A few weeks ago, the Tweet above inspired a pretty good conversation with Geoff Livingston. While some saw as passive aggressive, I saw it as an inspiration to dealing with roadblocks and changing perceptions.
There is no question that every now and then we are faced with challenges that test our breaking points. Be it family, work, a pet or just plain old life, you have two options for dealing with these challenges – banging your head through the wall or thinking of another way to approach the problem for a resolution.
In the social space, a common challenge we face is when coworkers question the true value of social media is or read research reports that say that all companies need to be using the “hot new social network.”
Sound familiar?
Hearing these questions day in and day out can be trying and annoying, but treat it as an opportunity rather than a hindrance. When faced with these kinds of queries, be ready with a well constructed answer, which will serve everyone better in the long-run. So instead of the eyeroll or quick terse response, take a step back and consider answering with a thought out response similar to the ones below.
On measuring social:
Hi X. Thanks for bringing this up. When we look at social media there are a number of factors that we’re measuring. These include X,Y and Z. If you’d like to hear more, I’m more than happy to set up time to walk you through them.
On the new shiny object:
Thanks for reaching out about X. We’ve been looking at it as a potential avenue for some time now. Currently our strategy is X or X network is not going to fit into our current strategy immediately due to the following factors. . .
While the template responses above are only examples, hopefully they can serve as an example of a way to diffuse a roadblock or annoying situation.
How do you deal with these situations? Do you keep getting the same frustrating results, or do you try to think differently?
