[dropcap]W[/dropcap]e generally all have social media, and it is for the most part a wonderful way to meet and socialize with friends, build a personal brand and develop a following. We all spend a lot of time online and although there are a substantial number of positives, there are also a lot of known risks and cons to spending too much time (and too liberally) online. You must have regard for both your safety and wellbeing when spending time on social media, and online as a whole. Here are a few tips to live your best life online.
1. Don’t post everything
Social media is great and being able to share with friends, family and fans is a fantastic way to engage and build a personal and professional brand. The number one tip, even from those who have smashed social media and have followers than they know what to do with, is not to post everything. There are some things that you should leave to the imagination and although it might be the biggest trend at the moment, it’s going to be better in the long run to buck this trend. Certain things should be off limits:
- Don’t post overly promotional content, your intrinsic interest should be enough to ‘sell’ you.
- Don’t post political or religious content, it’s just too topical and the source of way too many disputes.
- Don’t post overly personal details, your address, social security number and date of birth don’t need to be shared with the entire internet.
- Don’t post any complaints about work, issues with colleagues or relationship issues, no one really wants to know, and it could just cause you a bigger headache.
So, no, don’t post everything.
2. Have a time out/hobby to keep you off social media
The ability to not always be checking your socials may be a tricky proposition, particularly if it is something that you have been doing for a long time. The fact of the matter is that it has become normal practice to spend an average of 300 minutes a day on social media. However, spending too much of your time on anything isn’t good for you, and social media has been proven to cause several self-esteem issues when too much time is spent in specific chats and platforms. The easiest proven way to keep from constantly checking the socials, is to have another online hobby that you use your smart mobile for. Whether it’s competitive gaming or the online real money pokies, having a hobby or pastime such as this will keep you entertained and with no pressure, but will still be at your fingertips ready to go when you want it.
3. Cyber security
If you want to have a good online life, then the best advice is to ensure that you have the appropriate cyber security in place and linked to your time on social media. If you intend to play at the online casinos, work in the cloud, post on the socials and do any shopping online than it is vital to have strong passwords and a cogent cyber security protocol.
These three tips will allow you to live your best online life and to ensure that you are as safe as possible in the process.
