Mass Addiction: Over-sharing

Hi, my name is Carrie, and I'm an over-sharer..  like so many out there, from Facebook, to Twitter, and of course the blogasphere, we've began to really enjoy showing the world our lives.  Which wouldn't be so bad, except we may be getting addicted to the emotional response we get from having our peers judge our lifestyles.  I too am guilty of  this habit, but admitting it is the first step!  There is help!  I can promise that even after reading this, you may take a look at your own sharing habits and wonder if maybe the rest of the world isn't or shouldn't be on a need-to-know basis of your daily activities.

Did you know Facebook boasts to have over 750 million active users in the world. More to the point, an average Facebook user has 130 friends.. and is connected to approx. 80 community pages..

Wow, I know a lot of people, but how many of them am I willing to share my family photos with?  how many would care to show up if I posted an event and invited all to come for a BBQ in my backyard?

Then why do we love these social networks?  Well... honestly, status wars were what attracted me to the social network.  It's true, I thought I was full of funny, quirky things to say, that everyone would love to read them! Who's with me?  I loved reading my friends' funny statuses, and kept in the know with people just by reading something they felt the need to vent about via tweet or status box.  That little box begs for you to tell your audience of acquaintances absolutely anything, and it doesn't even have to be your own words! Whatever clever quotes you want to share, or random lyrics from a song, you copy and paste and SHARE!  Sit back and wait for the responses to your latest entry in the internet universe... a vicious cycle of emotional dependency, and my words of warning are that as long as it doesn't hurt anyone's personal lives (ie.work, friends, family), then it's not considered a problem.   The moment you find yourself chatting online more than in person, that's a sign you may be in trouble.  Shooting off a message online or text from your mobile phone is often easier than getting stuck in a real conversation with someone.  <= Sad but so true!

So my next big step is to erase the 'LOL' and all those silly acronyms from my personal vocabulary... I know I will continue to try and make random people giggle with silly videos and funny statuses, but I vow to curb my real life exposure, and care less about what other people think of me.  Everyone hopes to be liked, to be thought of as funny, creative, special... The truth of the matter is that no one can make you feel anything.  Don't depend on anyone to boost your confidence for the day by 'liking' something you really love.  Love it, and own it!  Until my next cup, keep smiling world!

"Cuz life's too short to be cool"