

And, for me, that’s one of the lessons from Book Rapper. Previously, I would’ve either struggled ahead alone or asked a small group of close friends for their opinion. Or, if I was running a typical business I’d do restricted market research surveys or focus groups behind closed doors.

Not anymore. Now, I’m doing things in public I never thought I’d do.

Out There Forever!

The current example is the Book Rapper Commit or Kill campaign. Basically, the future of Book Rapper has been thrown open to the public. It’s been announced in an email campaign to the entire mailing list, it’s been posted on it’s own website and it’s been squawked around the internet via Twitter. Not only is this now out there for all to see, it’s out there forever! Google keeps a record of everything that moves on the web.

The Social Impact

This points to the impact social media is having on all of us. In short, we’re being conditioned to do things publicly. You only have to check my Twitter feed to see who’s blogs I’m reading. Or, my Facebook friends list to see who I hang out with. Or my Linked In profile to see my CV. Almost all of me is now out there in public! Thankfully, no Paris Hilton style videos of me though…

The Lesson

What are you doing privately that you’d be better off in public? Where could you get a better result by sharing your thoughts and getting feedback from a wider audience? Going public might just expand the options you have.