Do you ever feel the desire to permanently remove yourself from all social media, yet at the same time feel as if you can’t, because doing so might mean you’re going to miss out on something or be disconnecting too much from the world around you? This dilemma has become a regular thought for many now, me included, even just now as I sip my beverage in this Starbucks watching a young woman in front of me snap a quick picture of her Grande Pink Drink and post it all over her social media sites, most likely with the hope she’ll now receive a bunch of likes and recognition from it.
I’ve been guilty of this very same behavior. How many times have I posted some candid picture of myself somewhere or of some neat place I’ve just visited, solely in the hopes to gain my own set of likes and recognition. Could this be the primary motive deep down within most of us who regularly post things on social media? Do we do this just because we want to be seen, heard, or known a little more in life?
Here’s an interesting question to ponder for all those who regularly use social media. If no one EVER liked any of your postings and you never got any recognition from any of them ever again, would you continue to post anything or even use social media at all? Is it a safe assumption to say that many of you probably wouldn’t solely because social media has primarily become a tool to post pictures of ourselves, our meals, our drinks, our vacations, our gardens, our animals, and everything in between simply to makes us feel a little more important somehow in a world where it’s easy to feel so unimportant now. At the core then, has social media become more of a selfish tool than a selfless one, with most sharing things more for their own gain than for truly connecting with others?
What was first meant to be a way to connect individuals together who normally might not be able to, now feels more like it’s creating a disconnect between so many, with plenty of unhealthy emotions being cultivated in the process. It’s why I typically don’t spend time looking at anyone’s timelines on any social media anymore, because each time I do, it just seems to make me feel like I’m always missing out, which is better known these days as “FOMO” (The Fear Of Missing Out).
FOMO is described by mental health professionals as an emotional response to the belief that other people are living better, more satisfying lives or that important opportunities are being missed out on. And it has become widely observed that having this condition often leads to feelings of unease, dissatisfaction, depression, and stress.
I can attest to this, as within 15 minutes or less looking at other’s timelines, I begin to feel more down than up, more disconnected than connected, more left out than part of, all as I observe one person after another who seems to be more desirable than I ever will, or see all the places I’ll never be able to visit that others have, or witness all the parties I wasn’t invited to from people I knew, or visualize all the possessions individuals acquired that I’ll never be able to afford, or view all the talent someone has that I may never have, and so on. This is precisely why I find myself not wanting to be on social media anymore.
My original intention and only reason why I still remain on social media is not necessarily for cultivating connection with others, as I rarely feel that happening anymore. Rather, I remain on it solely to share this blog with others, not to get likes, but with the hopes it will help others with specific parts of their own spiritual journey. This I can say is truly more of a selfless action than a selfish one, something I can’t say is true each time I post pictures of myself or of my life. Honestly, I kind of liked life long before social media ever came around when sharing photos from hand-held albums within our homes was more about creating joy and connection with those we were doing it with, than about creating FOMO with countless individuals we’ll probably never meet or spend any time with.
While I really don’t know where this social media journey is heading for all of us in this world, if I were to guess, it’s a life where one will only feel like they matter when they have a ton of connection, likes, and presence in the digital realm. I honestly hope to never live life that way because ultimately, I believe I matter solely because I am a child of God with a loving soul who longs for heart-to-heart connections, something social media never seems to bring me, but something that I know plenty of my in-person interactions have, which is why I will probably always seek that over improving my social media presence, for however long I have left in this life…
Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson
Hi Andrew, there are many moments when FOMO makes me want to get back on social media, but I don’t want to go down endless rabbit holes of seeing what others are doing. Ultimately I’ve wasted my time, I’m left feeling negative too (it’s easy to fall in the comparison trap bc—you’re right— who posts when they’re down?), and it’s such a lazy way of catching up. Many people are in the same town or in the same state! Pick up the phone or go visit! Show off your photos even on FaceTime. No one is THAT busy.
Well said Dianna! I know many of my readers still come from me posting my blog on my timeline and so there lies my dilemma in remaining on it. Kudos to you for keeping off of it and feeling so much better because of it! 🙏