*1-2 minute read*
We are currently living in a time where social media is giving big tobacco industries a run for their money… as far as addictions are concerned.
Mark Zuckerberg, founder of the pioneer social source, Facebook, has recently been quoted saying that on average, social media users spend, at minimum, 50 minutes a day on Facebook, Messenger, and Instagram
This stat is leaving out other major hubs such as Twitter, Pinterest, Whatsapp, etc. proving that the need to share amongst humanity is greater than ever.
Can we even remember what a day in the life looked like before social media’s presence saturated our every thought? Finding your friends house—sans Google Maps… actually having to speak to a friend to find out what the big plans were for the weekend… instead of, ya know, checking Instagram once every 3 hours on a lazy Saturday. And then there’s my personal favorite, swiping left or right to find your next “true love”…which leads to the question at hand: Has social media made us LESS sociable beings?
As for myself, I am the sum total of Generation Y…or the Millennials, if you will. Basically, all that this means is I think I know what I want and I probably want it now. We are a generation offended by unfollows and no likes—not enough likes and ignored text messages. With the ability to communicate with our community right at our fingertips, we have been trained to judge the world around us simply by our social media connections and presence…leaving me to wonder if the 50-minute a day stat includes us youngsters. Social media is more than a (maybe) over-haul of information out into the universe for whoever wants to read it, but our entire lives. It’s who we are, what we’re doing, where you can find us, what we love, what he hate, etc.
Though more than that, social media is the proof of how we are ever-evolving people, desperate for some sort of connection to everything around us. It is okay to not really remember what it was like to live in a world that lacked the Internet…but I do think it’s important to keep this 1-hour-a-day standard in mind.
Enjoy who you’re with when you’re with them, what you’re doing and learning while you’re in that moment. After all, Instagram and Facebook posts will always be there to check up on later in the day, but the moments you create and love will be just that…a moment!
This post was written by Christine Wilson. Christine is a Social Media Content Specialist with Media Connect Partners.
