Hi there, I’m Danny Brown. The reason you’re receiving this email is that, at some point, you signed up for my newsletter or downloaded an ebook. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, simply hit the unsubscribe link at the end of the email. Thanks for being here.
Hi there,
Back in March 2015, I published a post on my blog that looked at how we’re losing out on experiences because we’re so addicted to social.
From that post:
We tweet, we post updates on Facebook, we make Vines of how cool our lives are, we Instagram perfectly-caught moments in time – and yet they’re more often than not just a vision of who we wish we were. If they were truly how we are, why does Instagram have so many filters to get our picture in a perfect light?
That last line, for me, continues to sum up so much of what’s wrong with social media and how it affects us. We’re forever thinking of what updates to post, what picture to post with it, and what people will think once we’ve posted.
It seems we’re seeking so much gratification and recognition that we forget to be us. To be people that enjoy the moment, as opposed to seeking out the perfect frame for that moment.
And that can be so damaging to us and our well-being.
It’s no coincidence that Instagram was highlighted, along with SnapChat, as the most detrimental to young people’s mental health in a study published by the Royal Society for Public Health.
Looking at the profiles of people I know, and the amount of carefully-planned selfies published, I wonder about the reasoning behind it.
Looking for acceptance? Loneliness? Fear of missing out? Maybe it is just a way of sharing what’s going on, but there seems to be more to it.
And it makes me sad, because we are so much more than an avatar on some dumb social network that only wants you as a user so it can compile a ridiculous and creepy amount of data about you.
There is so much beauty around us, but we miss it because we need to answer that little notification light on our phone, telling us someone’s replied to our update on some random social network.
We’re missing out on conversations. On life. On important memories to be.
Not only that, but our health is suffering, as we either get depressed by the ongoing hate or we get burnt out trying to keep up across multiple channels.
- I saw it in myself, which is why I deleted the accounts I gained no pleasure from.
- I see it in my friends, and in the updates they post and the conversations we have about them.
- I see it in ex-colleagues, and how they’ve stepped away from social media now they no longer need to work it.
- And I see it in stories online, that share examples of people who almost lost their sanity because of the effect social media was having on them.
At some point, it needs to stop. We need to recognize this isn’t healthy, and it’s not sustainable.
We have one life. One shot at leaving a legacy, and making the world a better place.
That may be on social – contrary to what I may be saying here, it’s not all bad online, and there are some great examples of people making a difference through the medium.
But let’s not get sucked into thinking we always need to be on. We always need to share. We always need to be perfectly presented.
Humanity is human because we’re messed up. Because we’re not perfect.
It’s also humanity because of that one thing that no social network can ever give us – the power of human touch.
Don’t let social media define you. You’re more than a profile.
Be you first. The rest can take care of itself.
Until the next time, be well, be safe, and be kind to each other,
I help people like you build their online presence through content, and a website that tells your customers your story and why they need you. If you need help with that, let’s talk.