The Positive & Negative Effects of Social Media

I’ll keep it very honest.

I’m not a hater of social media.

Also, I am not of the philosophy that you should quit social media cold turkey.

That’s just me being transparent.

Social media has good sides.

Social media has dark sides.

I’m going to give an unbiased breakdown of both worlds.

But hey, everyone thinks they are more unbiased than they are.

I’ll let you decide.

In this article, you’re going to get a breakdown of what social media is, along with an assessment of its usage.

Personally & culturally.

What is Social Media?

Social media is a media that is used by the population.

‘Wow Armani, what a stunning definition. Not!’

Wait, I’m not done.

This type of media is unique because the common folk are capable of being creators.

In early traditional media, there were conglomerates that distributed messages around the world.

Corporations disseminated messages in radios, tv stations and newspapers.

Nowadays, Billy the Bubba can start his own blog & spread his message.

‘Is a blog a social media?’

It can be.

That’s when the definition of social media gets blurry.

I like to combine all forms of new media into one umbrella. Then we can get more niched if need be.

‘No, I don’t like that. I don’t consider blogs a social media!’

Okay, then for the sake of this article, think Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Tik Tok & Facebook. Better?

‘Yea, that’s better.’

These are tools to get your MESSAGE out there.

That’s what all media comes down to:

• Medium.
• Message.

Picture medium as the paper.

Picture the message as what you write on the paper.

Positive Parts of Social Media

1. Globalized Communication

When I first moved to the US from Bangladesh, communicating with my relatives from overseas was a hassle.

You had to get a phone card.

In this card, you had to scrape off a black sticker in the back to access some specialized numbers.

Then you’d dial some digits, enter the specialized numbers, then wait for someone to connect you to the relative.

It was a process.

Nowadays, you are one Facebook message away from connecting with someone who is 1000s of miles away.

Marshall McLuhan proposed the Global Village concept in the 60s.

Where he said, information technology will make the world small.

And smaller it is.

2. Anyone Can Create

This is a feature of social media that needs more praise.

I enjoy watching short cooking videos.

You know Tasty?

I initially discovered them on Instagram a couple of years ago.

They taught me how to make beef stroganoff.

It tasted fire too. Chef Armani.

I was amazed how 30 second clips could have so much practical value.

Soon, they taught me how to make brownies.

I always thought cooking required higher education.

Didn’t know that I could learn recipes in 30 seconds.

This was a case of a creator who maximized the social media platform of Instagram.

From humble beginnings, Tasty has now grown into a culinary empire.

3. Businesses & Personalized Distribution Channels

I believe in ownership.

That’s why I don’t think you should build your entire empire on social media.

I think it’s smart to direct the social media traffic to an email list like Aweber or Convert kit.

Now you own your distribution channel!

But let’s keep it basic.

Let’s say you use your social media as a distribution channel.

Where you sell your products to a consumer.

That’s 100% possible!

Popular account, LifeMathMoney, uses Twitter to run a 6 figure business.

He has information products which he creates on Gumroad and sells on his Twitter account.

He doesn’t need to ask anyone for permission.

In addition, if you post content online, then you are probably getting DMs from your followers asking you questions.

They share their problems with you & ask if you can help.

You know what that sounds like?

Market research being done FOR YOU.

What a time to be alive.

Especially if you got some entrepreneurial spirit to you.

Negative Sides of Social Media

Dualities exist.

Where there is light, there is also darkness.

Let me share some of the negative effects of social media.

1. Highlight Reel Mindset

I know this one girl who takes 300 pictures with the same pose.

To me, it all looks the same.

For her, she notices MICRO differences in each pic.

She’s looking for the PERFECT pic.

Once she takes the 300, that’s when she starts the photoshopping process.

• Plumping up the lips, altering her skin, experimenting with filters etc.

Once the process is done, that’s what she uploads.

Others can look at this picture and be like:

‘Omg, she is so naturally pretty! Why don’t I look like that?’

Failing to understand the behind the scenes of the picture.

I’m not hating on the girl.

She makes money from her media. I understand why she wants to present a certain image.

However, it gives gaps in understanding to people who want to compare themselves to her.

A part of the human psyche wants to compare & compete.

In the social media age, that can happen 10-fold.

2. Keyboard Warriors

I had this guy a while back DM me with one of my tweets.

He wrote:

‘Nice one creep.’

That’s strange.

It seemed like he gave me a compliment and insulted me at the same time.

I asked him what he meant.

He wrote the same thing again.

I got the vibe that he was trying to troll me.

Trolling is known as poking fun and not being serious.

Hating is an amplified version of trolling.

‘Why do you think people troll & hate on social media?’

They don’t just do it on social media, they do it in life.

Picture a rude coworker throwing subtle (or blatant jabs) at the person who leads the team meeting.

However, on social media, it can be extra because you don’t see someone’s eyes.

‘Eyes?’

Yea. The eyes humanize a person.

When you don’t see their eyes, it’s much easier to talk reckless.

3. Fake News, Mobs & Hate

A while back, I saw this girl tag a picture of a guy on Twitter.

And she wrote:

‘This is the man who raped me.’

Then she proceeded to give a detailed breakdown of what went down.

The thread ended up going viral.

And the guy in the picture was tracked down & started receiving death threats.

Eventually, he posted screenshots which proved his innocence.

The time that she was proposing the crime occurred did not match with some of the time stamps in their conversation.

Eventually, the girl ended up apologizing.

However, the damage had been done.

This guy started to receive 1-star reviews on his business, his family was getting contacted for his alleged misbehavior & he was getting harassed on each post.

In the social media age, it’s easier to join forces & attack someone.

Whether it’s for a different political beliefs, holding them accountable for a crime, or any narrative that sparks division.

Do the Positives Outweigh the Negatives?

If you were to ask me if the positives outweigh the negative effects of social media…

I’d be like, ‘Fuck yea!’

But that’s just me.

I use social media to learn & use the different tools as flyers to promote my armanitalks.com website.

I recommend you do the same.

‘You want me to promote the armanitalks.com website?’

Uh…you can. But what I meant was that you use social media with INTENT.

Social media used correctly should:

-Leave you connected with your friends, family & business connects.

-Allow you to learn something you never knew before.

-Make it easier to network and meet new people.

-Inspire you to become a creator.

If social media is making you:

-Write block paragraphs debating others.

-Create a burner account to troll others.

-Incite hatred by organizing a mob.

-Incessantly compare yourself to others.

Then fall back.

You’re succumbing to the negative effects of social media.

Before blaming the tool like some victim, look in the mirror.

You’ll learn more about psychology & yourself from how YOU use social media than you will ever from a psychology textbook.

Develop an intent as to why you’re using social media.

Otherwise, you’ll find yourself turning 30 minutes of mindless scrolling to wasting the entire day….

If you enjoyed this article, be sure to share it on your social media of choice.

One way to give value is by sharing knowledge.

Hit the social share, and make others aware of proper social media usage!

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