So-Called Friends

There was an interesting bit of news I came across over the weekend. Facebook friends, as a norm, are almost entirely fake.

You can argue the merits of the study, but I think it’s an interesting insight, even if it’s something we probably already know it intuitively. We may be more “connected” online than at any point in history, but we’re probably more disconnected in real life than ever.

There are merits of social networking, of course. It’s never been easier to stay in touch with people throughout the world. It’s never been easier to share information instantly.

But there are also some serious downsides.

• Social media basically encourages digital voyeurism.
• Connected to this is an increasing level of vanity and sanitized sharing. “Look how great my life is!”
• Given the above, it’s almost a necessity to treat social networking as our own public relations firm nowadays.
• Anything you post on social media can go viral at a moment’s notice. One misstated word can be used to ruin your life.
• It’s easy to mistake digital connection with the real thing.

I could probably go on and on, but the point is this:

Social media will never replace real friendships and real community. Don’t let yourself be fooled in that regard.

Seek authentic, face-to-face, person-to-person connections.

Because “likes” and comments of sympathy from so-called friends aren’t going to cut it when life comes crashing down.