Social media is a double edged sword. While it's a great tool to keep in touch with people who live far away, I'm afraid people are using it as an excuse for communicating with the people that are supposed to matter most.
People are getting very lazy and careless when it comes to friendships. What happened to actually picking up the phone and having a long conversation? My best friend and I, over the many years have always made it a point to call each other at least once a week. I think this has been vital to keeping our friendship alive. We don't just text, we make an effort to make time to talk. You cannot substitute a "like" or comment on social media as interacting with your friend; like that's enough to keep the friendship alive for the time being, but then not being available to actually invest in the person when it means the most.
As I go out places I see everyone on their phones, and I see people on dates glued to their phones. Then I see couples that seem to have been married for a long time and they get comfortable and don't even try to communicate anymore. It's sad. One day you wake up and feel the emptiness of it all. That's why I want to challenge you today. Here are some tips to being a better communicator and human being.
1. Call. It's that simple.
Texting is fine for the smaller conversations, but make sure you call your closest friends and family at least once a week. It may be a little awkward at first if you're not used to talking on the phone, but I promise you, you will start to feel more fulfilled.
2. Go tech free on Sundays
I like this idea for many reasons. Sundays should be for rest. If you can't go a whole day without your phone and social media, try to make a time slot to start off. Make yourself technology free for two hours and connect with those who are physically around you. This will create deeper intimacy in your relationships.
3. Everyone's busy. You choose to make it a priority.
I hate the excuse "Sorry I've been/ am so busy, as if I'm not. Everybody is busy. That's not a good enough excuse anymore. You make time to hang out and go do things with the people you care about. I also hate when people make plans and ALWAYS cancel last minute. (that's a whole other blog post) You are not being a good friend if you're always rescheduling and then cancelling again the next time it comes around. It's also not cool to always avoid phone calls and just text. Don't hide behind a phone. It reinforces to the other person that their time doesn't matter, and that growing your relationship doesn't matter, and isn't worth it to you. Don't be that person.
The bottom line is, if you have time to post on social media then you have time to pick up your phone and call someone. It's time we stop making excuses for ourselves and the person who keeps doing this to us.
