Ego and Social Media

Today I read a very interesting Mashable piece written by a woman who recently decided to stop using Instagram. Here’s the link:

 http://mashable.com/2018/01/21/why-i-deleted-instagram-app-and-you-should-think-about-it/?utm_content=feature_title&utm_cid=mash-prod-email-topstories&utm_emailalert=daily&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium
=email&utm_campaign=daily&utm_sid=51cd00e4b91a7c788951cd7b#htw_x3hBGiqk

As I read her piece I reflected on my own use of Instagram, which has been very light, and thought I might offer a comment or two of my own. And first, let me say I don’t intend to delete my Instagram account. And second, that I’m not likely to increase my use of the app beyond my current low level of activity.

The reasons I continue to have the app on my phone are two:

1. Some of my family and friends (real world friends whose relationships predate social media) use it to send out photos of what they’re up to. I like that. I enjoy seeing what they’re doing or looking at. It’s an easy way to stay in touch, while not really staying in touch.
2. I can update my family and friends on places I’m visiting with minimal effort. It’s a time-saving way for me to let people I love know what I’m up to. Twitter would serve the same purpose, but then I’d have to write it out and consider how to keep it down to the character limit…too much trouble.

After reading Ms. Flynn’s Mashable piece, I have come to the conclusion that social media usage is heavily tied into self-perceptions. I think social media are dangerous to the degree that users have problems with self-image and personal restraint. Social media addiction (yes, I think there is such a thing) has roots in personal insecurity.

The reason I write this blog is to share articles and posts I come across with others who have similar interests. I don’t try and adhere to a regular schedule and so I avoid the problem of what to post on a day when there seems nothing much worth commenting on. And, too, why should people care what I find interesting? Well, I have enough ego to think that things I notice might not have been noticed by those who follow my posts and that they are interesting enough that more people than myself need to take note of them and stop for a moment to think about them.

So, that’s my post for today, and thank you for reading!