Oh...and I should add:
http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/147/doctor-lo...

This article actually confirms that we get the same oxytocin rush from sharing on SN's as we do, say, at a wedding. Or after having a tender moment in person with loved ones.

"Saying you’re ‘doing social media’ because you use the tools’ is like saying my pet bird reads because he craps on newspaper in the bottom of the cage” <- hahahahaha Love it.

Thanks for this. More and more I'm convinced that people get online and spill their guts because, well, we are lonely. We need connection. And you are right, when the people who you count on offline as your pillars aren't there, you need to go somewhere. And maybe it isn't perfect, but, darnit, it is something.

Funny thing is that I've been in emotional upheavals before where nobody is around. Nobody answers the phone, nobody is available to go out for coffee, nothing...and as soon as I tweet something, they all come running. Call it an early warning system, but it does help. Thanks for being one of the people who recognizes the importance of this.

How about approaching it like this:

1. What do you want to accomplish by having an online presence? Make friends? Build business?

2. Then figure out how much of you and your work you feel comfortable sharing as well as how you feel comfortable sharing (video? twitter? blogging?)

3. The rest is easier. :) You just start doing the sharing stuff from an honest place. When people start to connect to you, things flow pretty easily.

Thanks for referencing my post!