– Perception is Reality…….or is it? –
A friend once had someone show them a picture and tell them that. Funny thing was the picture was far off from the “reality” perceived. In a world of constant social media where we document our every move, thought and outfit, do we have a better understanding of people and their lives?
I want to say that I feel like in most things, it depends on us as individuals and how perceptive we are in the first place. Social media in my opinion is both one of the greatest and worst things that has happened to us in our lifetime. It has the capacity to educate us on many subjects of interest, as well as help us to better understand different cultures and have a deeper understanding of our fellow humans. Personally I really enjoy using it to watch and understand the artwork of other artists that I greatly admire. I’ve learned so many new techniques, marketing tips, and just been entirely inspired on a daily basis to create.
Artists such as Wendy McWilliams, Scarlett Valiere, Valerie Butters, Julia Badow, Amira Rahim, and Angela Miller to mention just a few of my personal favorites, have been an incredible inspiration to my creative brain. Their use of colors and textures and the way that they freely share this on social media creates such an amazing community of positive influence in this world. I was recently able to connect with Wendy and have such a great conversation over the phone, the ripple effect of which I’m still feeling, and I was able to share with another artist friend some of what we talked about and pass on some of the tips she gave me. When social media is used in this way, it has such a positive, upbuilding influence on our lives.
Social media has also allowed me to connect with and stay connected with friends that live in far away places. Even though we seldom see each other it bonds us close and allows us to feel very much a part of each other’s lives. We can share our adventures, travels, goals, work, what we had for lunch….we are connected in ways that was never possible before.
I love following my friend Amy’s adventures her husband as they travel to foreign countries and keep their lives simple so that they may be full of adventure, helping others and seeing things that most of us never will. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen her in person, but I know when she has a cold, or when she is “hitting the wall” after over scheduling her massage clients in an effort to get her job done and fly home to her husband in Kuala Lumpur.
As far apart as we are, I am able to stay close to my VBF (Virtual Best Friend, a term coined by my VBF) as she travels from Italy to Portugal….and through her amazing pictures and constant communication she managed to convince me to travel to visit her there in the upcoming months. (mseco)
Social media encourages, teaches, up builds, and motivates me on a daily basis…..but for the downside. I’ve seen people use social media to hurt, stalk, obsess, tear down and discourage others. I’ve seen people take one picture and read so much meaning into it that they build a whole false story and then start sharing that as reality. Social media is just an outlet for people, and sadly people are both amazingly wonderful, and terribly petty and disturbing.
I’ve found that insecure people tend to need ways to put others down to feel good about themselves. Whereas confident people feed off of encouraging and upbuilding others. The more they help and lift up others the more they soar themselves. Social media is a platform from which we get to choose what we present. Obviously my life personally is far from perfect. Do you see my travels and think that I must be loaded and not need to work? Do you see my clean house and think how nice it must be to live in a world where your home is always neat? Or see my smiling face and think that tears have not fallen from my lashes that day? I enjoy sharing my life with others. I have faced many struggles, some that I have shared, some that maybe I will one day, but I’m not ready to yet. But in general, I wake up every day determined to find the bright spots in my day. To make someone smile and encourage someone that needs it. I do that by sharing how beautiful my life really is to me. No, it’s not perfect, but it is beautiful. I’ve gone through very difficult things and I’ve conquered, I’ve continued, and I’ve been incredibly blessed.
We each get to choose how we will use Social Media, but sadly, not how others will. Do you know what I think would be amazing? Today, share one picture on social media with a story about someone that has encouraged you with the hashtag: #sharetherealityoflove And let’s all connect with our desire to make Social Media a force for love and positivity.
Stay Lovely,
