Gone are the days where you can post your achievements online without being judged. Gone are the days where venting online meant you needed an outside opinion regarding a current situation without someone heckling you over it. Gone are the days when posting family pictures online meant you were proud of how far you all became. Gone are the days of posting your favorite music online and someone provided positive feedback instead of ridicule. All are gone thanks to current social media.
Remember when social media started as an alternative to talking with those you went to school/work with? After a long day, you had someone to share your experiences with? How sometimes you felt better because someone understood what you went through? How it was the personal space you and your school mates/co workers had without the fear of someone telling your business the next day? Remember when you met people just like you online, and it felt good knowing for the first time you’re actually not alone?
What happened to those days? Why are people so easily triggered to copy and paste your rants, achievements, and/or stories just to poke fun at you (or someone else)? Jealously? Revenge? To make jokes? Because they’re bored? Trying to prove a point only their community of friends would understand? What’s the actual point of breaking that bond with someone just for a few minutes of “look what this idiot did today?” When reading various topics from the late 90’s to early 2000’s, and reading the topics within the past few years, there’s a major shift in negative behavior which needs to be terminated.
Back then, if someone’s child scored an A on a hard test, positive remarks were present. Now? Various sarcastic jokes, or “that’s nothing, try this test,” and other various types of negative behavior. If you found someone online, back then it felt good to finally meet someone who shared the same common interests, and you actually made efforts to keep that person in touch. Common sense was present into keeping certain topics private until you knew you could trust them; and at times you kept private for years and no one cared. Now? “Finding someone online is a waste of time/energy. Find someone locally. You don’t know who they are!” Granted there are moments where people would try to get close for malicious reasons; at the same time keep your personal information private until you know it’s time to reveal who/what you are. When in doubt, keep who you are hidden. The right people will not pressure you into revealing who you are, because they like your online persona.
I bring this up because I’ve heard/read too many stories of people who post on social media, to be judged and/or ridiculed for no legit reason. While some posts are considered “Troll posts” (saying anything to get a rise out of people), the legit posts are the ones targeted of negative behavior. If there’s a positive achievement, instead of nit-picking at the person (or post), why not actually congratulate them? If they aren’t bragging just to brag, what’s the harm in positive feedback? If there’s something that seems “off” regarding the topic(s), ask the right questions to better understand the why said topic is posted. Asking the right questions will help clarify the current situation, and as long as the one asking isn’t going too personal, there’s no fear in understanding what’s going on.
If you’re under an NDA (Non Disclosed Agreement), or under the risk of losing your job due to talking about your work day, and you have to talk to someone regarding a situation at work, try to find out what the limits are regarding who and what you can talk about. This way, no one can use the tactic of copy and paste against you, or repeat information and there’s re-precautions. Too many people lost their jobs because they posted work-related topics when they weren’t suppose to, and at times even took pictures of their job, which violated work codes. At times the leader/boss were the problem, and the wrong people shared the information which also lead to lost jobs. If you’re the boss/leader, remember everyone has to vent to someone, and try to be clear on what is/n’t allowed on social media so everyone is on the same page.
Remember this: the right people will respect your postings, and will be there for you during your time of need. Never be afraid to post online (within reason), and never be afraid to be yourself. The right people will come to you, and you will be happier to know you found someone who won’t judge you based off someone else’s parameters.
The Royal Assassin 