Being a blogger means that I spend A LOT of time on social media. A Lot. Sometimes more time than I would like to admit. Day 3 of my 30 Day Blogging Challenge is supposed to be about 10 things I like and dislike. Since I spent the entire morning on social media, I thought why not discuss 10 things about the world of social media.
Drumroll please…
- Like: Meeting new people: I have made some really awesome new friends. Some of them I’ve had the pleasure of meeting in real life. Some of them live across the country or on different continents so we have yet to meet. It’s amazing to connect with people and build an online community.
Dislike: Meeting new people: Sometimes you will meet new people that you would rather have never met. Just like in real life! Maybe they reply to a comment you left on someone’s account. Or if you’re like me and have public accounts, maybe they leave comments on yours.
2. Like: Inspiration: I have been inspired by social media in so many ways. I’ve read books, downloaded apps, watched movies/tv shows, tried styling outfits differently and learned so much from others.
Dislike: Inspiration: Sometimes it can be overwhelming. There are so many things I see on social media that I want to try that sometimes it makes me feel overwhelmed at the thought of trying new things. I know, I know…I don’t have to try everything. I just have a short attention span so if I see something I like, I feel like I need to try it ASAP or I might forget. During times like these, I usually don’t get anything done!
3. Like: Self-Esteem: Let’s be honest. Most of what we share on social media are the good sides of our lives. It feels good when others recognize the good in us. It’s great to be an inspiration to others. It feels good to have your content “liked.”
Dislike: Self-Esteem: Some days aren’t so good. Some days the accounts we usually find inspiring, make us feel inadequate. It’s no fault of the poster. It’s just because of where we are at that moment in time.
4. Like: Reconnecting: I have reconnected with family and friends and built some really cool relationships. Sometimes time and distance causes a disconnect that social media can bridge. You can easily catch up by viewing others’ timelines. Social media lessens the distance.
Dislike: Reconnecting: Sometimes the disconnect was needed. Social media can show you into people’s lives that are better left in the past. Or they might be empty connections. Why should I feel forced to accept an invite from someone that was in my 4th grade class that moved away mid-year to never be heard from again…until social media suggested we be friends!?
5. Like: Growing My Brand: Let’s face it. Without social media, how would you know what blogs to read??? Seriously though, social media is a great tool for bloggers. It allows us to reach new readers and new brands.
Dislike: Growing My Brand: Social media is pretty much a numbers game. When you’re a brand, you’re worth a lot of times seems to be in your followers. Being a relatively new brand, it can be an upward battle to secure the amount of engaging followers that make you appear relevant.
6. Like: Engagement: I have had some really good learning moments on social media through engagement. I also love interacting with my followers across all of my social media feeds.
Dislike: Engagement: Crickets! Sometimes you will post something that you feel is great but for some reason it’s just a miss. You don’t get the likes or comments you expected.
7. Like: Sharing: In many ways, I am a curator. I do my best to share content that I think my social media buddies will like or can use. Sometimes it’s original content and lots of times it’s not. I share the parts of my life that I’m comfortable sharing but not much more. I’ve always enjoyed being publicly private.
Dislike: Sharing: Sometimes it’s hard to decide what to share and what not to share because I don’t want to offend or isolate anyone. When it comes to personal sharing, sometimes it’s difficult because I know that once I share something, I can’t unshare it.
8. Like: Memes: You know that memes have to be one of the best parts of social media. There is a meme for everything! There are funny memes, educational memes, thought-provoking memes and every other type you can imagine. FYI: My Instagram account began as a meme based account.
Dislike: Memes: There is a meme for everything! Some situations shouldn’t be turned into a meme. That’s just my opinion.
9. Like: Current Events: Social media has become a lot of people’s go to for what’s going on in the world. It is a great way to keep up with current events in real time. It allows us to share local news and events with our friends around the world.
Dislike: Current Events: Sometimes I want to use social media as an escape from the real world. I don’t want to see all the ugliness of the world in my feeds. The other issue is sometimes things shared on social media aren’t fact checked.
10. Like: Reach: You never know just who you touch through social media. You also don’t know when you will touch them. Since nothing ever really leaves the internet, someone could stumble upon a post you made a year from now (or later) and it could be just what they needed at the moment. While your numbers do matter when building a brand, they do not truly reflect the number of people you reach.
Dislike: Reach: You never truly know who you reach. And you never truly know how your post is taken and used. Someone could repost without crediting and change the intention of your original post.
