As you have probably already noticed, social networks have long ceased to be popular way remote communication, but grew into something more. Now many people simply cannot imagine life without using them, and the point here is not Internet addiction, which is talked about so much in Lately, but in the useful opportunities they provide. Of course, we will not consider all the advantages of social networks (the blog is dedicated to making money, not entertainment); we will limit ourselves to only those that will be useful to a modern business person.
Positive aspects of social networks
Ability to quickly search for information. The Internet, in principle, itself provides such an opportunity, but using search engines involves analyzing and comparing several sources of information, because they may contain information that is completely opposite in meaning. In this regard, we have social networks there is a small advantage: by asking a question, you will most likely receive answers from those people whose competence you are confident of. The areas of activity of individuals overlap, so the chance of finding someone who has already encountered your problem is quite high.
Effective professional communication. Social networks allow you to find a person you are interested in in a matter of minutes (if, of course, he was previously registered there) and get in touch with him. Any of the users you added as “friends” may be useful to you later. In addition, social networks allow you to organize communities of interests, which makes it much easier to find people who are engaged in a similar type of activity to yours.
Relieving and relieving stress. You don't need to do any research to know that spending hours on social media reduces worker productivity. But if you are distracted for just 5-10 minutes, the effect is completely opposite - your performance increases. Scientists from the University of Melbourne found that workers who are distracted during the day by some pleasant things, such as talking on the phone, texting or watching videos, are on average 9% more productive.
Direct earnings on social networks. Having a well-promoted community or group, you can get a good income by posting various kinds of advertising materials on its pages - reviews, videos, etc.; sell your own products; promote affiliate and referral links. More advanced users can start developing web applications and browser games, and “green” beginners will probably want to try themselves as an administrator in some public site. In general, this is not the entire list, more detailed information you can get by reading the article “how to make money on social networks”.
Team work management. Remote work often does not involve face-to-face communication, but it is still necessary to coordinate the actions of employees. Some, of course, use electronic mailboxes and instant messaging services the old fashioned way, but there are also the best option- social media. Recently, they have grown and acquired remarkable functionality: group correspondence, audio and video chats, convenient saving and transfer of various kinds of files, and much more.
Promotion and promotion of your own business. By creating a group or public page on social networks, you can attract people’s attention to your online or offline project, work with the target audience, learning their interests and preferences (conduct surveys, tests), and conduct PR campaigns. This will cost much less than paying for marketing research. Constant community updates will keep subscribers up to date with current changes in the content of your resource.
Free technical resources. As you know, hosting disk space is limited, as are the loads it can withstand, and you will have to pay a lot extra to expand the functionality. But what about the owners of online cinemas that upload thousands of gigabytes of video? A solution to the problem has been found. They simply upload videos to the servers of Vkontakte, Youtube (yes, YouTube is also a social network) and others, using their capabilities, while the site itself takes up very little disk space. And if you store personal documents and photos in your profile, you can easily access them by logging into your account from any computer. It is very comfortable.
Now a little about the consequences of social media abuse
Labor productivity decreases. As shown sociological research conducted among several thousand people working on the Internet, most of them are regularly distracted by reading incoming messages, updating status, viewing pictures and videos. It’s not for nothing that large companies block access to social media. networks from the workplaces of their employees.
Free time disappears. The average social media user spends more than 20 hours a week on it, aimlessly “surfing” the pages. Now think about what if you instead focused your efforts on learning something foreign language, its grammar, vocabulary. Such knowledge can radically change your life for the better in just a year. But this will not happen while you are wasting your time.
Motivation disappears. Various distractions, of which there are so many on social networks, make it difficult to concentrate on achieving a goal; a person is simply scattered between virtual entertainment and real actions, to the point that the object of initial interest simply disappears from sight.
Yes, it’s quite difficult to get rid of “social” addiction, but only by separating necessary communication from aimless pastime can you turn social networks into effective tool for earning money.
VKontakte, Facebook, Odnoklassniki - all of them, sparing no expense, are fighting for our attention.
Let's find out dark side what is happening: what is the harm of social networks?
In this article we will carefully analyze why social networks are harmful. And, of course, we will learn to minimize, or even get rid of, this harm. But first, let’s highlight the benefit, because it is undoubtedly also present.
So, the benefits of social networks are as follows:
1) Always in touch with many people (including those who are far away).
2) Always up to date with the latest events and...
3) Entertainment: music, films, pictures, articles.
4) Educational information: documentaries, lectures, books, articles.
5) A means of promoting creativity and business.
There may be other advantages, but these are the main ones. Now let's move on to the disadvantages of social networks. Let’s immediately make a reservation that harm to social networks, as a rule, is caused by unreasonable, excessive use. Although everyone determines the limits of reasonable use for themselves, so everything is relative. Okay, let's get started!
1⃣ Social networks eat up time. Time is the most valuable resource. And we often waste it on all sorts of stupid things. Of course, you also need to relax and have fun. But if we get stuck on social networks to the detriment of something important and useful, then the harm is obvious.
What to do? Limit the time we spend on social networks. Although restrictions are often not the most the best solution. After all, it’s not always iron. It is much more effective to replace all sorts of cats on YouTube or the pseudo-humor of MDK with something really useful. After all, there is something that you like and at the same time makes you better? Healthy lifestyle guarantees: every person has it, you just need to find it in yourself. Develop, improve, get out of your comfort zone and try new things - and you will definitely find something after which you will feel sorry for wasting your time aimlessly. It’s optimal to find it or just a hobby, then you yourself will understand and feel everything. Even if you remain a regular user of social networks, you will spend your time usefully, that is, receive from networks mainly the information that is USEFUL for you, your business and your life. Good luck!
2⃣ Social networks teach you to consume. The result is an ideal consumer - the dream of all marketers and sales managers. The point is that social media can be used in different ways. that is, to create something new. Or you can be an ordinary consumer of information. Of course, in this life we are all consumers to some extent. But if a person only does what he likes, reposts, comments (and does this on a huge scale), then by doing so he kills the spark of the creator in himself. Because behavior on social networks shapes behavior in reality.
What to do? Firstly, you should reduce or completely abandon those that do not provide obvious benefits. Secondly, it is desirable to change the consumption/creation ratio in favor of the latter. After all, social networks are a powerful tool for creating and promoting your creation. There are thousands of possibilities, and you can successfully do something on social networks for your own benefit.
3⃣ Social networks are addictive. And you yourself won’t notice how this happens. It’s just that suddenly you will be left without the Internet or VK will once again fail - and then you will feel an irresistible craving for your favorite social network. Although you may not feel it - if you haven’t gotten involved enough yet. In any case, sooner or later, using social networks becomes a habit, and the inability to carry out a habitual action causes discomfort. Yes, social networks give freedom - freedom to communicate, receive and exchange information - but at the same time they take away this freedom. By the way, the problem of youth dependence on social networks is especially acute.
What to do? First of all, you can. Secondly, there is no need to make social networks the center of life, you should not give them of great importance. And if you are suddenly left without your usual social network, then perhaps it’s time to do other things?
4⃣ Social media makes you unhappy. Many studies have been conducted, the result of which is the same: people feel more unhappy the more they use social networks. Why? Because so-called friends on the Internet post their best photos, videos, statuses. I emphasize - they post only the best! And when a person sees how fun and interesting his “friends” live, sooner or later he begins to think that his life is boring and dull. And vice versa: people who spend more time socializing with friends in real life are less likely to experience such negative feelings.
What to do? If you master this skill, your life will be much happier. There is no point in comparing yourself to someone, you are unique and inimitable. And you have your own path. If you still can’t compare yourself with others, then realize the fact that only the best is posted on social networks. The best is just a beautiful wrapper, but inside there may be problems and the like. But they are not put on display! So it seems that everything is wonderful on the outside, but you just have to dig... The solution is not to bother and not to envy, it’s pointless.
5⃣ Social networks deprive people of communication. Communicating online is much easier than in real life. Many of us are already afraid to get out of this cozy cocoon. We are gradually turning into domestic social phobes and sociopaths, depriving ourselves of the joy of real live communication. What other disadvantages are there of communicating on social networks? Yes, for every taste and color! For example, you wrote something important, but your interlocutor did not answer because he was busy. Everything is a nightmare - they ignore you! Or maybe someone didn't like you? This is a tragedy, how can we continue to live?! Probably each of us has experienced something similar.
What to do? Communicate more in real life and do not try to replace live communication with virtual ones. Communication on social networks is currently not able to replace a real meeting or spending time together. But social networks can easily add negativity. To avoid this, you just need to not sweat the small stuff and understand the illusory nature of virtual communication.
CONCLUSION
Like everything around, social networks have a dual nature. There is good and there is bad. So use the good, and try to leave the bad behind. This is a reasonable approach.
I take this opportunity to invite you to Lifestyle and Healthy Lifestyle page on VKontakte. Only necessary and high-quality information about happiness and health! Please subscribe!
More on the topic:
How to get rid of bad habits and acquire good ones? How to finish what you start? 7 recommendations Benefits and harms green tea for the human body Health benefits and harms of pine nuts
Today, probably, almost all people are familiar with social networks. Some are simply registered there and visit occasionally, others visit the network every day, read news, play games, and others associate their lives with social networks. In the first two cases there is no need to worry, you are just living. In the third case, there is cause for concern. Social media addiction is not uncommon. Let's figure out the benefits and harms of social networks.
Benefits of social networks:
Communication
Albeit virtual, but communication. You correspond with friends, congratulate them on holidays, find old friends. Many people you interact with on social media are people you would not interact with in real life.
Expanding your horizons
Are you constantly up to date with the news?
It is very important for modern life to keep abreast of the news. I didn’t recognize something, I was late. Social networks give us the opportunity to read and discuss all the latest news and innovations in various fields.
The harm of social networks:
Addiction
This is the biggest negative consequence. Remember that it is very difficult to get rid of any addiction. Everything happens very quickly. First you registered, added photos, found friends. Everything is fine! Then you started spending more and more time on social networks, adding a lot of photos, reading all the news, playing games. And after a while, you cannot live without social networks. You can go from the first to the last point in a month.
Replacing real communication with virtual communication
A person must participate in communication. This is his natural need. And virtual communication on social networks is replacing the real one. There's simply no time for it. And why waste time and energy going somewhere if you can sit at the computer?
Giving up real life
You only care about what's happening on social media. You're not interested the world. He is too complex, cruel and merciless. Sometimes you can escape your problems into virtual reality. But you can't live there. Anyway, someday you will meet the real world face to face. And this meeting is unlikely to be joyful.
Social media has positive and negative sides. Communicating with a large number of people, you can find the information you need, relax, and forget about your problems. Just remember to come back to reality. Moderation is good in everything. If you control the time spent on social networks, there will be no problems. Realize that living real life is much more interesting.
Each Internet user is registered in at least one social network. Some participate in two or three. People “disappear” on social networks at work and at home. Are social networks used correctly? Does a visitor to any network, having fun communicating and finding classmates, know what the possibilities of social networks actually are?
What can users who frequently visit a social network change in their lives? A lot of things. Let's start with the fact that in all social networks you can post data about yourself, and not only personal data, but also, for example, a portfolio when looking for a job. If you are looking for a job, you can write about it in your status and, who knows, one of the users may well find yourself needed as an employee? The chances here are greater than when submitting a resume on specialized portals, because your status is viewed, first of all, by those with whom you communicate most closely, that is, classmates, classmates or childhood friends. Those who know you and your abilities well. And, if one of them really needs workers with certain knowledge and skills that you possess, they will choose you because they trust you more than a stranger with the same skills. The great benefit is also obvious in the opposite situation, when workers are needed for you.
On the social network you can find not only former classmates, but also real like-minded people. There are communities and groups for this. You can join an existing community, or you can create your own. This is done very simply, literally in a couple of clicks, and there can be a lot of benefits. There are cases when a community that began its life on a social network grew into closed elite clubs in real life and brought its founder a lot of money.
Any social network is an unplowed field for sociologists and analysts. With the help of all kinds of online surveys, which are not difficult to conduct on any social network, you can conduct real marketing research, with the help of which many manufacturing companies and brands will be able to develop in the right direction. Visitors to social networks are usually very loyal to such surveys, so marketers have a lot of opportunities in such networks.
Among all kinds of advertising tricks, there is such a thing as hidden advertising. This is when your friend on a social network, when you ask what he is doing now, answers that he is watching football and drinking beer of such and such a brand, and the beer is super! Light, soft, in general - garbage! What beer will you buy next time you go to the supermarket? In the vast majority of cases, exactly what your friend enthusiastically reported about! A trademark, whose beer he described to you with such enthusiasm, will pay him a fee for hidden advertising. After all, this type of advertising works much faster and better than regular advertising on television or in magazines. Direct advertising often irritates consumers with its intrusiveness. And here, it’s not even an advertisement, as it were, but a recommendation from friends. Many direct sales companies operate on this principle.
A lot is possible on social networks. Here you can learn how to properly prepare real khachapuri or Greek salad, where you can buy an Afghan hound puppy and how to cure bronchitis? There is a huge amount of information here, and the most valuable thing is that this information was not downloaded from some unfamiliar site, but was added by another user who checked it on himself or family and friends, because advice on such resources is most often given from personal experience. This means you can use them without any fear.
Social networks, undoubtedly, can be both useful for a person and cause him considerable moral, physical and sometimes even material damage. Read about the negative impact of social networks on your lifestyle - perhaps you should already think about whether you organize your time online correctly.
The harm that social networks can cause
Addiction
Many people get so used to spending time on social networks that, when they wake up, the first thing they do is check all their pages, “sit” on them while traveling in transport, during school or work hours, in each institution they look for a Wi-Fi connection point, otherwise and even experience an obsessive desire to check their account almost every ten minutes. Moreover, they often don’t notice it themselves or don’t consider it a problem, although addiction to social networks is already a recognized psychological addiction.
Communication on social networks contributes to the fact that a person slowly begins to abandon the outside world. Isolated or lonely people are especially susceptible to this. It is much easier for them to communicate on social networks, but the possibility of remote communication becomes a disadvantage when live communication completely disappears.
Information garbage
Also, the huge amount of available information makes it difficult for a person to concentrate on one thing and he very quickly begins to lose patience - which can lead to attention deficit disorder.
Stress
On social networks, people not only communicate with their friends, but also track the pages of old acquaintances, former lovers and friends, popular bloggers, celebrities, etc. Every day they watch the lives of other people on social networks and see other people’s successes and achievements, which Many people feel envy and dissatisfaction with themselves.
Watching someone else’s “ideal life”, social network users may experience stress from the fact that society expects the same success from them, moreover, this can lead them to depression.
Fatigue
Being on social media can take a lot of time. For some, fifteen minutes a day is enough to check their account; for others, fifteen minutes an hour is not enough - after all, they need to write a message to someone, re-read the entire news feed, like photos, etc. As a result, an active user of social networks begins to procrastinate, does not go to bed on time, which is why he gets tired, suffers from lack of sleep, or even even from insomnia.
If you are constantly in front of a computer, laptop or mobile device, you can significantly damage your vision, worsen the condition of the spine, muscles and joints.
Fraud on social networks
You can suffer from scammers not only on social networks, but almost anywhere on the Internet, but social networks increase this likelihood significantly.
Many people provide real information about themselves on social networks, which makes it much easier for scammers to collect data about their victims and then use it to deceive. They can also hack your page and use it for their own purposes.
The benefits of social networks
- Social networks help restore connections between people. Thanks to them, each user can try to find his old friend, acquaintance, former classmate or distant relative. In addition, people can communicate with each other from different parts of the world.
- Social networks also make it easier to find new acquaintances and friends for those who are embarrassed to make acquaintances in real life or fail in face-to-face communication. A written form of communication is better for many people, and thanks to a page on a social network, you can immediately get an idea of what the user looks like, what he is interested in, who he communicates with, etc. - this will help you determine in advance whether you will like such a person or not.
- In addition to communication, social networks offer users a huge amount of content: photos, videos, news, articles, audio recordings and more. All this is collected in one place, so it will be faster and more convenient for the user to search for the information he is interested in.
- Recently, social networks have made it possible to promote your business. They will also help you find an audience of viewers for the results of your creative hobby, which can later be monetized: this opportunity is used by photographers, artists, video bloggers, etc.
We told you what exactly are the harms and benefits of social networks, and whether you can control your time on these resources in order to enjoy only their benefits, or give them up completely out of harm’s way - the choice is yours.
