Thriving Mindfully as the Real You!
When’s the last time you unplugged and took a break from your digital life?
Have you ever thought about creating a digital wellness plan?
Join me on August 12 at 7PM ET for the #digcit Twitter chat. The topic is digital wellness and unplugging. Follow @anandaleeke and use the #digcit hashtag to participate in the chat.
Happy Digital Citizenship Month!
Welcome to the second annual celebration! This year’s theme is “Use Your Digital Citizenship Voice.”
Before I say anything else, let me stop and give you a link that explains how and why I launched this 31-day digital experience in 2014.
This week, you are invited to join the #DigCitizenVoice conversation by sharing your definition of Digital Citizenship and how you are using your Digital Citizenship Voice.
Use the #DigCitizenVoice hashtag and follow:
To get you started, I have included my definition of Digital Citizenship and 10 tips to help you embrace your Digital Citizenship and Digital Citizenship Voice below.
Digital Citizenship is the act of marrying your passionate interests and digital presence to support campaigns, causes, events, ideas, movements, policies, programs, and values that build awareness and community, create positive change, and promote social good.
10 TIPS ON EMBRACING YOUR DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP AND DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP VOICE
1) Identify your passion and interests.
2) Find causes and campaigns that connect you to your passion and interests. Use hashtags to search for your tribe (people who share similar passions and interests). Conduct the search by going to Google or another search engine. Search on blog platforms (Blogger, Medium, Tumblr, and WordPress) and social media.
3) Launch and support causes and campaigns that improve the quality of life for people in your local, regional, national, and international communities.
4) Participate in local government events and document your participation on your blog and social media.
5) Build community. Once you find your tribe, listen to the conversations they are having. Join them when you have something to say. Ask questions. Follow the folks you are listening and talking to on your social media. Comment on social media status updates and blogs. Share them with people in your online network.
Take it a step further by participating in discussions that happen in Facebook groups, Google Hangouts, LinkedIn groups, Meerkat and Periscope events, Pinterest boards, podcasts, webinars, Twitter chats, Yahoo groups, and other online events.
Leave the digital world and attend a conference, event, or meet up in your local area. Get out and meet people face-to-face.
Reach out to one or two members of your tribe and schedule an in-person meet up. Go to breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Grab a cup of coffee and tea. Connect over smoothies, ice cream, or a walk in the park.
6) Inspire and encourage. Use your blog, social media, and web site to share empowering and inspirational messages.
7) Educate and share information via your blog, email, social media, and web site.
8) Blog and post positive social media status updates about local businesses you patronize in your local community.
9) Celebrate local, state, national, and international holidays and observances to raise awareness about issues you care about.
10) For People Living in the United States: Engage in #socialcivics with the White House (especially Chief Digital Officer Jason Goldman – @Goldman44 on Twitter) and Federal Government. The White House Conference on Aging will be held on July 13. Click here to learn how you can get involved:
Also, the White House sponsors #WHSocials, #WHMeetups, and online events each year to engage American citizens. Click here to learn more about the in-person events. Subscribe to the White House email updates to stay informed.
Special Digital Citizenship Month Event
Tune into the Digital Citizenship Month interview series featuring Dr. Janet Johnson on July 2 at 10:00 a.m. EST. The topic of discussion is “Using Your Digital Citizenship Voice in Your Career and Life.” Click here for more details.
Click on the link below to listen to WTF podcast host Marc Maron’s June 19th interview with President Obama. The interview was held in Maron’s garage. Now that’s POTUS making a #socialcivics house call. It’s also #socialcivics in action!
Yesterday, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch made social media history as the first Attorney General to join Twitter. Click on the link to read my blog post about Lynch’s Twitter presence furthering President Barack Obama’s digital civic engagement goals and making strides in the White House’s #socialcivics efforts: http://anandaleeke.tumblr.com/post/121810616943/latergram-repost-digitalsisterhood.
Photo Credit: http://instagram.com/theybfdaily
Happy #FierceLiving Friday!
This afternoon, while I was reading my new book, The Social Media President: Barack Obama and the Politics of Digital Engagement by James E. Katz, Michael Barris, and Anshul Jain, I thought about how accessible President Obama (POTUS) and the White House are compared to previous administrations.
The Twitter chat POTUS had about climate change with comments about the NBA yesterday is a perfect example. Click on link to read a Storify summary of key moments during the chat that were posted on the WhiteHouse.gov blog:
https://m.whitehouse.gov/blog/2015/05/28/follow-along-potus-answers-your-questions-climate-change. When I read it, I immediately said, “only in the USA can you tweet and chat directly with POTUS.”
Under the new leadership of Chief Digital Officer Jason Goldman, the White House Office of Digital Strategy (WHODS) has expanded the voice of POTUS through his own Twitter account so that he engages with Americans more directly. WHODS is also giving Americans a greater opportunity to have their voices heard by POTUS without any third party gatekeepers. By valuing and creating an open portal for direct conversation, the WHODS is making certain that everyone’s voice can be heard. What a great #socialcivics lesson on digital engagement! Now that’s what I call Fierce Living!
Here’s what I’d like to know. If you could have a Twitter chat with POTUS, what would you discuss?
Photo Credit: Pete Souza, http://www.whitehouse.gov
Today, the White House announced its July 13th Conference on Aging and #socialcivics digital engagement campaign that encourages Americans of all ages to get involved. Click on link to learn how you can get involved.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2015/05/28/connecting-generations-engage-july-13
Happy Friday!
Earlier this week, I walked past the White House, one of my favorite places to visit, on my way to meet a new friend. He recently moved to DC to start a new job in the building next door.
As I was waiting in line to enter the Eisenhower Executive Office Building to meet Jason Goldman, the first-ever White House Chief Digital Officer, I thought about how powerful the Internet and Twitter can be as connection and engagement tools. They connected Jason and I and began a series of blog and Twitter conversations around his new position and #socialcivics engagement when he wrote his March 24th Medium blog post on The Internet, the White House, and You (and Me). When I read his post, I was inspired to share it with my social media network. Two days later, I wrote him a letter via my blog that offered my #socialcivics ideas and tweeted him the link. In an effort to increase engagement, I encouraged people to blog and tweet their ideas. He tweeted back and thanked me for sharing.
After he started working on April 6, he continued having the #socialcivics discussion online and with his staff. A week later, he published a follow-up blog post on What I’ve learned so far from #socialcivics. After I read it, I decided to incorporate a #socialcivics feedback discussion in my Embracing Your Digital Citizenship session at the Blogger Week Unconference on May 2. The morning of my session, I tweeted him a link to a blog post that outlined my talking points. He retweeted it and sent me a direct message with an invitation to meet him in person this week.
Meeting him face-to-face was a blast! He is truly passionate about the work he is called to do as head of the Office of Digital Strategy. That’s why I took two #socialcivics selfies. Check out how cool he is with his blue glasses and cherry blosson tie!
During our meeting, we discussed the feedback I received during my Digital Citizenship session and brainstormed ways to increase his office’s engagement with social media influencers and communities. I left with a homework assignment I will be working on this weekend as a follow-up email.
Now that you have read my story, I encourage to join Jason’s #socialcivics discussion on Twitter. Send him a tweet at @Goldman44. Write a blog post. Chat with your network about it on social media. He and his team are listening!
Happy Saturday,
Today, I’m leading a session on “Embracing Your Digital Citizenship” at the Blogger Week Unconference organized by Black Bloggers Connect. My session will be held from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the Impact Hub, 419 7th Street, NW, Washington, DC (in Chinatown by the Gallery Place Metro Station).
During my one-hour session, you will receive tips on ways to define and express your digital citizenship. You will also participate in a group discussion that documents digital citizenship best practices and provides feedback on White House Chief Digital Officer (CDO) Jason Goldman’s #socialcivics. Here are several resources to read before the session.
My Session Summary
Just in case you are unable to attend my session, I have included a summary of my talking points below. May they encourage and inspire you to define, embrace, and demonstrate your digital citizenship as well as engage with your local and national communities and governments, the White House, and CDO Jason Goldman (@Goldman44 – tweet Jason about your #socialcivics ideas — he’s listening!).
DIGITAL WELLNESS MOMENT
The yoga teacher in me cannot resist sharing a digital wellness moment at the beginning of my talks and workshop sessions. Here’s a taste of what I will share today.
The digital wellness exercise will focus on deep breathing. When you breathe intentionally and deeply, you invite yourself into the present moment. The more you breathe intentionally and deeply, the more open you become to PEACE. When you have PEACE, you are free to IMAGINE. Your imagination helps you DREAM. Your dreams help you CREATE and INSPIRE others in your blog and life.
Find a comfortable seated position in your chair. Come to the edge of your chair and place your feet flat on the floor. If you are wearing glasses or shoes, take them off to relax. Create hip width distance in between your legs. Take a deep breath through your nose and exhale it through your mouth. Notice how you feel. Now do it SEVEN more times. As you exhale, release or pause any thoughts or to do lists you carried with you into this moment. To learn more about creating a digital wellness plan, click here for tips.
MY DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP STORY
In 2013, I penned Digital Sisterhood: A Memoir of Fierce Living Online, a book that discusses how the Internet influenced my career, community service efforts, creativity, and work as the founder of the Digital Sisterhood Network. During my book tour, I gave a talk about the importance of digital citizenship at Spelman College’s Women Interactive conference that encouraged people to explore how they could marry their passionate interests with their digital presence to inform and inspire others to support causes and programs in their local and national communities.
Following my own counsel, I decided to apply to participate in the White House Social events to demonstrate my support of President Barack Obama’s policies and programs in 2014. The White House selected me to serve as a social media leader for the State of the Union, French Arrival Ceremony for French President Francois Hollande, and Tumblr Q&A session on education and college affordability. The U.S. Department of State invited me to serve in a similar capacity during the International Women of Courage Award Ceremony.
These experiences inspired me to launch the Digital Citizenship Project (DCP), an online initiative that encourages individuals to marry their passionate interests and digital presence to support campaigns, causes, events, ideas, movements, policies, programs, and values that build awareness and community, create positive change, and promote social good. Last July, I established Digital Citizenship Month.
DEFINING DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP
How do you define Digital Citizenship?
Here’s my definition: marrying your passionate interests and digital presence to support campaigns, causes, events, ideas, movements, policies, programs, and values that build awareness and community, create positive change, and promote social good.
10 TIPS ON EMBRACING YOUR DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP
1) Identify your passion and interests.
2) Find causes and campaigns that connect you to your passion and interests.
I am passionate about inspiring creative expression and healthy living. My passion motivates me to use my digital citizenship to support causes, campaigns, events, businesses, organizations, policies, and programs that celebrate and promote the arts, communities of color, creativity, digital communications, education, fitness, President and First Lady Obama, White House, Reiki healing touch, social good, social justice, Washington, DC, women and girls, world travel, social media, technology, and yoga.
3) Launch and support causes and campaigns that improve the quality of life for people in your local, regional, national, and international communities.
Here are several examples.
4) Participate in local government events and document your participation on your blog and social media.
In January, I used my digital presence to document the Inauguration of DC Mayor Bowser. I also documented the February open house event hosted by the Mayor’s Office of African Affairs,
5) Build community.
Jessica Mitchell used her digital presence to build community by establishing Black Blogger Network in 2010, Black Bloggers Connect in 2011, and Blogger Week Unconference in 2014.
I have built community among women in social media and technology through the Digital Sisterhood Network, Digital Sisterhood Month (December), and My #DigitalSisterhood Community Is.
6) Inspire and encourage.
Use your blog, social media, and web site to share empowering and inspirational messages. Oprah Winfrey’s OWN Network does a great job of sharing messages.
7) Educate and share information.
I use my passion for yoga and training as a yoga teacher to share health-related information.
8) Blog and post positive social media status updates about local businesses you patronize in your local community.
9) Celebrate local, state, national, and international holidays and observances to raise awareness about issues you care about.
I celebrate many women-centered holidays and observances online.
10) Engage in #socialcivics with the White House and Federal Government.
The White House sponsors #WHSocials, #WHMeetups, and online events each year to engage American citizens. Visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/social to learn more about the in-person events. Subscribe to the White House blog to stay informed about online events.
Great news! On May 2, I’m speaking about digital citizenship at the Blogger Week Unconference that will be held at Impact Hub, 419 7th Street, NW, Washington, DC. My “Embracing Your Digital Citizenship” session will begin at 4:30 p.m. During the one-hour session, you will receive tips on ways to define and express your digital citizenship. You will also participate in a group discussion that documents digital citizenship best practices and provides feedback on White House Chief Digital Officer Jason Goldman’s #socialcivics.
Take a moment and read what White House Chief Digital Officer Jason Goldman is learning about #socialcivics: https://medium.com/@Goldman44/what-i-ve-learned-so-far-from-socialcivics-83d13e073a7b. Join the discussion on Twitter by tweeting @Goldman44 and using the #socialcivics hashtag. Go on and do it! Jason is listening!
PS: My #socialcivics ideas are mentioned in the blog post. Thanks Jason for the mention and your #socialcivics leadership. Keep shining!
Ananda Leeke 