Humans are nosy, social creatures by nature. That's not your fault or my fault, or anyone's fault. With the takeoff of social media and digital journalism in the last decade, we've had nearly unlimited access to nearly unlimited information, and the result is we're nosier now than we ever have been before.
While it's great to be informed and know what's going on in the world around us, we've definitely crossed a line. Rather than using social media and the internet as a mere viewing point into the lives of others and to keep updated on world news, we've used it to interject ourselves, and our opinions, into other people's business instead. It's become toxic.
You're entitled to your opinions. But this year, it's time we go back to minding our own business.
The beauty of humanity is that we're all incredibly different. We all have different opinions, beliefs, and views. And that's wonderful! You're just as entitled to your opinion as I am to mine.
However, in the past few years, we've let it become harmful. We've let our differences come between us. We've gone from approaching everyone with open arms to navigating the world coldly, pushing everyone who is different from us to the side. We've used social media to bully, harass, threaten, and divide. We've used the internet as an outlet to spread maliciousness and sometimes, flat-out lies.
Until someone's business becomes your business, stay out of it. Unless someone else's lifestyle is actively decreasing your quality of life, leave them alone. If others are leaving you alone and letting you live as you please, you owe them the same courtesy.
We need to re-establish those boundaries, keep our business to ourselves, and let others live peacefully, just like we want to.
There are a lot of things in this world I disagree with or don't believe in. I follow my religion, so I disagree with other religions. I have my own political views, so I disagree with some others. Just because I disagree with people doesn't mean it's now my mission to change their minds, and I don't get to judge them based on their beliefs. It's not my business how they choose to live their lives until it becomes disruptive to my own. If they leave me alone, I leave them alone, and that's how it should be.
If you've found yourself interjecting into someone's life where you don't belong, or if you've gotten into the habit of providing an opinion that wasn't asked for, make 2019 your year of minding your own business. Live in peace and let others do the same.
