You’re doing it wrong!

I hate when people tell me that.

Who are they to tell me how to do something?

OK…OK…there are times when ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ make sense. Driving a car. Flying a plane.  Connecting electric lines. Things like this do have right and wrong ways.

If I’m taking a picture, who’s to tell me what is the right way or the wrong way?  What about how I use my twitter feed or my facebook page?  What about my blog….should I be blogging like everyone else does?

Hell no.

I’ve had people tell me my blog isn’t focused. Well…OK.   I’ve asked them what i should focus on and they provide suggestions.  I then say ‘thank you’ and tell them I’m not changing.

This blog is me.  What I talk about is what makes up ‘me’.  What I talk about is what I believe.  I’m more than happy to have people tell me they disagree…that’s their right.

Let’s step back to the photography example I mentioned earlier.

I took a photo the other evening of the sunset & clouds over Dallas.  The colors were amazing so I had to grab the  Canon EOS 5D and Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM and took a few photographs.

Here’s one of the shots (click the image to jump over to my photography blog for a larger version):

Do you know what happened after I posted this photo on a photography forum?  Most people told me ‘you messed up a great shot…you need to have some landscape for perspective’.

Sure the shot would have been awesome with some landscape pieces. A tree, building or mountain (there are none in Dallas!) would probably have made this photograph ‘fit’ the mold of landscape photography.  Something to add perspective might have turned this abstract photo into a landscape photo…but as it is, I think its pretty cool.

Who are those folks to tell me that I did it wrong?  Perhaps they’re experienced and knowledgeable photographers…but it’s my photograph right?   Who are they to tell me that I’m doing it wrong? I like the colors and the clouds. I’m happy with it.

I told the people on the photography forum exactly that….and was rewarded with quite a few congratulatory comments about not falling into the linear thinking trap of doing things the way they’ve always been done.

The same holds true for everything else in this wonderful world. Let’s look at the very popular topic of Social Media as an example. Are you using Social Media the ‘right’ way?  Is your organization?

Ha!  Did I trick you?

There’s no right or wrong way to ‘use’ Social Media. Social Media is a tool to be used however you think it best fits you and/or your organization.  Want to have a twitter account and not follow anyone?  Have at it!  Do you want to delete your Facebook fan page?  Do it.

Don’t fall into the linear thinking trap that everyone else falls into…nobody is doing it wrong in the world of social media.  Some people are getting better results than others but perhaps its because those people have actually found what works for them?  Something to ponder.

Don’t let anyone tell you that you’re doing it wrong.  Do what works for you and or your organization and enjoy it.

Rather than follow the crowd and do things the ‘right’ way, try your own way.  Maybe you’re results will be better than others…maybe they’ll be worse. But at least you’ll have tried something different.