Thinking Of You

It’s getting late.

Most of you are settling in to the holidays. Family and friends. I’m doing the same. Because regardless of religion, race, gender, sexual orientation or what have you, we’re all human and ’tis the season. But, before I lay me down to sleep and the house goes quiet (yes, not a creature is stirring, not even a mouse), I wanted you to know something: I am thinking of you. Seriously.

Watching. Listening. Reading. Smiling. Enjoying.

As hard as I am on brands about how much of an opportunity and potential that technology and connected networks have brought to our world (and why, oh why, are brands simply using this as an advertising channel?… it is such a waste), I still marvel at this technology with each and every passing day. I’m often pointed to as the guy that doesn’t respond to comments on this blog. I’m often misquoted on this topic or misunderstood. It doesn’t seem to satisfy people when I say that I am simply not good at it (I try… and I’m going to try harder). People seem irked that I would rather spend my time writing the next blog post, magazine article, book, or build a new presentation. That because I don’t respond to everything, it must mean that I don’t care. That’s simply not the case. I care deeply. I read, review, ponder and think about every comment, tweet, post and more. I’m so grateful, that I often find myself not being able to find the words. It feels to me like a simple, "thank you" is somewhat inauthentic.

It’s true.

Tonight, as the house got quiet, I looked at my feeds: Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. I didn’t look at the stuff about me. I was looking at you. Thinking about you. Watching your posts and pictures. The smiles, the families, the holiday cheer, the humor, the irony, the rants, the thoughts. It made me smile. It always makes me smile. No matter where you live, no matter how you celebrate, we do so together. Each and every one of us gives one another an intimate peek into this life (regardless of filter) and that’s nothing to take lightly. It’s so warming.

It’s about connections.

In a week where we also see the bad (online lynch mobs, political disrupt, warring factions, etc…), I reconnected with someone I was very close to many years ago. We met back in my early days of the music industry (late eighties). Through the years, we stumbled into one another, but because they never embraced technology, the distance and the changing lifestyles (for both of us) made it difficult to stay connected. We spoke for close to an hour this week, and it felt like family. The story goes that this individual was walking the streets after a gig and ran into an individual who not only recognized them, but was able to convince this individual to give Facebook a chance. We reconnected and through this connection, I feel like a big piece of my life is back. After nearly two decades – and because of technology – we are connected again. As I was trolling through their Facebook page, it was amazing to see the love that people (from all over the world) have for this musician, as well. Children have been named because of this person’s lyrics. Tours have taken place halfway around the world for people wanting to hear their songs. Magic. This stuff is magic. Don’t let anyone else tell you otherwise.

It’s a Facebook miracle.

People can make fun of social media all that they want. It’s no laughing matter to me. Each and every day on Facebook, I take a peek to see whose birthday it is. What a treat to send a little message to people that I don’t get enough time to connect with. What a treat to see so many people that I have met through these digital channels and – regardless of geography – be able to connect in a small digital way, until we can spend more time together in our protein forms. I’m thinking tonight of so many people who inspire me to keep on going. It’s an impressive bunch. Wow, this world is filled with passionate, smart and creative folks just waiting to connect to others who are likeminded. What a shame for those that don’t see it, can’t make the right connections, or simply fail to see how amazing this all truly is.

So yeah, before I go to sleep, I just wanted you to know that I’m thinking of you… and thankful for you.

Happy Holidays.