Okay, so I’m a 2000s kid. I grew up with the Internet everywhere, cell phones everywhere and it wasn’t something strange, you know? We just find it really easy to communicate. You can apologize via a text, stay in touch with your besties through BBM. High school was all about BBM and before that, of course, Ebuddy. We thought it was the easiest way to cmmunicate. And then there was hi5, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and a hell of a lot of social networks that I had no clue existed!
The other day I read on Forbes that a study found “only 7% of communication is based on the written or verbal word. A whopping 93% is based on nonverbal body language” which means that texting/Facebooking should only be 7% of our communications… really? Does that mean I have a problem? Because I definitely spend more than 7 % communicating online.
Bottom line is: No, the Internet, or social media specifically, has not ruined our lives. Yeah, sometimes we have to disconnect from it to connect, but I am still fascinated with the idea of being able to reach people from all over the world just via a tweet or a post!
Sure, we have those guilty Instagram habits. But, we know about the news over Facebook and Twitter more than other media sources. We now have online journalism, which is great! You can have a blog that reaches millions of people all over the world. I refuse to think that social networks ruined our lives; in fact, they made it easier to communicate. Seriously, how can people think that our “generation” was ruined because of the internet!?
I believe that Facebook, for instance, is an amazing place to save your memories, like your old photo albums or reading some really old posts from your timeline, especially the petty (and now funny) drama of middle school. And it even keeps you in touch with old friends and colleagues. Professional LinkedIn accounts help lots of people seeking jobs, musicians have become successful because of YouTube and the list goes on and on…
That doesn’t necessarily give us a green card to be Facebook addicts and literally share everything on it (don’t you just hate breakup e-drama!?). Just be careful of what you post (think of your career down the line), be aware of the stalkers, have a “real” talk every now and then, avoid those LinkedIn mistakes, and you’re good to go!
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