We live in a world of instant gratification.
We want what we want, exactly when we want it.
We are so much more willing to sacrifice long-term consequences for that short-term happiness, as opposed to suffering for a short period of time but reaping the rewards for much longer.
The evidence is everywhere: fast-food restaurants, Amazon Prime, social media and the internet as a whole.
If we're hungry, we can get an entire (though not completely nutritional) meal within minutes. We don't have to waste time preparing and cooking for ourselves.
If we want to buy something, we can have it on our doorstep in two days or less. Forget getting in your car, driving to a store and searching for hours for what you're looking for.
If we want to check up on someone (otherwise known as stalking), we have access to all of their information in the palms of our hands.
If we want validation, it's as easy as some duck lips and a filter. We have a hundred people quantitating our worth in likes, favorite, hearts, retweets and shares.
And if we want attention, we have thousands of ready and willing souls at our fingertips.
Think about it.
How many people message you a day on social media? Including Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, Twitter, maybe even your VSCO messages... who knows?
If you're single, I'm sure the online world is your oyster and you are probably living it up.
But if you're in a relationship, how many times are you ignoring, turning away or even blocking these random DM sliders?
And how many times have you thought about how easy it would be to answer one of them? Or all of them?
How many of you have actually done it, thinking that it's totally harmless? Is it?
How many of you Snapchat other people — people who maybe aren't exactly your friends, but you excuse it because you like the attention?
How often do you make witty banter with that tool who always swipes up on your selfies?
How often are you scrolling through your feed and stopping to do a double take? Do you end up looking at someone's page for far too long, until the drool hits your arm and you realize what you're doing?
Social media has quickly become the gateway to cheating. And you know what's worse? We don't even realize it.
Think about your interactions on the web. Some of them are harmless, like reconnecting with your family in Georgia, your grandmother leaving too weird (and far too personal) comments under your pictures, and your friends tagging you in memes.
But what about your carefully crafted list of what I like to call fall-backs? You know, the group of people, typically of the opposite sex, that you know will always give you the attention you're craving, or will flirt with you when you're bored — the ones you could easily hit up after a big fight with your significant other.
Is that not cheating?
What about that one account that you can't stop looking at, the one that always posts half-naked pictures in poses you didn't even know were possible?
Is that not cheating?
What about that one person who always likes your pictures, and vice versa, who you DM every once in a while to engage in some harmless flirting?
Is that not cheating?
But would you ever do any of these things with your boyfriend or girlfriend sitting next to you?
We have become so accustomed to having whatever we want, whenever we want it. And because of that, I think we've forgotten to step back and think about the long-term.
If you're searching for these interactions with someone else because you're not getting it from the person you're with, talk to them first. Explain how you're feeling. Or end the relationship.
Social flirting and online interactions are just as harmful and serious as face-to-face, body-to-body contact.
It's all cheating, and it's time we realized that instead of excusing it away.
