I work at a tech startup that enables/requires us to be online all the time, working directly with blogs, marketing through Twitter and then of course, doing our own online personal branding to "walk the talk."

I'm online. A lot.

I like the Internet and I blog. I'm pretty "social" on and offline. Online I appreciate social tools such as Twitter and Facebook. I've met some amazing people and new friends, all the while I am able to interact and stimulate my brain in a new way.

In my offline life, some of my closest friends are the least bit geeky (that's okay, I don't judge;). They often say, "Oh yea, you do something with blogs or something, right?" It sounds insincere, but really, that's just what they know.

They think it's a bit bizarre that I'm talking with a new friend on Twitter, they think that "tweet" sounds dirty (it sort of does, but I don't mind), they think I'm online too much and lingo like "DM," "trackback link," "SEO," or "Feedburner," just blows them away. I'm being extreme here, partly because it's humorous and also because I will recognize that I have a lot of friends who are on Twitter and understand the basic framework of the online social world.

If any of you are like me (online, geeky, blogger) and have some friends that aren't, then you know what I'm talking about. I take the jokes well but they also help to balance me because I know the importance of unplugging. I take time to be with them, unplug, then get recharged.

I won't let them stop what I'm doing. I love it and no one (even if they incessently giggle about my online antics) will be able to thwart that.

The upside is that I have begun to teach my friends in their business environment or even personal interest to get online, try Twitter (it's easy I say, only a few buttons and functions) and start reading some blogs that interest them. There are thousands of new blogs created each day, and since I see so many each week I know there are blogs from knitting to whaling. Believe me. Anyone can find a blog they dig.

So in the end, I really like the balance. The naysayers (friends who don't get the online thang) help me, push me and make me laugh. I don't take it personally and often times, I look for an opportunity to learn from them (their side) while I also help them out. I have a friend who was so anti-Twitter for a while--now she's always on it and really growing her personal brand. Makes me proud :)

Those naysayers, really having something to say and I think honestly, we can both learn from each other--online and offline.