Personal Trainer or Personal Twitter?
Recently I had an interesting discussion with some colleagues about the internet’s role on personal privacy versus public disclosure. Although the web has made it easy for us to share every aspect of our lives with other people (strangers and friends alike), why do we feel the need to do so? Is this the classic case of ‘if a tree falls in a forest and no one is there, will it make a sound?’ Does sharing what we do and feel, at the time we do and feel them to the intangible online community our way of making sounds? Perhaps not. But the internet definitely amplifies everything. And Twitter is perhaps the most popular online ‘amplifier’ of these insignificant, incessant ramblings.
Twitter is a site for microblogging (posting short scripts about your thoughts, feelings, and actions in 160 characters or less) - think of it as an IM or text message to the world. You can follow the public timeline of ‘tweets’ or specifically subscribe to follow your friends’ daily rants. Either way, you’re likely to read the most honest, instantaneous reveals of the day, hour, minute, second, present moment, and now. (In fact, if you refresh this page or return to this post at another time, my green Twitter box might likely be updated.)
I’ve been on Twitter for about 8 months and although I understand the concept, I’m not entirely convinced of its application in the health & fitness industry (yet). I suspect there might be advantages to Twittering with clients, fitness clubs, and personal trainers, but I haven’t seen any evidence of it.
Over these next few months I will explore Twitter in hopes to discover how our community is adopting this tool and its affects on their personal and professional relationships. So far, I’ve found and have been following 16 health and fitness professionals on Twitter.
If you’d like to participate in this conversation, Twitter-me a ‘nudge’ and let’s follow each other, too!
Digg/befitt
Flickr/befitt
Myspace/befitwithbiray
Facebook/Biray Online
Linkedin/biray
Twitter/befitt
YouTube/befitt
Del.icio.us/befitt
Wikipedia/befitt
GMail/Biray Online
Zaadz/befitwithbiray
Blog/Biray Online
November 6th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
Hi Biray,
I’m following you on Twitter, so I hope you are doing some interesting stuff. lol.
The problem with fitness professionals using Twitter is they’re all out to make money, so it’s just a big sales pitch most of the time. They don’t really provide any benefit to make you want to follow.
November 7th, 2007 at 10:56 am
I don’t like twitter. I’ll tell you why. Because the same application is basically available in Myspace or Facebook. You can put what you are “feeling” at the moment in either of those and they are already connected to your outside contacts making it easier to see.
I’ll be curious to see what you end up doing though. You’ll probably change my whole mind on the thing
November 7th, 2007 at 12:29 pm
Just because the same application is available elsewhere shouldn’t be the sole reason you dislike the service. In fact, a twitter application is available within FACEBOOK. You can also grab a Twitter widget at add it to any website or blog (as I did in my post).
The question isn’t really about the application itself - whether you use Twitter, Facebook, or MySpace. The question relates to the need of updating your thoughts/actions and relaying them to your community instantly… (and of course, the health benefits or drawbacks from this behavior).
Thanks for the comment Spacekicker. I welcome your thoughts as always (even the second you get them… lol).
November 9th, 2007 at 10:14 am
“Just because the same application is available elsewhere shouldn’t be the sole reason you dislike the service.”
See I disagree. I think that a large part of the internet evolves based on economy of motion. Redundancy often gets thrown to the side. Why would I, having the choice of a free Iphone, take a free cell phone? I feel the same with twitter. If I can update my mood, or little blurbs instantly on my myspace or facebook (and for all practical applications this is the majority of peoples own personal websites) why would I bother registering, applying and updating another function if the same function is available at my community space. it because redundant, and needless. Economy of motion, that’s what I’m sayin.
Yay for dialogue on technology. We’re nerds
November 9th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
I’m all for efficiency as well. You’re right, who wants to update their “status” in three different places? But I’m also a believer in not putting all your eggs in one basket. Not everyone has a Facebook profile or follows Twitter. But here’s the beauty of Facebook apps - not only can you update Twitter FROM inside Facebook, but when you update your Twitter status, it automatically updates your Facebook status, as well. How’s that for efficiency!
November 13th, 2007 at 10:20 am
I was anti-twitter at first. “Why do I want or need people to know that it’s 3PM and I still haven’t gotten dressed, etc….
Well, it is what you make it. I follow some people on twitter who only post very useful information. Even though it asks “what are you doing”… you can use it to share whatever you choose (or not choose)
I use twitter as a way of keeping up with what’s new and also to read good articles w/ out having to subscribe to a bunch of RSS feed which I may not be able to keep up with. IF I don’t have time, I just don’t check twitter.
I found befitwithbiray thru twitter. I was tracking Arizona, and came here to check it out.
Later!
Adam Nollmeyer
Phoenix, AZ
http://twitter.com/AcmePhoto on twitter!
November 20th, 2007 at 11:40 am
[…] Can Twitter be used as a teaching tool to introduce the art of mindfulness for the net-generation? One could argue that Twitter demonstrates the practice of recognizing what you are doing and feeling, when you are doing and feeling them. (Check out my thoughts on Twitter here.) […]