10 ways to overcome social media fatigue

I think Chris Brogan is right to identify social media fatigue as something many marketing professionals feel when it comes to trying to keep up with all the changes taking place. (Are you ready for Google+?) I also love the position that he takes: If your work in social media is about “checking the boxes,” more boxes mean a greater burden on your. However, our entire posture changes when the goal is to empower people.

Consider these 10 ways to overcome social media fatigue:

Have a clear purpose for investing in social media.
Build a custom, strategic plan so you know where you are going.
Work toward achieving measurable goals. (i.e. solve problems)
Exposure yourself to new ideas through books, Webinars, and live presentations.
Interact with others doing similar work.
Identify success stories and discern how someone else’s success can lead to your own.
Outsource some or all of your content development.
Meet with others within your organization to learn more about what they do and how you can accelerate their efforts with what you do.
Don’t be controlled by your emotions. This is a marathon, not a sprint. You have to stay in the game long enough to make a difference.
Work ahead to create margin in your schedule that can be used to unplug for a short period of time to relax and refresh.

The two contributing factors I see in the work habits of people who say they experience social media fatigue are:

Not understanding how what they do fits within the larger marketing of the organization.
Not have a comprehensive, strategic plan that prescribes next steps and measurable checkpoints along the way.

Without those two things, social media professionals are simply existing to check boxes and make sure everything gets done. You weren’t hired to check boxes. Someone put you in charge of social media and interactive communications because they recognized an ability in you that they didn’t see in others. This is your time to shine…not die on the vine.

As a friend of mine says, “Look it in the teeth. Even if it bites back.”

Push through the pain. There is an amazing amount of goodness on the other side.

How do you deal with social media fatigue?

Ben Stroup is a content activist in a post-paragraph world. He is chief broker of opportunity at Ben Stroup Enterprises. Connect with Ben via email, Twitter, and Google+. Subscribe via email to learn how to use content to move people to action.