I read an article by Hal Niedzviecki when he invited his Facebook friends to a party and had only one person show up.  It’s a poignant look of having “online friends”.  How many of us actually have the nerve to invite our online friends to a party, where we can all meet face-to-face?  I have to expect the worse.

Then I read Catherine Smith’s post on The Change Blog about the dangers of virtual living.  She correctly points out that we still have a need to stay real, and not be fooled by the illusion of being able to build relationships online.  I can pretend that I’m content with my “cyber-friends”, but at the end of the day, that feeling of emptiness still lingers.

Having that face-to-face connection and a meaningful relationship, not just casual ones, are important.  It doesn’t matter how many Twitter followers I have.   It doesn’t matter how many LinkedIn connections I’ve made.  How many people invited me to their house lately?  How many people showed up for my birthday lunch?  How many people will offer help when there’s trouble in my life?  If the answer is “not many”, then I’m spending way too much time online.  I need to stay offline more, and make real friends.

This article was posted on Rudy Amid's Blog:

Reminder to Foster “Offline” Friendships

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