Fed Up and Moving ON!
I'm just done, so DONE with Social Media. I've known I was done for some years now but recent events have been a tipping point.
I have come to understand firsthand that Social Media and Facebook and Instagram in particular, are hazardous to your health. I've known this for a while, but ignored it because I felt or rather was led to believe that you needed social media to conduct business or how would you grow? That may be true for most, but the truth for me is twofold.
All the friends I have are not interested in me or my endeavors or efforts. This leads me to the obvious conclusion that friends on social media are only friends in name and not literally. Home truth! Your Facebook friends don't give a rats arse about you. There may be a few - in the single digits that truly care - but most don't. It has taken me years to accept this, years of beating my head against the wall, but it has finally sunk in.
The Social Media Hype is really bad for your health and specifically your sanity. Apart from people distorting the truth about their glamorous lives or perfect physical looks that appeal to their followers, the mere fact that your success is based on how many sheep you have following you is disturbing, to say the least. Happiness and success should be based on merit, hard work, and productivity, not how popular you are or how beautiful you appear to be.
It's this total lack of core values that has got me so disillusioned, that I am distancing myself entirely from social media. Society is sick and ailing and the cure is not going to be found on the Plethora of Social Media Platforms.
My observation about Social Media these days is that people fall into two basic groups.
The first is the older population trying to stay connected with family and friends and posting random pictures of grandchildren and dogs. That is how Facebook started and there are some die-hards still out there. I must admit, I am one of them. It is the one way my family spread across the globe can see what I am up to. I travel a lot and meet a lot of people in my travels who claim to be friends. The sad thing is that once I leave, I never hear from those friends again unless it is to view their random Facebook or Instagram posts. There is no personal connection again, which is what makes me say the friendships made are not real. Do people even know what real friends are anymore? They all swear to keep in touch but never do.
The second group is those that are trying to conduct business and are after one thing only - that is for you to engage in their posts so they get more likes, shares, and followers. Again I have had several business pages and blogs and I also fall into this group. Honestly, this groveling for attention has to end and I want no further part in it.
I am truly saddened that society today has lost the value of commitment, family values, and true friendships. These faceless and empty relationships on social media are not only bad for your mental health and self-esteem, but they are also highly addictive. I have found it surprisingly difficult not to reach for my phone several times a day to check on Social Media platforms. When will the madness end? When will humanity take a breath and learn to love their fellow man again in a genuine and compassionate way? When will compassion and empathy rise above the selfish and self-absorbed attitude that appears to be mainstream these days?
I totally understand why people do it. I am just saying that I can no longer be a part of the madness. I shall continue my blog on my website and if I am fortunate enough to gain traction with organic traffic so be it. For the most part, I intend to become a recluse. I am retreating into the private world of my writing and my art. If I am found, that would be wonderful, but if I am not, that is OK too but I will not sell my soul anymore to the masses of social media.
