My post, Twitter: It’s a GenX Thing, caused a stir and flurry of comments on this blog. (Translate that as anyone who wants to read me being bashed might like the initial post.) I’m involved in the conversation there and just went a layer deeper with this comment, below:
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I offer that any conversation about generations, twitter and any other social media is informed less by stats and more by WHY. Why is twitter popular now? Because someone created technology? A tool? Yet-another geeky thing? Hardly. Twitter, I believe, is popular because whatever gen is ascending into midlife (that’s GenX) has the most power and influence of and for the times. So GenX — back to my original position — orient toward GAPS. Why, cuz Boomers tend to take up space and squat on turf and not move over when the natural time for them to move on over occurs. GenX know this in the core of their souls. So rather than fight an entire generation of turf-squatters, we find gaps. The spaces not filled. The neglected areas. The opportunities that, cobbled together, bit by bit, make for magnificent change.
And, Twitter, is a most-excellent tool for filling small gaps. It’s SMALL. It’s specific. It provides no room for deep, prolonged naval gazing (sorry boomers, had to stick that one in). No room for deep, meaningful exploration of a subject. Function. Now. Reality. GenX. Gaps. Small spaces. Small opportunities.
Twitter: It’s a GenX Thing.
Hey, I’m right back at where I started. 
3 Comments
June 10, 2009 at 8:19 am
I started using Twitter in earnest just about 5 or 6 weeks ago. I like it. But I find I use it more to promote my blog than to truly ‘talk’ to other people and have fun with it. That bothers me. I have to think about using it differently or opening several accounts so I can use them for different purposes.
June 10, 2009 at 10:42 am
“I offer that any conversation about generations, twitter and any other social media is informed less by stats and more by WHY. Why is twitter popular now?”
Now THAT’S logic I can get behind.
June 18, 2009 at 4:09 am
you were spot-on with that twitter post. keep blogging! you’re building steam.