- Growing up, I had noticed that social media was slowly growing each year – growing in use, relativity and importance toward a lot of people. I was introduced to it when I was a freshman in high school, starting when I made a Facebook profile. Through experience, I completely understand how Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is applicable to the concept of social media and especially, in my opinion, the esteem category. At the start of high school, I unfortunately worried of the impression I was going to give people then and through my three following years. My view toward popularity was ranked way too high on my list of necessities, so naturally I based a large portion of it on social media and the interactions that I would have on my Facebook profile and even twitter with others. I placed way too much importance on the amount of favorites I would get on a tweet or the likes I received on my new profile picture; it was quite stupid really. I can admit though, it made me feel more liked by people at my school and would raise my self-esteem. This may have seemed beneficial to me, but it also worked against me. If I received less likes on a picture than one that I posted in the past, I directly would relate it to whether or not people liked or respected me around school. Looking back, thinking this was SO STUPID! Now that I’ve grown up, comfortable with who I am, I can admit that social media like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Vine or even Google+ (whatever the hell it is) can make you feel good. If you receive a lot of interactions, it is satisfying and I know many others think the same, but do not give it any importance; they are just dumb apps on our phones that honestly hold no importance and were only created for our entertainment. You need to be comfortable with who you are and what you stand for without the use of social media. Personally, I miss the days when phones and social media didn’t hold so much importance and significance and when people didn’t check their phones every 60 seconds.
- What specific aspects in social media (Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc.) keep you coming back? Has your view on social media changed over the years?
-Tyler Andrews