Why Now ? Why the Bakken?
How often do we pause in our lives to take an objective, critical, thought provoking look at just what we are doing and why? As I have evolved through my life, I’ve often Monday morning quarterbacked decisions I’ve made, roads I’ve travelled and wondered what if? But more importantly why or why not….?
So what if I stop viewing my life through the rear view mirror of the choices I’ve made; make a paradigm shift and examine the decisions I will make from a forward thinking perspective – essentially start with the end in mind – the end game. And, from that vantage point I craft my first blog.
If you’re like me, with more than a few miles on the chassis, you didn’t grow up in today’s techno jargon world of Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. As my adult children will attest, I still struggle to program the universal remote control! I had to Google “blog” to gather that it was a web log. Wow, wasn’t that clarifying!
But, after scratching more than just the surface of an initial Google search, I discovered that blogging is simply a tool that allows us to quickly and easily create and publish new content; it empowers us to contribute feedback, react to that content, and even more importantly to participate in that content. It is dynamic – not stagnant. It’s evolving, up to the moment, two way communications. It allows us to educate one another via our diverse background and experiences. It allows us to engage one another – to synergistically collaborate – to create community with a common purpose. It is “word of mouth” at the speed of light.
Poster by Honorablemention CC
Social media – I finally get it ! Now that I’m equipped with this amazing tool I want to use it for everything. I’m like a kid in a candy store with no parental supervision. But, before I can run amok, a parent tape replays in my head, “Use the right tool for the right job” when seeking to solve a problem, overcome an obstacle, address a challenge, or effectively accomplish the task at hand.
There is little doubt, that social media is a game changer. If we had any doubts, Mark Zuckerberg as Time’s Man of the Year in 2010 should convince us. It has changed how we communicate, how we collaborate, how we educate. So why not use one game changer to impact another – let’s connect one disruptive process (social media) with another; the world class, technology oil play in the Bakken Shale Formation currently creating more economic opportunity in North Dakota and Montana than in recorded history due to horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing.
I now arrive at my why and why now. If any situation needed word of mouth efficiency at the speed of light, it is the utter chaos that operates 24/7 in those communities impacted by the Bakken firestorm of activity. How do you determine whether this is a boom or a bust….or the next big thing ? How do you decide as a business owner if and when you should take advantage of this opportunity? How do you, as someone looking for a job, know that you can handle the extreme weather and working conditions, the long hours, and the remote living conditions?
Okay – way too cerebral….How about something more basic – where do I live, sleep? Where do I do my laundry? Where do I buy something…or for that matter anything? Where do I get my mail when I go from one man camp to the next? What can I do in my down time?
Let’s use social media to provide these answers and more ! Synergy Station is actively looking for contributors to fill in the blanks in our collective blog to find solutions, overcome obstacles, address challenges, and effectively accomplish the tasks at hand. Let’s carve out a superior economic future for all stakeholders during the process by clearly understanding the end game !
