My ~Personal~ Online Presence
My ~Personal~ Online Presence
As a freshman in college, a 19 year old, I would say almost everyone my age has social media. And I mean on almost every platform. Social media is a way for people to see your personality through posts, pictures and personalized captions. My family and friends can connect with me in many ways. For my younger cousins and friends they can reach me mostly on Instagram and Snapchat, whereas my older and/or distant relatives can see what I'm up too on Facebook.
Although I do not have a personal website, besides my blog here, I have : Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, TikTok, Pinterest, WhatsApp etc. I remember after a certain age I was finally allowed to download these apps. I also remember after the clock hit 12, I was already filling out my personal information and getting a profile picture ready. It was "a cool thing" to be able to link up with your friends on social media platforms. To this day I have over 1,500 friends on Facebook that I have been connecting with since 6th grade. On these websites, I post a variety of different things. I try to show my personality as much as I can. For my family that live out of state/ country, they love to see photos of me traveling, enjoying the college culture and posting birthday selfies (but that is probably so that they remember to wish me a happy birthday). I choose to not link my accounts because I do not always want EVERYONE to see EVERYTHING. If I allow you to follow one of my social medias and not the other, let's keep it that way!
If someone were to follow my account (i'm private on everything) they would instantly be aware of my love for my family and friends and my passion for traveling. I am always snapping a photo or two when I'm at a noticeable landmark or even dressed up culturally in another country. I would hope people would be able to see my creativity and confidence gleaming through my photos. As a Journalism major, and someone who wants to pursue news, I think it is important people see my personality through my photos. It is important to attract a certain type of people/following. It is also important to always post your best self.
I rarely give out my information to websites that do not seem trustworthy, or that I am unsure if anyone I know has ever used them. If apps are widely-known, like Instagram and Facebook I always give my cell phone number AND email because they can track fraudulent usage and send updates to your phone number. It is also really helpful if you are someone like me who always forgets their passwords. These apps are also used by everyone, so I feel like it is OK to share information on them because they are trusted by billions of users. You can tell the difference between a trustworthy/ sketchy website. And if you are unsure, you should always go the extra step and do research before giving out personal information.
Social media can make people lonely because some people only post their best moments. Everyone wants to seem that they are living a great life and never show the public the hardships they are going through. This can be a problem because they are not showing any visible signs of things to be cautious about, so they can go through struggles on their own because people are unaware they need help. On the other end, people can be TOO worried about seeming perfect and that distracts them from the things that are actually important - friends, family, eating healthy, exercising, continuing their hobbies, good sleep etc.
Make sure that you post what is true to you and your character. It is true when they say "just because you delete something, doesn't mean it's gone." Always be aware of the people you let follow you. I always ask myself before posting something "would my priest be proud of this?" For all of you, it may not be your priest, but it should be someone that you want to see you at your best.
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