Socialnomics: How Social Media Transforms The Way We Live and Do Business

Chapter 6. Death of Social Schizophrenia

If you are Generation X or older you have most likely spent most of your life in a schizophrenic^[1] world. You took on a different role or character depending on where you were or who you were with. Most of us had at least two personas; normally a work persona and a non-work persona. And, many had several personas: social, work, family, coach, charity, and so on.

For instance, your behavior at an event like Woodstock or Burning Man was much different than at the office the following Monday. "Al the Accountant" may only be known by his coworkers as "Meticulous Accountant Al"; while his bowling pals would know him only as "Al-Valanche," because you better get out of the way when he is partying otherwise you could be the next victim of the "Al-Valanche."

Even if you believe that life with social media is worse, you cannot argue that social media has forever changed the way in which we live.

In 2008, North Carolina's All-American basketball player Tyler Hansbrough found himself in the middle of a media whirlwind. Hansbrough was a hard-nosed player and the poster child of all that is good about college basketball. Because of his intensity, he was nicknamed Psycho T.

One sunny day in Chapel Hill, Hansbrough was hanging out with some friends at a fraternity house off campus. With some encouragement, Hansbrough thought it would be a thrill to launch his 6'10" 260-pound body into the fraternity swimming pool. The thrill part being that he was jumping ...