Social Media is the Devil
…at least that's what I used to think, until I was out on a run because of social media. That run is where I thought of much of this blog post. There is so much research about how endless scrolling is slowly frying our brain, and I find myself less creative, less motivated and less forward thinking after a good binge. But do you throw the baby out with the bath water? Absurd phrase by the way, but I think that's the point.
After attending the BetterLife Tribe Summit this past December, which is a goal setting retreat for the whole tribe, I got back on Instagram after a long hiatus because it was the best way to keep in touch with people that I had met in-person at the event. These were folks that I wanted to stay in touch with and that is just what happened. But, I also got sucked in again.
This past weekend I saw some posts from my man Stetson from the tribe about a running challenge that he was doing. It was the 4x4x48 from David Goggins, where you run 4 miles every 4 hours for a total of 48 miles in 48 hours. As I was following his story posts on instagram one of his running buddies posted a challenge to join them for one of their 4 mile legs. At first I thought that was just for people who were local to them in Las Vegas. Later the next day, when I saw other people being tagged from all over, I realized that what they were asking for was for you to just run 4 miles wherever you were at! I was on it. I hadn’t run in a while but knew I could struggle through four miles, and I could tell the encouragement went a long way. After posting and tagging Stetson and his other two companions, I learned how much that meant to them as they were approaching the final leg of their journey.
As I was out running I was thinking of this concept. How could something that I thought was so bad, that was a drug that I was addicted to, have such a positive and tangible impact? I had made choices and was taking actions that I would not have otherwise taken had it not been for social media. I was building friendships with folks that were all the way across the country because of social media. Then on top of that, friends that I had not heard from in a while were commenting on my post and we got to reconnect! One of which was all the way on the other side of the world!
I could riff on this topic for a while but I think what I'm starting to conclude is that social media is just like any other medium that has been criticized through the ages. It's how you use the tool that makes it good or evil. If I am looking for escape and just want something to make me feel better, I will numb the pain and get lost for a time. But if I approach social media with intentions of engagement and connection, how much more can I be encouraged by it? How much can I encourage other people and share with the world? I wonder if it's like a lot of things where if you think of yourself less and others more you end up getting more rewarded in the long run.
What do you think? What has your journey with social media been? Have you been in my camp where you feel its evil and addicting? Are you like “chill out bro!”? What do you think are the ways to positively approach interacting with social media?
