Final Blog Post

My Relationship With Technology 

Technology these days definitely comes with their pros and cons. Technology is always new and improving and growing very rapidly each and everyday. Our world is becoming to revolve around technology more than anything else. With how advanced technology really is, I can see it get to the point where people aren't going to need their cell phones or electronics for things, it's just going to become known.

Technology has become part of our everyday lives. Everything that people do nowadays has some sort of technology that is involved. It is a fast tool people use to communicate with each other, people do business, it can be convenient at times. Picture this, have you seen someone handwrite a letter and send it in the mail to communicate with another person? The answer is, probably not. My mom once told me back in her years when she was a young girl she said, “I used to write letters to my friends to talk to them. We didn't have the technology you kids have now. The only telephone around my time was the one wired to the wall and you had to spin the dial to dial the phone number.” Today, it's very likely you don't see this type of communication around you. You look around and just see everyone's face in their phones.

Social media has its pros and cons. I got my first phone when I was in 6th grade. During that time in my life was when I got wrapped right into social media. I downloaded Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, all of the social media platforms that were very common. It was something completely new to me. Even just having my phone in general. Sending text messages, posting on platforms and talking to my friends over social media platforms that I wasn't familiar with was like a whole new world that I didn't know existed. I can say since then when I got my first ever phone, I always needed my phone. I'm drawn to it and it's a bad habit that I wish I didn't have. My phone is like my life. It has everything on it and it's my only way that I can communicate with my family and friends. I do feel that this has that negative aspect to it. People have become so attached to their phones and other technology that it has almost disrupted how a human being is supposed to function in the real world. Most conversations are through social media platforms, texting, emails. It’s almost harder for people to have normal face to face conversations these days.

As I got older, I noticed that the use of social media has changed overtime. In high school, I was bullied in person and cyberbullied
over social media. Social media is not always as bright as it may seem. People in the world take advantage of social media and abuse it in terrible ways. I remember being embarrassed for the hurtful words and knowing what people were saying about me over social media was so cruel. Even today when I scroll through social media platforms, most teens and young adults are subjected to peer pressure, body images, not taking care of themselves and their health. It is very easy to become influenced by others and the content that is seen on your feed. Majority of teens this has caused them to be depressed and even leading to suicide. Social media can really have a negative effect on someone's life.

Part of the problem with social media is the decrease in personal privacy on the internet. The internet is not always a safe place and people don't realize that enough. I think it is safe to say that people get a little too comfortable on the internet at times. I personally sometimes don't catch things before I post. I was always told by my parents, “Once you post that picture, it's always out there and you can't get it back.” When I look myself up on the internet, all my information is there. My user names to my social media platforms, my pages come right up and the pictures I posted on my profiles, my address to my house. The internet can be a scary place. You really aren't protected and people can easily get ahold of your personal information when you don't even know it. People should be much more cautious of what they post and what apps they are giving their personal information to.

Overall, I do think technology has improved significantly. Technology has helped us as humans to communicate and interact with each other in many different ways. Technology does come with their pros and cons. People abuse the way they use technology at times. I think people need to realize how to appropriately use technology and social media platforms the right way. I hope moving forward in the future that there will be better advantages of technology than most of the down sides that come with it. We don't live in a perfect world, but if society can make positive changes when it comes to the use of technology and social media, there can be areas of improvement.