 Is social media good, or is it bad? We're growing up in a Facebook Instagram world, in other words we're good at putting filters on things. We're good at showing people that life is amazing even though I'm depressed. My name is Rave Tarazzi and this is the topic that I want to jump into today and try to tackle, maybe just a little bit. It's a very complex topic, there's so many facets to it, so many varying opinions and there's studies and so much commentary out there about social media, about millennial generation, how it's affecting people worldwide and I know I have my own personal viewpoints on the matter, I'm sure you have yours as well and your own experiences, but I wanted to get into a little bit of some research, what studies are saying and then also touch on my own personal beliefs. Maybe that'll trigger some conversations with you guys, maybe that'll bring some clarity to something that you haven't even really thought that much about, so let's get started. So first of all I want to go over some stats that were listed in an article on psychologytoday.com. It is estimated that 40% of the world's population, up to 3 billion people, are using Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, etc., any other social media platform. That is a huge amount of people and speaks to the global intense impact that social media has had on the human race as a whole. Social media has proliferated in every part of the globe. With that said, people are spending on average two hours a day on social media. I know for me that average is like way higher than two hours a day. I think I'm single-handedly probably upping that average quite a bit. It has also been shown that higher usage of social media is correlated to loneliness, anxiety, depression, that sounds like a very doom and gloom scenario already, just the fact that people who use social media more tend to have higher rates of loneliness, anxiety, and depression. It's easy to look at stats like that and automatically assume while social media is obviously not good because people who are on social media a lot are having all these negative effects. But we have to understand the difference between correlation and causation. So it's just saying that over here we find that there are people who are spending a lot of time on social media and we're also finding that those same people tend to have higher rates of anxiety and depression. It's not saying that the social media is causing these effects and it's not saying that these effects, people who are anxious, have depression, etc., are lonely, aren't therefore on social media more. It's not saying that there's any causation, it's just they notice that both tend to happen at the same time. So we can't come to the conclusion and say that if you spend more time on social media, that will cause you to be more lonely, more anxious, more depressed. On another note, for the argument that social media has created a generation that is worse off is a hard argument to make because we don't know what would be the alternative. There's no way to prove that if social media didn't exist that people would be better off. We don't know what the alternative is. We don't know that if there was no Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat that people wouldn't just be being addicted to video games or TV or maybe they are out in society but maybe they're doing negative things, maybe it's drugs, substance abuse, stuff like that. We can't say all that we can do is comment on what is and to say that we would be better off without it is kind of an impossible argument to make. And another point that I want to make and the most important one in my eyes is something that I don't hear a lot of people talk about in conversations regarding social media. There are some influential people that I highly respect and admire who are having conversations about this but in general I don't see a lot of people talking about this and it's the fact that social media is a mirror to who we are. It's merely reflecting who we are as people, as individuals and as a society as a whole. Social media itself is just a platform. It's a blank platform on which we can put whatever we want. We can create content, we can share certain things. That all depends on us as individuals. What we do with it is completely dependent on us. So rather than saying that social media is changing us as people, changing us as a generation, I would argue that social media is exposing us. I don't think social media is helping with that. I think, yeah I think it's helping. So I understand what you're, I do, and I think everybody thinks more like you. I think what it's doing, social media is not changing us. It's exposing us. But it's also enhancing parts of us that weren't necessarily... I don't think it's, I don't think it's, I don't, correct. I think the word exposing versus enhancing is an important one. I think it's what people thought the whole time. What do you think was happening in Greenwich, Connecticut in 1987? It was playing out in a country club, in the whispers, in the darkness. This is the, I think people are demonizing social because it's showing us who we are in a way that we aren't excited about. But all those infidelities and behaviors and all those other things were happening. And by showing it in the same way that I want you to come and tell me, not hide it, it gives us the ability to start addressing it in a different way. I believe that we are all going to become way less hypocritical of each other once we all realize we all have shit in our closet. So I understand where you're coming from and I promise you, way more people agree with you than me. My take for the record in perpetuity is it's the best thing that's ever happened. We will eat crow for a generation, but over time it will lead us to a much better place. I really believe that. So now we're finally starting to see who we are as a people on a grand scale. And it's not limited to people that we know, people that we trust, people that we care about. It's shared with everyone, so everyone gets the chance to look at us. Every once in a while I see someone on my Facebook feed who posts a comment that they need to take a break from social media or that they have taken a break and now they're back and ready to venture in because they had to remove themselves from so much toxicity. And the first question that pops into my mind is, what are they allowing on their feed that is causing them to feel so drained and so down? What negativity are they finding in their social media that is causing them to need a break? Because when I look at my feed on Facebook or on Instagram or Twitter, I don't have that sensation. And that is because this platform itself and what you see and what you're surrounded with is in large part your choice. And it's in keeping mind that saying that you are the average of the five closest people to you. Well, on social media, it works the same way. It may not be five people, but maybe it's probably a lot larger than that. But that idea still remains the same. So if this person is saying, God, I had to remove myself because there's so much drama and there's so much hating and negative comments and racism and all this stuff, I'm thinking like, who are the friends on Facebook that you're following their activity? What types of pages are you liking? What types of comments are you engaging in? And on Instagram, who are you following on Twitter? Who are you following? The responsibility goes back to you as the individual. You can tailor what you experience on social media. And that's part of the good and part of the bad because as the argument has made, we can create these insular kind of bubbles of thoughts. The Facebook algorithm likes to give you more of what you like. So that's why people who follow a lot of political stuff will only in large part see their own beliefs in their feed. And this can be a negative thing if you are consciously, actively making sure that you're exposing yourself to different viewpoints. But it can also be a really good thing if you want to tailor the narrative of what you're surrounding yourself with. And that's exactly what I do. If I see people on my feed constantly popping up who are just always spewing drama or their perspective on a lot of thoughts and ideas is really negative and critical, I'll just unfollow them and I won't see them pop up on my feed anymore. Also, I like pages that are inspirational, that are humorous, that are educational. So I get a lot of that on my feed. I don't feel the need ever to take a break from social media because it's exhausting me draining my energy. A lot of times I go to social media and I feel uplifted. I feel like it grounds me and it gives me a focus that I didn't have or I learned something new and it's exciting or I literally will laugh out loud for this first time today because I saw something that was so funny or I'll cry because I saw something that was so heartwarming. That's the world that I've created for myself on social media. Social media gives us the ability to connect with people all over the world to diversify our thought patterns, to appreciate so many ways of living, so many ways of thinking, so many ways of being. But in order to get there, we have to take a moment to realize that social media is our responsibility, not only as a society, but as an individual. This is not a victim game. We are not victims. We are responsible. We are leaders in our own lives. We are creating the narrative of our own story, of our own journey and that requires us to acknowledge when something is in our control and what we can do about it instead of blaming others constantly. That just leaves the unhappiness. I mean, there are definite examples of people that I love to follow because of the inspirational content that they have online. People like Jay Shetty or Nas Daily. I love his little videos on Facebook. He goes all over the world talking about socially conscious issues. There's Jubilee Media, who I'm going to be working with soon and they do a lot of socially conscious stuff on YouTube. And then Gary Vaynerchuk, I love. He's one of the best greatest minds as far as entrepreneurs go and he's also a very inspirational guy. I watch his content, listen to his content, almost every single day. Usually when I'm on the treadmill, after I've posted my daily motivation and my workout selfie, whatever it is, then I'll listen to his latest video that he's uploaded. There's so much good online, guys. There's so much that is untapped, that has been unearthed, that is just waiting for you. There's just so much good out there and I think we can do so much and that's exactly what I'm trying to do with my social media content that I'm creating. You know, when I was diagnosed with AIDS back in 2012, I was looking for role models. I was looking for people that I could aspire to be like, admire and that would give me hope that I could live a long, healthy life and I just wasn't seeing it really. Not someone that I related to and who really got me personally. I decided for myself, I was going to start creating that content and hopefully be that for someone who gets diagnosed and is looking for that. Like, if there's a void, feel that void and whatever it is that you're passionate about, whatever it is that you care about that drives you, that makes you happy. The amazing thing about social media is it's the great equalizer. I have a weird suspicion that the internet and the current state of America is disproportionately skewing to the have nots. That the middle is being squeezed, that the internet doesn't give a fuck who your granddaddy was. No, granddaddy donates to the fucking library at Tulane and now the kid goes to play on the Tulane football. He like shit goes down with the leverage of money. The internet just fucking plays. It's why SoundCloud rappers are the biggest rappers that emerge, nobody's in charge. We all have access and that's so powerful and so amazing if we just allow ourselves to focus on that and exploit that to its maximum potential. So I encourage you also with your own social media to start thinking more consciously about what type of content you are putting out there. What are you contributing to the dialogue of who we are as a people, what it means to be human and what it means to live a happy, fulfilling life? Social media is a tool and it's a tool that can be used for good for more positive groups, for revolutions, for putting grumpy cat in Disney movies. So is social media hurting your mental health? The answer is it does not have to. Social can tear you down, yes. Or it can lift you up where you leave feeling better off or have an actual laugh out loud. If I only have 24 hours in the day, if I'm gonna spend two of those hours on social media, then I prefer my experiences to be full of inspiration, laughs, motivation, and a whole lot of grumpy cat in Disney movies. With that said, in conclusion, I would have to say that social media is neither good nor bad, social media is neutral. And to blame social media is about as logical as blaming a piece of paper for the words that are written on it. We have control, we are responsible for what we do with social media for the attention that we give where we place it on social media. And I hope this was informative. I hope this got your gears turning a little bit at the very least and maybe clarified your own perception and maybe gave back the control to you a little bit as to your experience on social media and possibly, possibly inspire you to create content that is going to help lift us all in the right direction. All right guys, that's it for now. Stay tuned. If you like this video, please like it, comment below. Let's start this dialogue and subscribe if you haven't subscribed already. Hit that bell if you want to stay notified for future videos and I will see you guys soon. This is.