How to Not Destroy Your Life on Social Media
Status, relationships, and our culture get torched when you behave like a smartass
Social media is, of course, an indelible part of life. To abstain from it is the equivalent a generation ago of not having a telephone. You cannot function in commerce and culture without it.
As an author and speaker, I’ve wondered many times: What is an appropriate way to behave on social media? I want to reach people, but I don’t want to be a gutless self- promoter. I’ve also seen, as we all have, routine yet still-shocking instances where people erupt into anger or violent sarcasm. Such behavior taints reputations and damages our culture. (One way to reduce the heat: as a rule, avoid all-caps and ironic quotation marks.)
A stranger once told me over social media that she needed one of my books to get through a difficult period. The book hadn’t gone on sale yet but I sent her a free copy, signed and postage paid. Several months later I posted a mildly contentious comment about a certain office-holder; this same person disagreed — and she vented at me with unrestrained vitriol. It was a harsh window onto human nature.
I do not swear off contentious topics on social media. But I do try to avoid caustic cracks and personal attacks. I find that much of…
