The subtweet. The messages that are less than or equal to 140 characters. The few words that sometimes don’t even contain a background story or in many cases, the person tweeting doesn’t even have a relationship with the person they’re tweeting about. The tiny, indirect message, that is, a lot of times, not even seen by the person whom it is about. The subtweet.
Before I begin, I’m not going to say that I have never subtweeted a negative message before. I have fallen to this act of pettiness one too many times and I am ashamed to say so. I have deleted tweets that I have posted that I did not think about before I posted them and I have looked back on those that I did not delete, and days later deleted them while condemning myself for such childish behavior. I have learned that it’s better to address the issues directly and not “beat around the bush.” However, before you judge me, if you’re a Twitter user, I would be interested and surprised in hearing that one of your tweets has never been indirectly related to someone in a negative manner.
Now, if you vent to someone about people talking about you, the response is usually the same. “Oh, just ignore them. They’re just jealous,” or “That should be fuel. They’re intimidated by you.” While I respect those opinions, I disagree in SOME cases. I think it should be known that you’re aware that someone is talking about you if it has to do with a sensitive subject. No, I do not think you should retaliate, but I do think you should address the issue in a mature fashion. If you have the guts to subtweet, then you should have the guts to talk to that person, directly, and explain why you’re offended and/or concerned.
The past couple of months, I have been subtweeted. A lot. I have been condemned for my actions - actions that I was not aware would offend - by people whom I have never had issues with before and by people whom I have not spoken to in months, and some even years. I have seen these tweets and naturally, I have hit the favorite button and I have then contacted the tweeter or people they know, letting them in on the fact that I know they’re talking about me and if they have issues, please address me directly, not their followers. I am more than willing to hear why you felt the need to talk about me indirectly on social media and I’m also open to being educated on why you had an issue with what I said or what I did.
I’ve learned that when you’re trying to stay on the right path, you’re going to have obstacles. You’re going to have people that stand in the line of your success and try to hinder the level at which you succeed. You’re going to have those people that feel the need to bring you down in order to feel higher up on the totem pole and you’re going to have those people that tempt you to stray from God. You’re going to have THOSE people in whatever you do. It’s inescapable. If you cannot handle a situation maturely, chances are, you should not be involved.
So, the next time you’re subtweeted or feel the need to subtweet, take a step back and address the issue. Should you allow this to bother you? Should you talk to the person directly about why you’re hurt? Should you simply unfollow the person and move on?
Think before you tweet, people, and if you still feel the need to subtweet, @ me next time.