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Trying new things is hard. It’s just that plain and simple. But not trying and having the “ship” of opportunity pass you by has to be an awful pill to swallow…a choice I decided not to make by rolling up my ego and allowing what I didn’t know in the world of social media take residence in my soul for a while and to try on a new vehicle of communication for my business’ survival. I took the leap and am glad to say happy, very happy I did so.

What if I screw it up? Type in the wrong thing? How can I manage social media/my site/new technology on my own? Well, in business it comes down to this: When the pain of not changing is harder than the change itself, then you’ll change. I didn’t want the pain to be great so I made myself learn very quickly and kept on trying till I “got it” which is where I am now. I’m learning as much as I can and trying!

Two years ago, I was told in a pitch meeting in Los Angeles that my 850,000 hits per month I used to receive on my old site: EmmeStyle, was no longer relevant, that a new metrics system was in place (Facebook and Twitter) where marketers and advertisers were sourcing spokespersons and TV host/personalities. There was no going back wards and I had to get with the system, quick.

I sat across my colleagues and felt like I just fell into a rabbit hole with no way out. Three years ago, I had no idea what a “tweet” was other than a sound that came out of a bird. I just sat there, unable to speak as I saw the investment of time, money and vision my team and I built over the last 10-15 years, be swept away in a matter of minutes. It was what I now call a profound moment of time for me and millions if not billions of people around the world… the changing of the guard from one form of technology to the next. This one based in social networking, whatever that was!

After a few weeks of feeling numb, not know where to begin on the learning curve and feeling my professional rug being pulled from under me, I knew I had to do something and fast. There was no sense in crying each time I began my morning turning on my computer, telling myself I was done, and my source of income challenged. Besides the fact, I was absolutely clue less why people should “like” me on Facebook nor follow me after I tweet. But with all change, I needed to change with the times and learned that social media was here to stay and was quite possibly the vehicle to get billions of eye balls on topics (important or not), quickly. I began to understand an incredible period in time was here and slowly I began to absorb social media’s impact on our way life as we know it today.

Now 3 years later, lots of trial and error of my own along with the help from interns, MBA’s and hard working folks from Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management iSchool,

I see the light and feel fortunate to be alive during this remarkable time when so much is being accomplished by a click of a computer key or a wink of an eye on Google Glass.

So if it’s learning to manage your own site, curate your Pinterest pages, share your favorite nature/design/food photos with your friends and family through Instagram or send tweets out for a cause, do yourself a favor and not sweat it. If you have no idea what you’re doing at first, you’re certainly not alone! Try and try again and you’ll most likely enjoy jumping into this steam of consciousness, connecting the entire world by the strokes of your finger tips.

Have fun and WELCOME to EMMENATION V2!