A skinner box in your pocket sounds exactly like what social media + smart phone is. I hate it and can’t figure out how to escape, since all my friends and business associates seem to live exclusively in the cloud and expect (pressure) me to do the same. Hell is indeed other people.
Try out Jaron Lanier’s book, Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now. It’s a short, fun, and funny read, and whether you end up deleting your social media accounts or not, you’ll definitely come out of the experience with a better understanding of what’s happening to you when you’re on these networks.
For the record, leaving social media did have some negative impacts. Certain people I’ve lost touch with, certain relatives whose babies I don’t get to see pictures of, and I have NO idea of what’s going on at work — people are marrying each other and I find out a year later lol :) … but the positives far outweigh the negatives for me: I have a much better sense of (and appreciation for!) my truest, closest friendships, and I devote more time and energy to them too, and I spend more of my time on the things that matter to me. I almost never look up and realize I’ve wasted an hour or more of my life on something I didn’t care about. Food tastes better, music sounds better, the sun on my skin and the breeze in my hair feel better… I’m not kidding, it’s a complete re-set. :)
This is why I gave up on a ‘successful’ blue tick Twitter persona and now get most of my satisfying moments being close to nature. I love how the futility and impermanence and insignificance of my existence feels all the more precious now that it relies less on the perceptions of others.
"A Skinner box in your pocket." That's so true, and it was designed to be that way by marketers. How could that possibly go wrong? I don't know about other people, but for me, my only defense is to avoid it as much as possible. Maybe I'd be best off with a flip-phone.
This is indeed why I quit social media - and why I have no intention of returning. I read your comment on Roxane Gay's piece and could not agree more! I've only been out of the cloud for six months but my brain feels different. And I feel like my life is mine again, instead of constantly worrying about what it looks like to other people. Loved this analysis, and thank you for reminding me of this play - I remember it being performed at school and the line "there was some point in being afraid before; while one still had hope" has always stayed with me!
A skinner box in your pocket sounds exactly like what social media + smart phone is. I hate it and can’t figure out how to escape, since all my friends and business associates seem to live exclusively in the cloud and expect (pressure) me to do the same. Hell is indeed other people.
Try out Jaron Lanier’s book, Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now. It’s a short, fun, and funny read, and whether you end up deleting your social media accounts or not, you’ll definitely come out of the experience with a better understanding of what’s happening to you when you’re on these networks.
For the record, leaving social media did have some negative impacts. Certain people I’ve lost touch with, certain relatives whose babies I don’t get to see pictures of, and I have NO idea of what’s going on at work — people are marrying each other and I find out a year later lol :) … but the positives far outweigh the negatives for me: I have a much better sense of (and appreciation for!) my truest, closest friendships, and I devote more time and energy to them too, and I spend more of my time on the things that matter to me. I almost never look up and realize I’ve wasted an hour or more of my life on something I didn’t care about. Food tastes better, music sounds better, the sun on my skin and the breeze in my hair feel better… I’m not kidding, it’s a complete re-set. :)
I’ll definitely check it out!
This is why I gave up on a ‘successful’ blue tick Twitter persona and now get most of my satisfying moments being close to nature. I love how the futility and impermanence and insignificance of my existence feels all the more precious now that it relies less on the perceptions of others.
"A Skinner box in your pocket." That's so true, and it was designed to be that way by marketers. How could that possibly go wrong? I don't know about other people, but for me, my only defense is to avoid it as much as possible. Maybe I'd be best off with a flip-phone.
This is indeed why I quit social media - and why I have no intention of returning. I read your comment on Roxane Gay's piece and could not agree more! I've only been out of the cloud for six months but my brain feels different. And I feel like my life is mine again, instead of constantly worrying about what it looks like to other people. Loved this analysis, and thank you for reminding me of this play - I remember it being performed at school and the line "there was some point in being afraid before; while one still had hope" has always stayed with me!