Social media: A phrase we hear on a daily basis, and something that, whether we like it or not, continues to grow bigger every single day. In this day and age, people not only use social media to share pictures, opinions, and life events with people, but they also use it to stay updated on news and current events, something that once upon a time was done only through newspapers, word of mouth, and evening news shows.

Social media has evolved greatly from the days of AIM and Myspace into the powerful, life-consuming empire that is it is today. There are many perks of the interconnectedness that social media has to offer, but with these perks come a downside that shapes social media in a way that it’s both a blessing and a curse.

Social media is hard to escape. Some people embrace it, but others resent it and the presence it has in today’s society. Part of this is due to generational differences, as older generations are just being introduced to the concept of social media as they’re already entering the middle to later stages of their lives, whereas those of the millennial generation are being introduced to it at a younger age. Those of older generations are used to the days of landlines and most things being printed on paper, whereas now almost everything is transitioning into being wireless and digital. Not everyone of older generations are embracing the change, and a lot of people still prefer the more traditional manners of communication. As a result of social media, those of the millennial generation have developed this habit where we feel the need to document anything and everything, even if it’s something as simple as getting dinner with a friend or watching a sunset. This is great because it’s a way to keep up with people’s lives and what they’re up to, especially with long distance family/friends, but it can be bothersome in real life, when instead of enjoying your surroundings or company of whatever you’re doing, you become focused on making sure the world knows you’re doing it and putting it on social media. This is what we have become accustomed to, and although it has its perks, it definitely has the potential to take away from what’s happening in the moment around us. We have begun to spend our time living our lives via social media, instead of being present in the moment and embracing it without feeling the need to document it.

Social media makes it easy to share what we’re thinking and feeling with just a few swipes and taps of the finger. This is great when it comes to events that are time-sensitive or require immediate attention, and having a smartphone makes it especially easy to share thoughts and opinions without even thinking twice about it. This power to share things instantaneously manages to create a few problems, however. Since people have this ability to share their thoughts and opinions instantly on social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, etc., people have begun to post or share things without giving it a second thought, which has the potential to cause conflict among their social media friends/followers. Some people have a tendency to refrain from sharing their opinions on social media, while others voice their opinions loud and proud for all to see. It depends on the user and their preferences, and sharing things on social media sometimes has the ability to reach a large amount of people in a short amount of time. This can either be really awesome or really disastrous depending on the circumstances.

Overall, social media is great because it allows us to communicate in a different and more advanced way than we have before, but we are definitely still adjusting to it. We’re still learning how to balance real life with virtual life, whether we realize it or not. We have a tendency to forget that social media is still relatively new to us because we’re around it so much, and it’s only getting more advanced as the days continue. Social media has gained a large presence in our culture overall, and it truly is both a blessing and a curse.