I am sure we have all seen the posts from friends on
Facebook or Twitter boasting about how they are “deleting their page”. They say
they want to get away from the linked in world to become more focused on the
real world, but then we will see that very same friend on Facebook the next
day. A lot of people try to give up their Facebook or Twitter accounts but most
of the time it either doesn’t work, or is only for a very short amount of time.
I just recently read an article in which the author, Jessi Hempel, a social media writer, gave up social networks. She gave up all social
media from the vastly popular social networks like Twitter and Facebook, to the
lesser known sites like Link’d in and MessageMe. Any kind of social site was
eliminated from her life. Hempel has been in this social media detox for a
month, and says that she will be continuing with her social media free lifestyle.
In her article, Hempel writes about all of the things she
learned while she was away from social media. She learned that:
1.
Social Media can be profound.
2.
Some tasks are better with social tools.
3.
Social Media can be mundane.
4.
It’s not social media’s fault.
Hempel learned some very valuable information and I am tempted
to do this myself to gain a new way of looking at, and even appreciating social
media. I think it would be valuable for everyone to experience this kind of
enlightening detox from social media at least once in their life, however, I don't imagine that people will be jumping at the opportunity to delete their accounts and disconnect from their little social worlds.
This is a great idea and I am glad some people can do it. I really hate how people cannot go without looking at social media for even just a day or a couple hours. Although I am sometimes guilty of it, I would much rather go and enjoy my day with friends then be obsessed with my social media all day.
ReplyDeleteI am glad social media is around so that people can connect with each other from long distances and keep in touch, but so many are getting addicted to the sites.
I agree that not being on Facebook and Twitter for a while could really help people appreciate it more.
I'm not surprised that I'm not the only one to notice the Facebook friends who "delete" their pages for a day. I really like point 4, "It's not social media's fault," because it really is not. People misuse social media in unbelievable ways, which is what gives it its bad reputation.
ReplyDeleteI saw the same article this morning and it is definitely something to think about. She certainly hits the nail on the head when she talks about using social media in moderation- something that I'm sure many people have trouble with. If people would use Facebook the way it was intended to be used, it would be a beneficiary to them and their friends.
ReplyDelete