There is a reason they call it social media and it has to do with more than just reading each others content. Last night, I got together at a coffee shop in New Haven with some bloggers that are interested in getting to know one another and share ideas and experiences. I enjoy getting together with bloggers and other social media users this way.

@CT_Shoreline @cjpphotography @lifewithwendy were all there along with a few other people. @lifewithwendy wrote about the gathering in her post How To Become A Blogger.

She described the group as “really cool cats who had  decided to share a passion that might change some one’s life”. She ended her post with the observation:

If only I had this in high school. If only I could have picked 5 people from completely different walks of life and appreciated them for what they were on the inside versus what they appeared to be, my life would have been different.

It captures very well what is important to me about blogging. Yes, we can talk about monetization, expanding our influence or honing our writing skills, but to me, perhaps the greatest value of blogging and related types of social media is to get to know people completely different walks of life and appreciate them for who they are.

@lisamikulski and @kcarpentier are two others that wanted to attend and couldn’t make it. There in spirit and in the discussion was also @podcampct. We talked about PodcampCT which will take place in New Haven on October 16th. In many ways, the little session we had around the coffee table last night was a good precursor to many great discussions I expect to take place at Podcamp. Join us!