Do you prefer it than or now?
The World was a lot smaller. We were way more oblivious to what was going on. I became an adult right around when cell phones became a thing, so it is a bit hard to compare for me, as life was already different in other ways as a kid. I could definitely do without all the filters though.
Social media is pernicious and intentionally designed to hook ever increasing amounts of your attention to be sold on to brands. Cal Newport’s advice on ‘digital minimalism’ is pretty useful. Unhook from all tech for a month apart from anything required for work. Develop a set of rules to govern your ongoing use and stick to them when you start using again e.g. strict time limits, only specific types of content, no click clicking down the rabbit hole where you start out looking for cooking tutorials and end up watching a hamster having a tea party with a cat with no idea how you got there
In short, use the best of it. Do not let it use you
It's hard to say because social media came into my life during my coming of age years when my life would have changed a lot anyway, and I was changing a lot. Getting a smartphone marked the end of my childhood and the beginning of my teens. Even today, plenty of children have limited access to social media.
Very true xan Getting a phone is getting exposed to the whole wide world It was World Wide Web for me 😄
I REALLY want to comment here, but it's Sunday and I don't feel like writing a book, so i'll just say this; social media has made people more dumb and entitiled.
@Saysoh Yep.
Good old days are gone. I had a lot of time then.
I tried Facebook over a decade ago. Drama, I deleted in a month or so, and never missed it. Seemed mostly a way for people to brag.
I avoided Instagram all the way up until last year...I was obsessed for about two months, then basically ghosted when real life took precedent.
For me, it's not social media that's changed my experience...it was the internet, and then far moreso, my SmartPhone (I held out until 2018 to get one).
~ Sunset Snuggles
Social media is... kind of a mixed bag for me. It's highs are high, but it's lows are... yeesh. At the very least I'm glad it's allowed me to make connections I otherwise wouldn't have made, & that it's easier sometimes to write then it is to say/explain something in real life.
Though it did usually take time for me to get used to the trends as they came. Like @xandriarain said, it came when I was at the end of childhood too, but I just didn't give a crap about whatever was popular. "You gotta get a MySpace! You gotta get a MySpace!!" Ugh. Fine, here's my MySpace page. "Dude, it's about Facebook now and can you water my crops?" Aaaaah!!!😂 There's nothing wrong with the platform itself, like with anything, it's how people choose to use it.
Navigating social media is difficult. Accidentally latching onto opinions rather than facts has always been easy, and being in constant touch with so many different people can be overwhelming.
It can also be eye-opening.
I grew up in an insular community of people who all shared the same basic views and opinions (and, of course, presented them as fact).
We didn't have social media. Talking to Grandma meant you had to stay within a phone cord's length of the wall, and when we got internet access Grandma had to schedule her calls around the AOL.
Mom emailed her friends same as she used to post them slower-arriving letters.
I worked my way through a little website of children's stories from around the world like I was reading a book they didn't have at the library.
Life was slower, calmer... and full of unchallenged idiocy.
Can't say I'm fond of social media, really. I think its algorithms are set up to build communities just as insular and stupid as the old, pre-social-media ones.
But it can be used well. I do like that.
I'm not real big in the social media, I have Facebook but it's not even under my real name and I keep my contacts very tight.
It's not something I invite casual people into. I'm way too private for that. Introvert on social media as well.
But working my odd hours and living good distances from many of my friends and family I have found It it an excellent way to keep in touch and be a part of thier lives.
Not into the whole FB perfect life perfect photo thing either. You're more likely to see pictures of my critters or something I share about my job or volunteer position then posed made up selfies from 20 different angles.
I belong to several private narcissistic abuse survivor groups that have been helpful, an activist group, 2 industry related one of which I am a mentor and some related to my interests in small hobby farming and animals.
I pretty much keep to myself and just read unless I feel I have truly something worthwhile to contribute.
I am more of a fan of the information that is available that I can access now on the Internet. Watching tutorial YouTube videos I have successfully taught myself how to fix things someone would normally end up calling Repair people for.
I know exactly where the main power , gas and water shut off and I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty and learn. So far, no floods or fires and I have fixed or patched everything I set out and attempted.
And for me that's all I really need.
@DaringSprinter - 100% agree with you about the algorithms creating insular communities. The algorithms also fan the flames of division because nothing drives clicks like news about how “they” are trying to get “us”.
I do not do Fakebook or Instagram or Twitter, etc. my social media presence is limited to LinkedIN (which is only used for work related purposes) and CC. Even with that limited presence, I still took a 2 month break from from mid-March to mid-May this year.
I am thankful for CC as it has allowed me to connect with some wonderful pros and more recently some wonderful enthusiasts. However, I think our country was better off before so many people fell under the polarizing influence of the FB and Twitter algorithms. Were we as a country perfect before social media? Absolutely not. Overall, are we better off now? That is debatable but I would argue no.
Bill Maher on the effects of social media in general (after a 2 minute discussion of Apple & privacy)
I prefer it before, but have had success at my online businesses through social media. Businesses not Cuddle related.
A form of social media has been around since the '80s. I remember dialing into computers known as Bulletin Board Systems over the phone line. They were primarily for messaging on the message boards and EMail, but some had live chat, games, and file downloads.
@Mike403
I remember those days, and the screeching and beeping of the modem as you dialed in, lol. Pretty much the internet before the internet.
@cc99 - ...and unless you were making a long distance phone call to a BBS, most everyone lived local so it was much easier to have in person get-togethers with members since people weren't scattered all over the country.
Besides helping around the farm, I love the fact that after school I'd hop on my bike and play with my friends most of the days in the 80s, and try not to get in trouble (most ended up as failed attempts).
I too was raised on a small farm so being active outdoors with chores along with playing baseball, football and basketball. However, when I got a transistor radio I got addicted to it just like people get addicted to social media. Prior to social media people seemed to be much more active which I think is a big plus. Social media has its benefits for business people and for making connections.
I believe things were definitely better without social media.
Social media has caused so much anxiety and the inability to trust others. You never know who is watching you or will put your personal business out for everyone to see. I definitely miss life without social media and not having my cell phone in my hand all the time 😣 - On one side its great that we have access to the whole world, and on another its horrible because nothing is a new experience anymore.
I don't use the book of faces or insta or tiktok or anything. I guess this site would be considered social media? I do post on a couple forums and I play online games.
The internet has improved my life quite a lot, I just intact with the parts that I feel are beneficial to me.