The other day I was on the phone with my friend and she proceeds to ask me if I’m the same person online that I am in person. Let me ponder for a moment… I’m definitely the same person online that I am in person. I engage openly with people online and just like any new relationship we’ll have to build it up and see how it blossoms. I’m closer to some people than others online but who isn’t? Does it take me a moment to warm up to new people I meet, YES Online and in person. However, I DON’T have an alter ego that comes out online and I’m completely different in person. I believe that my blog and Twitter friends will agree that we have a good (real) friendship online and when we met up for the first time whether it had been at a social media event or blog conference, I’m no different.
I do know some people who write their blog content anonymously and bare their souls but, could never do it if everyone knew their identity. Maybe the content is just too personal and they are very private, wanting to share their life with you but, not necessarily wanting you to know… It’s Jane Doe. There are many different reasons people may want to write anonymously or become a completely different person online and then meeting them would blow your mind! I honestly haven’t run into a situation where I thought someone was a particular way online and then after I met them did a double take. I’m sure many of you could say otherwise but, I haven’t run into that yet. What are some of your thoughts on this? Are you the same person online & offline? Do you have a cyber alter ego that you unleash while blogging or tweeting? If so what’s your reasoning? Curious minds would like to know…
I think with each online identity I create, whether it be on twitter, facebook, or some other social network, I put some part of my identity into the digital account, but never all of my identity. I end up sharing different kinds of content and thoughts depending on the social circle connected to that identity. Some things I won’t say on facebook because everybody and their momma is on it, but on some of the more niche social networking platforms where I already know people in that circle are willing to discuss some contentous topics, I am more likely to say things that might ruffle somebody’s feathers so-to-speak because I care less if people have a negative reaction to my opinions. In an ideal world, I would say what I think about anything in any setting, but this isn’t quite an ideal world. Just though I’d share 🙂
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I’m definitely the same person online that I am all of the time. I’ve seen situations of people who try to portray something different in the online realm–to create an “alter-ego” if you will. But I’ve never understood the point of doing that. For some people it works, but I think that eventually the “personalities” will get crossed. I’ve always believed it’s just best to be yourself across the board. 🙂
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