Evolving Opinions

I have come to the end of my Psychology of Social Media course, and I am brought to reflection about how I truly feel about social media. As we have studied different social media platforms, I have seen things I like and dislike about each of them. I have gained a greater idea of how I want to use social media and how much I want it in my life. But the most surprising thing that I have learned is that my opinions of social media are evolving just as much as the media and technology itself.

I came into my Psychology of Social Media class with an open mind. Having used social media on my mission, I knew that there was much good that could be done and I wanted to be a part of it. The course has shown me a whole new way of looking at things in regards to the Internet and social media. The best conclusion that I have come to is that social media was given to us to do good, but that it is also being used for evil, and it is our own personal choice to decide how we use it. We need to stay in control of our media and not allow it to control us. Using social media can be very fulfilling and can bring many good things, but I feel that what we experience online comes secondary to the things we experience in real life.

I have come to appreciate and like social media more over the years, but I still think that it needs to be used with wisdom and in moderation. And we have to realize that it is constantly evolving, and so our ways of regulating it have to be adapted from time to time as well. I used to be very critical of social media. I used it from time to time, and I saw how it negatively affected me and those around me when used too much. But my opinion has evolved as I have come to learn more about it. Now that I have a better understanding of what is out there, I have a greater capacity to make decisions on how to use social media to benefit my life and the lives of those around me.

The things that social media and the Internet can do are simply extraordinary. But we at times forget that all the things that are amplified by the Internet and social media already existed. The world before the Internet had just as much information, but the Internet gave us as individuals to access that information. People had remarkable talents before there was YouTube, but social media has created a virtual audience that spans the entire world. People communicated with each other, sharing ideas and inspiration before there was Twitter and Facebook, but again these platforms amplified the communication between individuals all over the world.

The truth is, we live in a digital world that is constantly evolving and changing. We can fear these new medias and technology and hide from them, or we can learn about them and use them in a way that benefits our lives and takes us one step closer to making the world a better place. We don't have to change our values or opinions in order to embrace a new way of doing things. I for one am set on my standards and goals, and I plan to use the tools I have been given to make something wonderful.

Finding Balance in a Tech-Savvy World

I recently got my first iPhone. I knew I should get a smartphone because of my Psychology of Social Media class, as I needed to be able to access the internet and I don't have a personal computer yet. With very little knowledge of any of the choices for smartphones, I chose the option that I knew best, the iPhone. Having used an iPad mini on my mission, I figured that it would be an easy transition into using the iPhone, and it was.

From the moment I got my phone, I knew that I had started a battle with the temptation to become enslaved by the technology now in my palm. It's a battle that I will likely be fighting for the rest of my life, but I know that it is worth the fight. While I understand that technology is wonderful and can help us do so much good, it is a distraction in many ways and can be used for evil purposes as well.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the First Presidency gave a talk in General Conference about focusing on the things that matter most and not letting distractions keep us from doing the work we have been called to do.

"Sometimes the things that distract us are not bad in and of themselves; often they even make us feel good. It is possible to take even good things to excess...We need balance in life."

I know that President Uchtdorf's words are true. We cannot allow ourselves or our families to become slaves to technology.  A Book of Mormon prophet said, "O be wise; what can I say more?" In all things we need to use wisdom.

There are dangers of overusing our technology. After spending most of a day using my new iPhone, for good things, I had quite the headache from staring at a little screen. There are physical, mental, and social consequences of using technology, and we are beginning to see it more and more in the world. I have decided to set limits for the way I use my technology. I turned off notifications to social media on my phone so that I am not prompted to check whenever I see a notification. I do not have any games on my phone. I turn off my cellular data unless I need it so that I can only use the internet at certain places that have wifi. I don't text or listen to music while I'm walking (though that is partly because of the music geek in me that likes to listen to the music around me). All in all, I am finding that while my phone is useful for a lot of things, I don't have to use it for everything, and I want to keep it that way.