Everyone says social media is toxic. But is that true?
Perhaps you’ve heard this before. That all you find on social media is negativity spewed by toxic people.
Well, unfortunately, in one sense that can be more of a reflection on you than it is on social media.
Because social media is a mirror of who you are as a person.
How can that be? You know you’re not a toxic person. So, what gives?
It’s because all the social media platforms are run by algorithms.
The algorithms are only presenting in your feed the kind of content that you’ve interacted with. If you’ve liked something, commented on something, or watched a video to the end, the algorithms are taking note.
So the more that you’re interacting or engaging with a type of content, the more that type will be served to you, whether it’s positive or negative. The algorithm doesn’t care.
It’s just trying to serve you more of the content that you engage with. The more engaged you are, the more time you’ll spend on the platform. And the longer you are on the platform, the more ads they can show you, which makes more money for them.
At the end of the day, that’s really what their purpose is as a business. To make money for themselves.
Which is why content with the most likes, shares, and comments gets the most exposure.
The problem is that the most sensational content is the kind that gets the most attention. Which creates a trap for users. We get sucked into looking at the sensational stuff, whether it’s toxic or not.
And we all want the social approval of likes and comments, so we start posting sensational content. Then we’re depressed when no one likes our latest post.
That’s the big problem. We engage with toxic content and end up producing some without realizing it. That’s why we feel social media is a toxic swamp.
The good news is we don’t have to stay there.
If you’re feeling that social media is a waste of time or that you’re only surrounded by negativity or by toxic people, then that means you might want to change the type of content you personally engage with.
Everybody’s homepage, everybody’s feed, everybody’s content that the algorithm serves to them is completely different from what is served to the next person.
And that content is all based on the items or the content that they engage with.
If you’re finding that there’s a ton of negativity on your feed, all you have to do is change the type of content you follow and engage with. Try following inspirational or motivational people.
Or seek out things that you’re interested in, whether it’s cooking, traveling, or theme parks. Whatever you’re interested in, somebody’s created an account or page for that.
And there’s a community out there for that. The more you start engaging with that community, the more you start following, and watching that type of content, the more the social media platform is going to serve up to you things that will be of value and benefit to your life. You’ll see less and less of the toxic content that only wastes your time.
Because after all, if what you’re reading isn’t productive and helping your life in some way, then it is a complete waste of time.
Reading something of value and helping you in life is very different than being dragged down by toxic negativity.
Which is worse than simply wasting your time. Many studies have shown that social media’s potential to be toxic can have severe mental health implications. That’s not something you need in your life.
So do what you can to change your feed to something more positive and healthy.
And this just doesn’t have to be about business. For example, I post a lot of content about business, but I also post about motivation, entrepreneurship, and personal development.
But if those topics don’t attract your attention, you can follow accounts that are related to the items that you are interested in.
The idea is to mold the social media platforms to work for you so that you receive value out of them. Change what you receive so it’s not just a time suck.
You don’t have to lose time scrolling endlessly just seeing what a couple of friends are up to or some of the food that they’re eating and not receiving any value.
Instead, you could be working the algorithm to serve value, like great cooking tips. Or point you to accounts that will teach you cooking techniques or offer healthy (or completely decadent) recipes. That way your time on social media can be productive and teach you something.
So if you think that social media is a waste of time, then take a look at your feed. Think about the kinds of content you engage with. That’s what the algorithm is serving you.
If you want to change the kind of content you’re getting, take action to change that. And it’s not that hard.
Consider what kind of content you want to receive. Let’s say you want budget travel tips.
Do a quick search on Facebook or Twitter (or whatever your favorite platform is) for budget travel.
The platforms will suggest several pages or accounts for you to like or follow. Pick a few you like, and then start engaging with their content. Like it, comment on it, share.
Pretty soon that kind of content will take up much more of the space in your feed.
And you won’t have the sense that social media is all toxic negativity. Nor will it be a waste of your time.
And you can take it one step further by considering the kind of content you create and post. Instead of going for quantity, think quality. In other words, instead of trying to post all the time, be a little more thoughtful about it. Post only meaningful content.
Back in the day people constantly made fun of those who returned from a vacation and invited all their friends over to watch hours of vacation slides. Posting a picture of every five minutes of your life is just like that, and equally tedious and boring.
So forget posting every plate of food you eat. Just post the one with an incredible, jaw-dropping presentation. Try to post only things that will help foster a meaningful connection with family and friends. Don’t worry about anyone else. The idea of social media should be to help us connect with each other and to learn from each other. Not to get into a popularity contest or to see how much negativity we can spew.
And that’s how you can solve the biggest problem of toxic social media.
