Last night, I had an epiphany… and it wasn’t a good one.
I am “married” to social media.
Allow me to explain. I am in a long distance relationship so if I’m not out on the town while I’m in Charlotte, I spend the majority of my time at home alone. I also do a lot of work from home during the day (writing and social media work) so some days I may not even see an actual human being, which is an even scarier thought. Because I am alone so often at times, I tend to lean on my digital world to keep me company and informed. I never have a house of kids or a husband to come home to, but I do have social media networks always waiting for me when I arrive home. I am in a marriage with social media.
Pass the Facebook meth, please...
I enhance my viewing of TV shows with social media by chatting with my friends/followers who are watching the same program. It’s almost like I’m filling a void of not having anyone with me at the moment to share that experience with. I can guarantee that if I were watching said program with my boyfriend, my phone would NOT be in my hand because I would obviously be talking and interacting with him (the live human being in the room) instead. I also implement social media in my cooking and dining. When did I become one of those people who posts every single meal they eat?! Ugh! It’s like I can’t help it!!
But, unfortunately, it doesn’t stop there. I take my access of social media with me almost everywhere I go when I do leave my home. I take it to dinner, events, the gym, work, bars, etc. It’s like social media has become my… spouse.
I check in to restaurants on FourSquare, post pictures to Instagram of what I’m eating or doing, rave/rant about my dining experiences on Yelp, etc. And ALL of those networks are linked to Facebook and Twitter just so I can make sure people get really sick of me. If I’m doing it, chances are you’ll know about it if you follow me on a social network. Everything I do these days is documented in some form or fashion by my use of social media and I know for a fact that I’m not the only person who does this each and every single day. And THAT is frightening.
A few days ago I told myself that I would not post anything on either Twitter or Facebook for an indefinite period of time out of disgust for my tweeting and posting too often, especially of unnecessary information. I don’t even think I lasted a day… but I did learn some valuable points:
- I post a lot of dumb crap sometimes
- I should really be focusing on blogging instead of “micro-blogging” nonsense
- If I’m 28 years old and see my habits as an issue, then our younger generations are screwed, I tell ya
- I should focus on what’s in front of me that is living and in the NOW, rather than what is virtual or “social”
- Social ain’t so social anymore
- I need to read actual hand-held books more often instead of staring at a computer/iphone screen
- Social media can sometimes make us jealous or envious of other’s lives by comparing our downfalls to other’s triumphs that are typically only showcased on popular social networks
- Our heads are buried in the sand and we don’t realize how dependent we, as a nation, a world, are, even in the beginning stages of online and social media addiction
So where do we draw the line, folks? I obviously am not suggesting we abandon social networks altogether. That would be disadvantageous for most of us now (and another blog post for the future) but I am a little worried at how much it consumes us. I work in social media and believe that business and consumers alike are benefiting from the close relationship that can be obtained through social networks these days, but there must be a happy medium. I applaud social marketers whom I never see a tweet from on the weekends. I am in awe of those who choose to live their life without such channels (my boyfriend). I, in fact, think everyone, especially those in the online-marketing industry, should find their personal balance between living in the real world and the online world because if not, we will soon be living in a digital culture where, like myself, no one will ever have to see another human being, or care to for that matter.
It begs the questions:
Where does it stop? Are we sharing too much? Are we addicted? Can we survive without social media now? In a couple decades, is our country going to be led by young people who have never survived without texting, tweeting, Facebook-ing, blogging, etc?
How do you personally juggle the balance of living in the now and existing online as well?
I’d love to hear your feedback. Cheers!
