'Social' Media

Hello there!

I know Plant Powered Human is all about vegan food vibes but I've decided that I'd like to do some chatty blog posts too (if that's okay with you!).

Hopefully this type of blog post will get you thinkin' about some issue or hopefully inspire you in some way! I'll try not to be annoying ahaha but sometimes when I go on rants I end up annoying everyone!

Let me know what ya think anyway!

And if you don't like this style of blog post please let me know ahaha, I'll try my best to make them better!

Anyway, here's today's blog post...

Enjoy x

I've been asking myself recently, does social media really make us social? 

Ask yourself this the next time you're in a public place like a café or a train station or at a party. The amount of people consumed by social media instead of being social in real life is frightening. The amount of people staring blankly at screens instead of actively engaging with the reality around them is actually scary. Don't get me wrong, social media, technology, and smartphones are all amazing but they all certainly have their downfalls.

I'm just as guilty as you are, I'm not perfect in any way but I feel that being more aware and more conscious of these issues will help in so many different ways.

In today's world we're all constantly distracted.

Constantly moving.

Constantly worrying.

Worrying about what to update your status on Facebook to. Worrying about why your picture on Instagram only got 73 likes when your last picture got 88 likes. Worrying about what's going to happen to that awful Snapchat that your friend took a screenshot of.

We live in an age of constant worry, it's no wonder why people are so stressed. The power and control that social media has on our lives is terrifying and it truly scares me.

People seem to be more concerned about what they look like in a photo than global warming, care more about 5 second videos than wars taking place at the same time, and are more excited about celebrity gossip than topics that are truly important like homelessness and gender inequality.

Everyone's so caught up in what others think of them that they don't see the bigger picture. People are so glued to their phones that they forget to look up to enjoy the scenery.

What I'm trying to say is that you should think about HOW you use your phone and WHY you use social media.

Ask yourself these questions and give yourself honest answers:

• If I'm bored do I just take my phone out of my pocket and just scroll mindlessly?
• If I'm feeling lonely do I go onto social media in order to feel part of a group?
• If I'm by myself in a public space do I use my phone as a barrier to distract myself?
• If I'm angry do I send one of my friends a message straight away instead of thinking about the situation, calming down, and then acting in the most suitable way?
• If I'm happy do I tell people online straight away instead of truly acknowledging and experiencing the happiness I feel?
• When I'm online am I expressing who I truly am as a person or am I trying to impress others?

I guess my message here is to stop using your phone as a barrier between yourself and others.

The next time you get on a bus, try not to take out your phone straight away and ignore your surroundings. Instead, look out the window or look at the other people on the bus or count the number of dogs you see as the bus drives.

The next time you're with your family or friends, try not to scroll aimlessly on your phone and ignore their presence. Instead, try to make genuine conversation, fully listen to what they're saying, and appreciate the time and effort they're after putting in to be with you.

In today's world it's much easier to just plug yourself into your phone and forget about the world. But the thing is, our world is beautiful, amazing, and inspiring.

Don't miss it by being so attached to your phone.

/////

Next thing: social media.

*scary sounds*

I hope you understand that I'm not anti-social media at all, I just don't understand how certain people use it...

Apps like Instagram are amazing and can be used to inspire people and to encourage people to be the best version of themselves. But they can also create a lot of negativity, self-doubt, and worry.

In my opinion, the most important question you can ask yourself is:

"Why am I using social media?"

Is it:

• To inspire other people?
• To truly connect to other people?
• To make other people feel good about themselves?
• To encourage and promote happiness, joy, acceptance, and positivity?

Or is it:

• To prove to other people how many things you own?
• To post countless pictures of yourself, showing everyone how amazing you are?
• To make others feel uncomfortable in their own skin?
• To create a negative space?
• To play the 'social media game' by trying to get as many likes as you can so people can see you as being 'popular'?

It's beyond important to shift your focus away from trying to be 'cool' and 'perfect' and 'relatable' to focusing on the content you upload and how it impacts people.

Stop trying to impress others and start trying to inspire them.

Post pictures and content that'll inspire people to make positive changes in their lives.

Follow people that inspire and encourage you to be the best person you can be.

Follow people that awaken your soul and that make you want to make a positive difference in the world.

Start looking at the bigger picture. Stop focusing on someone because they 'look good' or because they 'have lots of followers' and start focusing on how people make you feel.

Here's an idea: Go through the people you follow and if they make you feel negative, anxious, uninspired, bored, sad, depressed, angry, annoyed, or any other negative emotion then UNFOLLOW THEM! There are no 'rules' anywhere saying that because everyone else follows a certain person that you have to follow them too!

Stop your overconsumption of useless information.

Genuinely go through the people you follow right now and unfollow anyone who you don't want to follow. If that means you unfollow me then that's okay ahaha! Being honest with yourself is the most important thing. Do what you want to do, not what you 'need' to do in order to be 'cool' or in order to 'fit in'.

By unfollowing all the people you truly don't want to follow, you'll start to attract people with the same mindset, same vibe, same thoughts, and same outlook on life as you.

There's so much more than this online world that we create for ourselves.

Forget what people think about you.

Forget about how you want people to see you.

Start living in the present moment and focus on yourself, on your family and friends, and on the things you truly care about.

Stop creating an image for other people to think that you're so 'cool' or 'arty' or 'sporty' or 'funny' and start living your life as your authentic self.

If you have to change yourself to suit other people then you're not hanging around with the right type of people.

Fact.

Be yourself, truly yourself, care about what you actually want to care about, be vulnerable, be open, and things will fall into place.

So stop giving an damn what people think about you and just be yourself.

Wake up.

Start seeing the bigger picture.

Inspire people to be more creative.

Inspire people to be more loving.

Inspire people to be more human.

Start using social media and your phone as tools to inspire and educate people as much as you can and I'm telling you your whole mindset will change for the better.

Sorry for such a long rant ahaha!

Big love, 

Darragh