My brother and I grew up son of a Hospice nurse.
From a very young age, conversation around the idea of death and dying was always present in our home. For mom, it wasn?t simply a profession. Helping families and?patients find peace in their final hours together was part passion, and part mission and part of her life.
I think that had an effect on us. Last week, Nick and I talked about a new research project he?s thinking about working on around the idea of the?digital?self (the sense of self we create by putting lots of stuff online) and death.
(OMG, he said the ?d? word.)
It?s an interesting question to think about, though.
Have you ever stopped long enough to think about what happens to your Facebook profile or Blog or LinkedIn network when you finally pass away?
Plenty of time
Most of us default here.
?Meh, I?ve got plenty of time. I?m young and healthy, and I?m not planning to die anytime soon?, we say?confidently with a slight touch of fear, uncertainty and doubt buried deep in our?subconscious.?
The truth is this ? no one actually knows.?Life can be long or short, and the term life insurance industry exists for a reason. But we rarely think about all of that when we log onto Facebook or Google plus to talk with our friends.
Thinking About Bob
In ?early 2007, I was hired as a marketing manager for a technology company called BestTransport. Bob Parsley was the Vice?President?of ?marketing who brought me in.
I remember really liking Bob in the interview. He was a runner, a passionate family guy, and he?d been in the internet game for a ton of years, going all the way back to his time working with AOL. He had always had a passion for being a firefighter, and it was Bob that first introduced me to Burning Man, a really neat festival that happen out west.
Bob was also one hell of a marketer. He quickly became one of my first mentors, teaching me to live the art of white-boarding in strategy, how to build phased plans and how to pitch the ideas to the higher ups. It was Bob who first introduced me to the idea of blogging for a company and using a tool like Exact Target to build and manage drip email campaigns.
He was hands down one of the best dude?s I?ve ever worked for, thus the recommendation on his LinkedIn profile. ?He moved to Resource Interactive after Best fell apart.
After BestTransport, we all moved on to different positions in different?companies. I went to work with Young Isaac, and Bob landed an executive director position at Resource Interactive. It was a great fit for him, and we kept in touch from time to time using LinkedIn and Facebook to chat.
It was last year at a Christmas party, that when I learned why Bob?s replies to my LinkedIn messages had completely?disappeared?over the last 6 months. I had been talking with one of his associates at Resource and asked:
?Do you work closely with Bob Parsley? He was a mentor of mine and I haven?t heard from him in a while.?
His face dropped?immediately.
?Oh ? you haven?t you heard yet.?
After a few months of working in the new gig, Bob learned that he suffered from?Glioblastoma, a fairly rare and extremely agressive?brain tumor. He had passed away last year at his home in the care of hospice, leaving behind?a wife, three children, and a lots of friends and family.
On LinkedIn
On LinkedIn last week, I somehow stumbled across Bob?s profile in my search results.
I stopped for a moment and then clicked through.
I honestly am ?not sure why I did. I?ve known that Bob was gone for some time now. And to make things even stranger, we we?re close friends or families. I had the?privilege?of working?with?Bob for about a year and learned so much from him. I respected him, and we talked online ? but we we?re what I could consider to be close?friends.
Still, I?clicked?through and there he was. I read through his career accomplishments, looked at his profile photo and started to remember some of the meetings and projects and lunches that we shared. His profile still contains his email address and cell phone number, and I have to admit that for a brief moment, I thought about sending a message and even calling the number to see if it was the same message.
The Question
The question again is this: What happens to our digital self once our human flesh self is gone. The story above is a special case, and it?s everyones hope that a tragedy like above does not happen to us, or to our loved ones.
But, take into consideration that Pew Research study has found that between April 2009 and May 2010, social networking use among internet users ages 50-64 grew by 88%. Moreover,?during the same period, use among those ages 65 and older grew 100%.
As older generations move online, conversation around this topic must happen. We must face this eventually. And, I think there?s some good that can come out of this too. Stick around on tomorrow post for another example of how keeping the integrity of the digital self after the human has passed on can help those left behind to find closure.
What?s Your Take?
We?re all going to die eventually. That?s a fact.
What do you want to happen to your?profiles and?content that make up your presence online after you die? Have you ever considered the question?
To Bob?s children, should you stumble on this post someday. You?re father was an amazing mentor and teacher. He influenced my career in so many ways, and I?m grateful to have had some time to get to know him, work with him and learn from him. I am sorry for your tremendous loss.
nateriggs
I advise mid-sized & large organizations on how to adopt and use social media to market through organizational culture and better serve their clients. I'm also a blended family dad who enjoys music, photography and distance racing. When I'm not writing here, you can find me writing over at the Content Marketing Institute. Like what you've read so far? Then why not subscribe HERE?
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Source: http://www.nateriggs.com/2011/08/27/on-death-and-social-media/content-marketing-consulting
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