Most of you who know me, will know that I don’t consider myself a tourist when it comes to being in the Orlando, Florida area. I pretty much consider myself a local. I know the areas to avoid traffic. I know the highway systems (for the most part) and I know where many points of interest are and how to get there.
I’m a guy… I don’t need this!
On a recent trip, I used my “known” knowledge of the are to get from point A to point B. An hour and a half later, I was at my destination. In terms of a strategy here is the breakdown.
Strategy: Get to my destination
Goal: Arrive at my destination to complete a specific task
Objective: Don’t get lost. Be safe. Compete the task in a timely manner.
Measurement: Travel time which would allow my task to be completed leaving enough time to get to my next appointment.
Analysis: Travel took way to long.
Adjustment: Determine a better route of travel and execute that route.
I knew where I was going and the two highways that would get me there. I used those routes but it took me considerably longer than it should have.
Even though I knew where it was I wanted to go, I didn’t look to see if there was possibly a better way to do it… and there was. For my return trip, I utilized resources available to me and cut my travel time in half.
How does this relate to social media? Simple…
You may know how to use the tools. You may know what you want to accomplish, but if you are relying on the just the information you hold, you may not be aware that there are others ways to reach your goals faster, more efficiently and more effectively.
I have seen so many police agencies and officers using social media that have a good grasp on the tools and how to use them, but based purely on the information they are putting out have no concept of using or having a strategy or any direction to their information.
The biggest single investment that a police agency will make into the use of social media is time. If you aren’t maximizing your time, chances are you are wasting it.
The learning point for this is simple. Consider what you don’t know as much as you consider what you do know. Sometimes, no matter how good we think we are at something, there could be a better way and if we take the time to learn something new, we just might get better at what we set out to do.
