Dance like the photo’s not being tagged, Love as you’ve never been unfriended. Tweet like nobody’s following. It would feel good, to live like that. What do you think?
The time we should dedicate to ourselves, we give to social media be it Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc. and half of your problems can be the cause of social media (not kidding). We have time, but we still don’t have time. Social Media is capable enough to play with your brain and can make you do things you wouldn’t do otherwise. We were told to watch a documentary called, “The Social Dilemma” as an assignment but it turned out way more informative and eye-opening than I thought. That documentary shows how the internet is controlling us these days, the more you stick to your screen, the more money they make and that is why they show you relatable ads, videos, quotes, and what not. All they care about is their money, and because we use social media a little more than we should they are able to reach their goal.
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Platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat are all about showing off your lifestyle, clothes, etc., and judging others on whatever they post. Life out there is fancy, everyone is living their best life on social media, nobody is stressed, they are leading a life you wish you had. How? Because they are posting only their best moments! Nobody out there is real, because that is a virtual world, and teenagers or children out there can’t help but compare themselves with every other person they see online. Some of them dive so deep that they almost forget the difference between the real and virtual world. That’s what social media does to us, it plays with our minds and directs us into thinking the way people behind the screens want us to. Do you think they care about privacy? NOT AT ALL! On the basis of what you search, read, and even chat about; they decide the ads you will see so as to keep you engaged.
Our life is some way or the other being controlled by them and we are letting them do so. Social Media has become powerful to an extent that it can decide how we, as humans will function. But who made it this powerful? WE DID!
Have you seen people especially children, posting videos while drinking or smoking? I am sure you must have; they do what they do just to look cool in front of their friends without acknowledging that what they are doing is capable of destroying their life.
Social Media was supposed to be a medium to express your thoughts, help you relax when you had a tough day, connect with your friends and family, but nowadays even when people are with their family and friends physically, they still are engaged in the virtual world talking to people who are far away. It won’t be wrong if I say, we have forgotten to be present at the moment, to enjoy the moment, all we want to do is capture it and then post it, am I right or am I right? It feels like most of us are even living our lives for the gram. There’s always a silent competition of whose life is better. It’s a highly deceptive world, one that constantly asks you to comment but doesn’t really care what you have to say.
It has become an addiction now, don’t agree? Ok, then tell me can you live without your phone or social media handles even for a day? If the question got you thinking, then that means you cannot. You must have heard, anything beyond limits is bad that is exactly the case here. I bet YouTube and google know you more than your own friends/family; can you think why? Because you spend most of the time there. Social Media isn’t completely bad, you raise an issue there and there are 1000 people supporting you, it all depends on the way you use the platform.
Social Media can disturb your peace of mind, studies show that investing too much time on social media platforms can affect your focus, concentration, and memory. This is one reason why people tend to forget things and they have to write them down in order to remember it.
Have you ever tried a social media detox? If not, then please do and after quite some time you will tell your friends that, “you know what life feels peaceful without it” and I am not kidding because before writing this blog, I tried it for myself, I didn’t use my Instagram for a week and I swear it felt good! I realized that there’s no need to scroll the whole day and to look at people living in the virtual world, instead appreciate and talk to people who are there with you, reducing your screen time can do wonders to your mental and physical health, trust me. You don’t even recognize how much time you can save just by not scrolling through the whole day and in that time, you can develop habits you always wanted to. I am not telling you to completely stop using social media, that is up to you if you want to do that or not though; but I am telling you to understand its use, impact, and its importance in your life. Set your priorities and then work accordingly. Social Media should be your escape from your real world, but alas the opposite is happening. The platform is the same for everybody but it’s the way you choose to use it, that matters. I am not saying it’ll be easy, but it’ll be worth it.
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You’ll need to spend some time introspecting and evaluating whether social media is doing more harm or good for you, personally. If you feel there are more negative consequences than positive benefits to using a specific platform, consider uninstalling it or temporarily deleting it for a week. How do you feel at the end of this week?
Detaching completely from social media can be hard, but it can also have enormous positive benefits and is the right move for millions of people even if they don’t know it. If you decide to keep your social media accounts open, make sure you’re aware of the potential damage and negative effects it can cause, and find a way to mitigate them. Everything feels difficult at first and hence reducing your screen time will feel too, all you need to do is fight your own urge.
ALL THE BEST! Let you use social media, instead of social media using you.
“Focus on how to be social, not on how to do social.” — Jay Baer