Unsocial Media

“When it comes to social situations, don’t talk politics or religion.” My parents taught me that lesson when I was growing up. I still follow that rule today. You see, politics and religion are very personal subjects, and getting into a discussion on either topic with someone of an opposing view than ours won’t likely change that person’s mind. Instead, it will most certainly lead to a heated discussion.

So why do we ignore that advice when it comes to “social” media — acting extremely unsocial to others at every opportunity? The upcoming elections in the U.S. have caused this childish behavior to escalate to extremely high levels!

Maybe the anonymity provided by these platforms encourages some of us to “speak” without a filter — giving no thought to how our posts might affect others. We see hate and disrespect all over the web.

Here’s a little advice — don’t post anything you would be ashamed to say in front of your grandparents. Or better yet, show the same respect you would show to your grandparents when you speak to others — whether it’s in-person or online.

If we would all strive to be a little kinder and show respect to others, even those we disagree with, life would be much more pleasant.

Unfortunately, given the trend of hate, negativity and disrespect on social media platforms these days, we are a long way from that!

If you subscribe to Netflix, I would encourage you to watch the documentary “The Social Dilemma.” It shows how social media platforms have been designed to be addictive. They have been engineered to affect our actions and emotions. They know everything we do and are programmed to show us posts that validate our ideas and thoughts and possibly shift them more radically in one direction or the other. These platforms aren’t social media — they’re social shepards — and we are the sheep they are trying to lead down their path!

So, for now, I’m choosing to take a step back from social media. I ignore notifications in my email about new posts and haven’t logged on Facebook in more than a week! Instead, I’m choosing to network with my friends and family the old-fashioned way — by giving them a call and catching up. I’m making an effort to engage more with my original “social network” without having to listen to the angry noise from today’s social networks! I must say — I’m enjoying it!

Thanks for reading!

Joe