I was late to adapt to the latest technology. Friends, coworkers and even family members were constantly encouraging me to join Facebook, Twitter and every other social media site to "stay connected" to them. To me it didn't seem real. I fought joining Facebook for a long time and never had a MySpace account. To me it was personal. I thought it was strange to invite people into my world that I have not had contact with for years. So after much reluctance I caved and the inevitable happened. I was bombarded with "friend" requests from people that I have not seen since high school graduation...people that wanted to know what was new with my life. I swore up and down that when I joined Facebook it would only be for my close friends and family. Now a few years and a few hundred "friends" later my perspective has shifted.
Today I rely on Facebook daily to see all the new events happening in my "friends" lives. I look at their pictures on Instagram and even post on there myself. I also use twitter to stay connected with the lives of my favorite celebrities. I read various blogs for news and watch videos daily on YouTube.
I guess I am now what you would consider a social media junkie. I still am a bit jaded when it comes to Facebook and having people involved with my life but it is a way to stay in close contact with the few people who matter to me the most. I take social media with a grain of salt. I realize that some of the news blogs I read have a definite shift politically, and form my opinions accordingly. I can't believe how much my way of life has changed over the last few years. I sleep with my phone on my nightstand and check social media as soon as I wake up in the morning as I am sipping my morning coffee. It has become a part of who I am...I try to not let it define my life and relationships but I find that it is a necessary part of life in order to remain connected with the rest of the world.
Betsy, it is good that social media has become a part of your life and has influenced you somewhat in a positive way as you connect with friends and learn about their lifestyle, habits, etc. Do you ever feel that Facebook could be potentially pressuring as it requires you to keep up with constantly checking for friends updates, celebrities updates etc?
ReplyDeleteI feel it is more of a habit than anything else to check social media on such a regular basis. I have yet to feel the pressure to keep up it is just something that I now do and has become a regular part of my day.
DeleteI really like your observations of how social media has evolved to the point that it is now woven into the very fabric of our lives. What began as a fun little trend among college students has now become something people the world over cannot live without. In some ways, it has become almost as important as language itself in terms of influencing the way humans communicate with one another. It is difficult to imagine what our world today would be like had the social media revolution not occurred, and what might fill the void of time that we currently invest in it. It certainly is amazing how our Facebook pages have more or less become extensions of ourselves and redefined our ideas of relationships. -Patrick Fernandez
ReplyDeleteBetsy - I like the look that you chose for your blog. I agree that social media has really become a habit, especially because of smartphones. It's good that you see both the positive and negative aspects.
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