the consequence of social networking

We are at this stage in the history of the world where we are saturated with information like never before. We share a lot of information and we are bombarded with a lot of information about everything -- from breaking news in Sudan to what our friends are up to, who they are hanging out with and what music they're listening to. I fully participate in all of this. I am on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and this blog and I use them all regularly. In the last couple of months I attempted to quit Facebook but failed at it. I have also written several blog posts about the perils of social networking. I am sure I am not the only person who wishes they could quit and to not “need to know” but information is alluring – it is addicting and so is the need to share. For me, 99.9% of the things I share via social network I want someone to read and comment because it makes me feel a little more important that someone has acknowledged me. Sadly, even that little thumbs up “like” button can be satisfying enough-- and that is what keeps me coming back for more. I like getting attention this way. I have enjoyed it for as long as I have had a Facebook account, which is about 4 years. It is crazy to think about what life was like without Facebook (or Youtube, twitter or blogs). However, just like with all types of attention or fame, there are consequences.

The lack of anonymity and mystery

What I mean by this is that everyone you know becomes your friend or follower you start to feel restrained because you begin to think about what your “friends” or followers might think about what you post. I’m sure I have talked about this before. Most—if not all—of us care about what others think of us. We care about what our real life friends, our family and our colleagues think of us and they all can see our social network profile. Every word we write will always be taken to mean more because they know about your life outside of the Internet. I do the same with other people. I would love it if I had a lot of readers of this blog, but only if they are people I don’t know—people who do not know anything about my past, what I’m currently doing or what I’m like in real life.

Mistaken meanings

We’ve all heard stories about Tweets of celebrity deaths that were not true. I’m not talking about miss-information here but more so tone and context. Everything we write on Facebook, Twitter or sometimes a blog is always part of a larger context and I think we forget that. We read something and we make assumptions about it. I do that all the time. I read someone’s post about how they’re having a bad day I assume that it must have something to do with what that person posted earlier about having a terrible boss. This is a fair assumption but I have to remember there is a good possibility I could be wrong. We only get a snippet of something much larger and at least for me, some of the things I write I’ve written in haste because of some emotional break down. This is a problem because we may not realize the affect that could have on other people and often times we don’t really mean what we say in the heat of the moment.

Obsessive behavior

This is pretty self-explanatory. I have become obsessed with sharing (checking in, taking photos, etc.) and I have become obsessed with knowing what other people are up to. This is partly due to the “living vicariously” aspect. We see normal people –not celebrities, whose lives are more exciting and we become obsessed with their lives. All I know is that any obsessive behavior can’t be good.

The Dilemma

I have an unhealthy co-dependent relationship with the social network. It needs me (and you) to survive and I have come to need it for some sort of fulfillment. I will always be an advocate for information and knowledge. To suggest we stop using social networks would be like asking people to go back to the Stone Age. Lately I have found myself more and more conflicted. I’m afraid that some of the things I write or have written may have been misinterpreted and vice versa. Is that something that I just need to accept because that is the risk we take when participating in social networking? Do I share less, blog less, blog less personal things? But I would really hate to be censored that way, although I already feel that way now. I don’t know. I don’t have an answer.