Your social media page and account SHOULD BE ABOUT YOU --

<<--- That's my dad - rather it is my iPad traced line drawing of a photo of him taken long before I was born. How does this lead into the topic, you ask? Well --
    I have been an "artist" all of my life. MOST OF US HAVE. Most people begin to engage with some artistic activities VERY young, no matter where they are. Drawing with water on a rock or with a pencil or crayon, you get the picture here, I'm sure. Someone, somewhere just basically tells us it's not "good enough" and we quit. <shrug> 
    In these discussions regarding "social media" and "narcissism" that are being thrown around, let's agree that YOUR page on any platform SHOULD BE about YOU. If the people who follow you don't want to know about YOU, then why are they following your activities at all? It is just silly for me to expect your page to be about me, isn't it? 
    Yes, I am aware of the manipulations built into the software. I am a software developer. I was also a retail associate and store manager for some time. If you know what endcaps, dump bins and compulsive displays are all about, well that's EXACTLY THE SAME THING AS TARGETED ADS. The gum, mints and candy bars are right next to the register for a reason, and it isn't really about your convenience. It's about selling you at least one more thing before you walk out the door. 
    These same tactics have been being used on me my entire life, in my case 48 years. Television and radio manipulate us in exactly the same ways, by the way. There is nothing new to see here from that point of view. What's new is that you and I can engage directly WITH the advertisers and with each other. You and I can discuss these things together, leave reviews, describe our experiences, etc. This brings me back again to the topic at hand ---
    Neither of us is a narcissist for engaging with it and trying to "be heard" in the mix. There's nothing wrong with it at all. If you have a page on some platform or a blog or vlog or channel it SHOULD BE ABOUT YOU. If other people don't want to know about you, then they SHOULDN'T CLICK THE LINK TO YOUR PAGE. This, of course, is universal. If I don't want to know what you have to say or whatever you are putting out there, I AM FREE NOT TO CLICK THE LINK. 
    I get that so many people lack the self control necessary to put the phone down while eating their meals, but that's a self control issue. I'm not sorry for saying so, either. Don't bring your phone to the table, and it won't be there for you look at. It actually IS exactly that simple.



 

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