You don’t have to see the world through a screen
British pop singer Ed Sheeran has announced he’s taking a break from social media such as Twitter and Instagram, where he has 16 million and 5.5 million followers respectively, saying he’s tired of “seeing the world through a screen.” He’s even reported to said he won’t even be using his smartphone for at least a year.
It seems a reasonable enough thing to do: for such a well-known entertainer, it must be pretty much a full-time job keeping the social networks fed with comments and photos. Managing this kind of one-way communication oneself is a complicated and tiring business, and most stars subcontract the job out to third parties, their record labels, etc., but Sheeran, in a proof of what it means to be genuine, seems to have taken the great step of taking care of the job himself, uploading more than a thousand photographs and more than 32,000 Twitter updates.
In my professional capacity I’m always meeting people who say they are “too busy to consider using the social networks.” But is it really managing a Facebook or a Twitter account so demanding? A recent survey even suggests that the social networks are actually making many of us unhappy: there’s a growing trend that considers the social networks a problem and proudly say they are ditching them…
I’m not famous, although I am well-known in some media circles, I am on national TV every week and I get featured in newspapers and magazines very often. I’ve been updating on the social networks and blogging for many years, and I have to say I’ve never felt that I was “looking at the world through a screen.” I don’t think any of my close friends think the quality of my life has been reduced by using the social networks, and as far as I know, they aren’t bothered if I occasionally look at my smartphone or stop now and then to take and share a photograph or write an update.
That’s because when I am with my friends I give them my full attention, and can spend hours without being aware of that smartphone in my pocket.
Perhaps the problem here is that many people have the wrong idea about what the social networks are. We start with the idea that somebody “can’t live without the social networks”, followed by “she obviously hasn’t got a job, because she spends all day on the social networks,” and we end up with “if she’s always updating it means she sees life through a screen.” The reality is that the vast majority of people have a perfectly normal relationship with them and do not spend all our time glued to a screen. The people who look down on others who use the social networks probably don’t even really understand them or are unable to use them properly.
Ed Sheeran’s decision is entirely up to him, but it doesn’t mean that the social networks are in some way intrinsically problematic: it’s more a reflection of his own problems with them. Most people are not like Ed Sheeran, and have no reason to feel the kind of pressure he must be under.
It is perfectly possible to share things without it becoming a chore or an obligation. My Klout is normally around the 80 or 81 mark, which some people would consider relatively high, but I have never once felt the slightest pressure to publish something so as to keep that figure. Having more than a quarter of a million followers on Twitter doesn’t drive me to constantly update: my total number of tweets is just under 24,000: a pretty modest figure for somebody who started using it in early 2007. Some people say my Twitter presence isn’t even that interesting, and criticize me for not sharing more things.
Perhaps more people should bear in mind that the social networks and metrics are not ends in themselves, and you shouldn’t allow them to take over your life.
I doubt very much that Ed Sheeran will ever read this, and even if he did, I’m sure he wouldn’t take any notice. I’ve never met him, but he comes over as a very nice guy, somebody sincere, which he must be if he takes the trouble to personally update his social networks presence.
In short, to avoid any possible misunderstandings, I’m not making any judgments about his decision, but if my comments help other people who may have doubts about the social networks, then that can only be a good thing. There are a lot of misconceptions about the social networks and how they work and what they are for. In short, they are there to be enjoyed, to make our lives richer, and to use as and when we see fit.
(En español, aquí)
