Would You Meet Them For Coffee- Social Media and Disconnection

We now have the option for our phones and apps to tell us how much time we have spent on certain tasks and on social media. When you look at how you’ve spent the day, weeks or months are these hours reflecting the life you want to live? As a blogger I depend on the internet to get my content out. I know there are many positives to social media. The internet and social media for example is a necessity for many small and big business alike. It can channel traffic and help create sales that otherwise may not be possible. It helps many stay in touch over the miles and to reconnect with people from our pasts or allow us to connect with people across the globe we otherwise wouldn’t have met.

The Dark-side of Social Media

There is a dark side to social media use, the addictions that can develop over the use of it and the effects from it. Recent light has been brought on protecting children’s safety online and the negative effects of social media on young people. Instagram’s head Adam Mosser himself was made to testified on the Hill to the Senate earlier this month. Whistleblower led information has developed about Meta’s (Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) own internal research and the algorithm promoting negative body image in young users.

Many seem to make a push to do everything online and avoid face to face interactions. Social media and our use of the internet in some ways has helped to fuel disconnection. Many aspects of using the internet can be convenient, but I ask myself what will the effects be on socializing long term. A simple Google search will give links to different articles looking at the reduction of social skills in relation to use of technology and the internet, especially in younger people.

Call Me Old Fashioned

I’m not that old and I find myself asking what happened to handwritten thank you notes, sealing a deal with a handshake and people meeting for coffee? Call me old fashioned, but I honestly don’t like the road we as a society seem to be on. So many people seem discontent with their lives and suicide is at a record high. I’ve personally had two people in my family unexpectedly commit suicide this year. These losses really made me start thinking more about where I put my own time and thoughts.

I think many get on social media trying to make a connection, but in the end feel more disconnected, empty and alone. Social media is full of photoshopped perfect pictures, highlight reels of everyone’s lives and accounts full of purchased followers, likes and comments. Social media and sharing can be fun, but it can also, be stressful. With changed in the algorithm it can be especially frustrating for example to a blogger or creator that feels like they are spinning their own wheels when their content isn’t getting shown.

Looking at your friend’s list on social media, how many people would you actually go out for a cup of coffee with? People we see might have the famed 10k following, but be as shallow as a muddy puddle in real life with no real life friends. The next time you’re down on yourself due to comparing yourself to the people on your social media feed maybe consider asking yourself this thought provoking question. There is so much good that can be done with time like volunteering or connecting to real people in our own family and communities. I’m not going to be idle and let the opinion of those that I wouldn’t want to take to coffee in real life get me down or fall into the comparison trap and I hope you won’t either.

.