Social media is a superpower. It has the potential to change the lives of thousands of people in just a few seconds. Furthermore, it possesses the ability to make people aware of the happenings and mishappenings around them in a snap of a finger, and the most important of all, it is free of cost.
It distributes equal power to each individual to express his or her views any day, any time, towards anything. Remember, in our childhoods when we were asked to write an essay on the topic “If I were the President of my country for a day” ? But, as an adult, the real question we should ask ourselves, is “whether we DESERVE to be the President of our country, even for a day? “. As adults we realize that being a President of a nation is not a child’s play. It requires a profound experience in dealing with millions of people and satisfying their needs, as and when required. Notwithstanding the fact, that at the same time a President has to deal with loads of criticism for his actions.
Social media gives such virtual power to each of it’s users, regardless of their worth and capability. Now, this gives authority to even those undeserving people, who literally have no experience in a particular field, to criticize and condemn others for their actions. This eventually results in the “Brainwash” of literally thousands of people and creates polarization in the society, consequently, dividing people into various groups.
So now the question arises that, can we protect ourselves from such “Brainwashing” circumstances, and still use social media? The answer is Yes, but to do so one certainly will have to audit their social media diet in order to attain the best out of such mighty, mind-altering platform.
Let’s find out how.
1. Unfollow toxic brands/ people.
People just love to fake it. What I mean, is that they are showing you just a fraction of their lives which is shiny and attractive. It gives them a sense of virtual dominance over others, and to add the cherry on top, the likes and comments give them excessive approval, which is motivating enough to make them repeat their actions again and again. In addition to that, it gives them a golden opportunity to escape the harsh realities of existence and the responsibilities that it entails. Also, even if what they show to us is true, doesn’t mean that they got lucky and received all these pleasures in a day. Maybe, they worked really hard to achieve whatever they posses today. The reality can be of infinite possibilities. However, these people can be toxic for us in multiple ways. They can make us feel unwanted and unappreciated. They can give us a feeling of being an underachiever. Furthermore, they make us jealous and insecure of our surroundings.
We can’t control their actions, but we certainly can control ours, and the best way to do that is to completely remove these people from our social media lives as soon as possible. These people may be inspiring for others, but they surely are toxic for us. You cannot thrive in a poisonous environment. If you’re bitten by a snake, you don’t wait for the venom to neutralize itself in the blood, instead you rush to the hospital to deal with it. And, that’s exactly what we have to do here. We cannot wait for our feelings, which we get from these people, to neutralize themselves on their own. We definitely need to take actions in order to deal with it.
How social media is ruining our lives ?
2. Spend less time
Now, I can understand, that is easier said than done, notwithstanding the fact, that social media platforms are specifically designed to compel you to spend more time on them. Thankfully, there are plenty of people who were once addicted to Facebook, Instagram, etc, and are now using it in an extremely healthy way. Their secret ? Well, remember back in our childhoods, when there was a particular time designated to each of our activities. For example – sleeping time, playing time, study time.
These things made our life slightly easier and interesting. Though we never liked such restrictions, however, in the long run, they made us a better person. We can apply a similar concept in our adult life as well. We can fix a certain time to use social media such that we don’t feel the addiction and at the same time use it to satisfy our daily need of internet usage. We can assign a particular time, let’s say 7:00-7:15, for using Facebook and let our mobile phones and laptops relax for the remaining time. Also, we can do this several times a day, as long as we don’t feel completely overwhelmed by it. In addition to that, you can keep all your electronic devices and equipment in a different room such that you don’t feel the urge to grab it for using social media. Furthermore, turn off your Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram’s notifications, so you’re not constantly reminded of it everywhere you go.
I will be discussing more about relieving oneself from the mobile/social media addiction in the next blog.
3. STOP comparing yourself.
With the advent of social media, the word “comparison” is now more easily used and felt, than it ever was. Technically, comparison is a basic human character. It actually somewhat motivates us to make ourselves better than a particular thing or a person. Had it not been for comparison, we would still be planning to put a “man on moon”. So, the word comparison is not bad in itself. However, in the 21st century, it is one of the sources of negativity in the human minds. Actually, health comparison is alright. As long as it is not breeding jealousy and malice in a person, there is practically no harm. Things start to get down the road when this feeling of comparison starts rottening our brain.
In the words of Shakespeare, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players”. We need to understand, that excessive comparison not only stunts the growth of our character but also breeds tons of negativity in the human heart. The fact is that, no matter wherever you go, there will be someone who is better than you. There are seven billion people in the world, and the chances of being the best in the world is literally one in seven billion. Now I’m not asking you to ultimately quit all your hard work and get settled with whatever you have, but at least don’t compare your hard work with someone else’s “Good Luck”. People in 80s and the 90s also used to compare themselves with each other, however, the difference today is that, the frequency of comparison has drastically increased in the past two decades with the arrival of social media. Now we compare our lives all the time, and that too with multiple people. The human mind is a never settling one, and only we can control it. Remember, your brain is not your friend. It is like a wild animal, which cannot be tamed but can certainly be trained.
4. Be a source of positivity for other.
It’s not about us everytime. Sometimes if we want to gain good things, we first have to offer something equally satisfying. As already mentioned, social media is a very powerful tool. It’s like a superpower, and it’s users are the possessors. So, it is in our hands as to how we put such a mighty thing in use. We can either use it to intoxicate the mind and soul of other human beings or we can use it to fulfill the basic purpose of humanity, that is, to serve and uplift others and attain peace through it.
For example, we can post some inspirational quotes and images which will motivate others to pick themselves up. Furthermore, we can upload images of some kind of social work which will definitely encourage others to do the same. In addition to that, we can share our success and failure stories with our friends and family, such that no one feels left out and lost in their life. All these activities would certainly induce some kind of positivity and inspiration in other’s lives. Also, we must refrain from sending toxic thoughts and messages to others. Just because we can do something, doesn’t necessarily mean that we should. We never realize that even the smallest of our actions can have a huge impact on someone.
I believe that in the 21st century, we all are knowledgeable enough to know about the good and the bad impact we can have on people. If we model good behavior, we will not only my make someone else’s life blissful but will also receive the love of people, which is the ultimate goal of mankind.
Harsh Words 
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