When is social media too much? Snapchatting on the way to work? Instagramming your meals to show all of your friends and followers when you’re out for a meal? What about live tweeting and vlogging the birth of your child, like Robbie and his wife Ava did just the other day? Is this the new norm or a sign we need to step into social media rehab?
Personally, I don’t think I’d mind my partner tweeting and sharing his excitement with others. Having gone through a labour which lasted over 24 hours and had us stuck in a hospital room for over 8 hours before Her Cheekiness finally graced us with our presence, it would have been nice to have taken a few pictures, maybe joined a Twitter party or checked in with friends and family over Facebook.
Times have changed. Whilst I didn’t share any part of my pregnancy on social media and went the traditional route of sending out physical announcement cards to introduce my daughter to people, if I were in the public eye I’d probably vlog throughout the nine months and live stream the whole labour via YouTube. Just imagine, a few thousand people all shouting ‘PUUUUSSSH!’ through the screen at the same time. Talk about taking a family to raise a child. Almost a bibical moment or what? And to think people moan and groan about community being a lost notion!
Last month I used 25 minutes of my mobile phone allowance but nearly all of my 5GB data. Rewind ten years and I’d have ploughed through 25 minutes in one phone call. How we communicate has changed but whether the value of that communication has become eroded is another issue. Ten years ago I was at uni, childless and only worked weekends. My time was my own. Now I’m lucky to find time to shower without being interrupted. Therefore, sending a friend a quick “what time shall we meet” DM or wishing someone a happy birthday on Facebook is ideal. Sure, I sometimes follow it up with an actual hand written card whenever I can, but it’s great to have the option to take advantage of the free wifi and send a quick, instant message via social media now and then.
Many parent and lifestyle bloggers have made interesting observations about how social media is putting an increasing amount of pressure on today’s youth to succeed and live life in a certain way. Nickie wrote about Youtubers and the emergence of The Gleam Team. The article and the resulting comments are well worth a read. With people choosing to show themselves only at their best, flooding social media sites like Instagram with artfully choreographed images of their holidays and everyday moments, is it only socially acceptable to be perfect? Is having a bad hair day or feeling down something to be bottled up and suppressed at all costs now?
Do you feel our need to share has gone too far? I love that I blog and use social media. I enjoy the sense of community I feel through my fellow bloggers and Twitter followers. Personally, I wish it hadn’t taken me so long to click onto the world of social media as it would have been a great support during my pregnancy. Do I have less time to interact in person because I like to tweet? Nope. Do the likes of Zoella and The Slow Mo Guys make me envious? Nope, well, only their stats! Do I talk in emojis and hashtag the life out of things at work? Well, sometimes but not enough for my boss to worry why the hell he employed me. I think.
I do think social media may have created a new rulebook on what is normal. Though hopefully only in ways which will enhance our society, rather than erode from it. What do you think? Feel free to disagree! I like discussions!
Fab post, I agree and disagree at the same time simply because I’m the type that rather than pick up the phone and make a call I’d send a message and some of my friends miss the every other day phone calls that they had become used to. I think social media helps me stay in touch with more people especially my family dotted all around the world.
It’s definately quicker to send a text or Facebook message to a friend isn’t it? But I guess you end up missing the richness of context that a verbal conversation over the phone can bring. I love the friends I’ve made via social media and blogging – some of whom I may go months or even years before seeing face to face, but there is something magical about when I get to meet them (including you!) in person, which makes the online connection better too in some ways!
Really interesting post Tinuke which made me think a lot about how I use technology and social media. It’s such a central part of my life now but 10 years ago I would never have considered sharing as much as I do – and with total strangers! I think our ability to focus on real conversations offline is in jeopardy whenever there is a piece of technology in our hands though and I agree with Nicki that we need to slow down and talk to each other more.
Really interesting Michelle. I also share much more about myself online than I would have maybe a decade ago.
Lots to muse on here, Tinuke. The digital era and its communication methods does feel to be moving very fast at the moment but then I remember my Great-Grandfather saying that during his lifetime the car had been invented, man had landed on the moon and the birth of the computer (and the internet) had happened. All in just under 100 years! As much as I love the way in which we can move forward, it does make me think if we need to slow down a little and actually talk to each other before we lose real communication techniques.
Wow, that’s a lot of technological advancements within one lifetime!
I guess it’s similar with us though too, we’ve seen video calls, mobile phones, computers we can walk around with (tablets/laptops).
Communication is key. Face to face and phone calls, I hope modern forms of social media don’t erode them beyond recognition x