#bloggeralert

This post is in lieu of the present situation where almost the whole world breathes on social media aka the internet. Did you know that your freedom of speech can trigger someone’s mental health issues?

Where the whole world is talking about how we should take care of our mental health and stay kind, I see a whole lobby of predators ready to bite you even if you make a small grammatical or typo error, if you write something they don’t believe in, if you just write something and it doesn’t match with their ideologies. Poof!

There would always be a difference of opinions, there would be always different perspectives to see a single thing. But I have experienced certain incidents where even known people come and leave their anxiety in my comment section, which leaves me wondering whose anxiety I am dealing with.

After shedding tons and tons of inhibitions, a person starts expressing himself and just imagine what these people do to them with their unsolicited advice and comment. Now they pass their judgments wrapped in the packet of ‘feedback’ and you have to take it otherwise you are being naive.

What amuses me the most is how people are forgetting their basic etiquettes of communications. If you genuinely want to share something, you can always personal message that person, you can leave your constructive feedback in the inbox, but you have to show it to the world that how knowledgeable you are and how amateur someone else is.

Then in our blogging world, there is this rat race and everybody is running. In this process of running, they pull each other, demean each other, some feel too entitled just because they are blogging for several years and some think of themselves as a blogger just after posting one blog.

In this whole noise, the content is no longer a king, and the one who is able to make a lot of noise about what they are doing becomes the self-acclaimed king. Besides this, whenever my piece of work gets featured somewhere, people reached out to my inbox asking me straight that how did I get featured? Did I pay them or can I nominate them too?

Very recently a lady asked me directly if it’s her video session which inspired me to create videos, whereas I have been creating videos for the past 3 years and it is very old news. Perhaps, people have forgotten the basic art of communicating. They have lost ethics and etiquettes and then they present a very powerful internet image every one falls for.

Also read: It is high time for us to decide how to deal with Social Media

There are so many posts that disturb me or with whom I don’t relate at all, but I will never go and put my unsolicited advice there. That is not our thing to do. Just because people post in public, they don’t give an open invitation to roast them.

Then what is the difference between the ones who worship words, literacy, new ideas and the trollers who just wait for someone to make a mistake.

Social Media Etiquette suggests:

• Think before you post anything on social media.
• Think before you comment.
• Think before you give your feedback in the form of a comment.
• Think before you put your negativity in someone else’s post.
• Think before you troll someone.
• Think before you approach someone.
• Think about whether what you are posting is reliable?
• Think, if it will inspire others?
• Be respectful.
• Be encouraging.
• Use please and thank you.
• Give due credits.
• Unfollow if you don’t like someone’s content instead of criticizing them.
• If you don’t agree with someone’s idea, don’t comment.
• If you think someone has a different opinion, don’t say it is wrong, opinions are never right or wrong.
• Check your intention.
• A number of likes don’t determine your social worth.
• Digital life is not a testament to your actual life.
• Remember that social media is a place where people put up the curated highlights of their life. So Judge less and avoid the comparison trap.
• Once in a while have a complete social media detox. It helps.

Be kind. Be wise.

Much love and gratitude

Priyanka Nair