Is Social Media Connecting Us to Our Goals or Making Us More Lonely?
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, we have realized how important social media can be in our everyday lives. It has helped us stay connected with friends and family, especially those who live far away. Of course, we have to be careful when making friends online, but social media is definitely a useful way to stay connected with people we already know who have moved away or live far from us.
However, one disadvantage of social media is that it can consume a lot of our time. When we meet someone in person, we usually spend some time together and then go our separate ways. Online, however, conversations can continue for hours. Sometimes we don’t even realize how much time we are spending chatting, scrolling, or watching content that may not add much value to our lives.
Another interesting thing about social media is that someone can have hundreds or even thousands of followers and still feel lonely. Having a large number of followers does not necessarily mean that we have close, trustworthy friends. I believe having a few genuine friends who support us through both our good and difficult times is more valuable than having thousands of online followers.
Social media also tends to show us only the happiest and most successful moments of people’s lives. Most people don’t post every disappointment, failure, or difficult moment they experience. When teenagers constantly see pictures of other people’s achievements, vacations, friendships, or seemingly perfect lives, they may begin comparing themselves with others. This can affect their confidence and, in some cases, their emotional well-being.
Do likes, views, and comments really make us more confident? I don’t think they provide lasting confidence. Getting a lot of likes or positive comments may make us happy for a short time, but that feeling can quickly disappear. Having real friends who support us through our ups and downs is much more meaningful. On the other hand, social media has many benefits. We can use it to learn new things, discover communities that share our interests, showcase our talents, exchange ideas, and stay connected with people even when we live far apart.
I have personally experienced this benefit. I moved from Australia to the United States when I was four years old, and later, when I was in eighth grade, I moved from one county to another. Moving away from Australia didn’t affect me as much because I was very young. However, moving to a different county when I was older was different. Social media played an important role in helping me maintain friendships with students from my previous school while also helping me connect with new friends through my new school’s class groups.
I believe social media itself is neither completely good nor completely bad. What matters is how we choose to use it. As long as we keep track of our screen time and don’t allow social media to take over our lives, we can enjoy its benefits without becoming isolated from the real world around us.
Social media should be a tool that helps us stay connected—not something that keeps us from living the life right in front of us.
