From ESPN RISE: Julie Foudy takes Twitter plunge, but advises you to stay on the sidelines
U.S. women’s soccer legend is having a ball with her new social media tool
I resisted.
I put up a good fight.
I tried hard not to join the masses.
I tried really hard to convince myself I didn’t need it.
I thought it was a tool for narcissists only.
I really did.
And now? Well …
I have succumbed.
I too have joined twitter-dom (four years late).
And even more concerning, two days in and I’m addicted.
So, in honor of my foray into this brave new world that I pretend to know lots about, here are five reasons why I now like (I am not at love yet) Twitter:
1. I can ask a question, and people actually respond. I can’t even get my kids to do that.
2. It is immediate. (Anyone who has seen me eat dessert knows I am all about instant gratification.) Breaking news, sports scores, how much Princess Beatrice’s royal hat monstrosity sold for on ebay (if you wait to read about it in the newspaper the next day, that is sooo yesterday. BTW, someone actually paid more than $130K for it.)
3. You don’t have to respond to people if you don’t feel like it and they don’t even care. Ahhh, paradise.
4. If you don’t spell something correctly, you can blame it on lack of characters.
5. I can throw fancy words like “hash tag” and “handle” into conversations and people look at me like I know what I am talking about. Bonus.
Now to my other list.
Top 5 reasons you should never tweet and only follow if you can get away with it (even if your teammates claim you are of the Jurassic period, even if the boy you have a crush on asks why you don’t tweet, even if every single friend you know is doing it):
1. Tweeting is dangerous…. There is no mother over your shoulder or best friend by your side at that moment you are typing to tell you that tweet is a bad, bad idea.
2. Tweeting a message means it is public and forever… there is no delete/erase button (there is but too late, the rest of world has already seen it. That alone has me in a mild panic.).
3. Because being a fly on the wall and listening to people talk nonsense is much more fun than joining the nonsense.
4. You reap all the rewards without the risk.
5. All the above. (Reread if you are on the fence).
My handle by the way is @juliefoudy. I may be a rookie, but I am great at talking absolute nonsense, so don’t miss the latest unbreaking news about life, leadership, dirty diapers, and lots of footie (Women’s World Cup is a month away).