When my kids try something new, I tell them ahead of time that you rarely do it right or perfectly the first time. But, do keep trying; it’ll be worth it.

It seems like there have been a lot of very public mistakes of late involving social media. And, that’s okay — as long as people learn from their mistakes. Take Jeremy Epstein/NSM for example (hat tip to Lara Kretler). He even blogged about it, and included what he learned:

What the social media era is about is not pretending to be perfect and impersonal. It’s about being real and authentic. It’s about recognizing that, although people are trying to do their bests, sometimes they make mistakes.

But, if they apologize, understand, and learn from those mistakes, then, as humans, it is our responsibility to just move on…and go ahead and make new ones. ;-)

While Jeremy clearly learned from his goof, I hope a few other people will as well. For example, please do not betray others’ trust nor their property (and if you do, don’t post it on the Internet!):

  • Disgusting Domino’s People: Okay, so teen brains are still developing, and as the video shows, even young adult brains are not fully wired. Regardless, if you want your 15 minutes of fame or want to show you have power over people’s food, please do not video yourself or friends doing disgusting stuff to it. What? Did you think no one would see it? Hopefully, the two young people in the video have higher aspirations than making and delivering subs and pizza*, and have learned their lesson: whether or not you record it, do not betray others’ trust.
  • Similar to the above, renting a place means it’s not yours to do with what you will: Again, the culprits are 20-somethings who posted party pictures on Facebook — and then the landlord saw it, and evicted them. Hopefully, they will get some negative exposure and learn that you respect others’ trust.

And, I am by no means exempt from social media mistakes. My biggest lesson learned came a couple years ago — don’t rush to comment or blog about something unless you really read (not scan) it all.

Remember, Life is beta: Try something. Seek feedback. Improve. Repeat.

-Mike
*Don’t get me wrong, working at Domino’s or other pizza place is an honorable job. I’ve done it, and the pay was pretty good for not needing any other training. However, unless you are looking to become a manager or higher level, there’s not much to it once you get the process down.