In the 21st century, our social media profiles are our empires. We build their content to help them prosper, growing our subjects -- our friends and followers -- as we become more popular. However, like any good King or Queen of old, it is important to remember that there is a moral responsibility that comes with the power of an Empire. We must govern our kingdoms -- and ourselves -- justly.
Avoid Being a Mad King
The governing bodies in the realm of social media are primarily ourselves. Platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok provide us with a great deal of freedom to express ourselves creatively, but that freedom also means we can make mistakes or act, like some bad rulers in history, rashly and with emotion and hatred.
It is very easy for people -- all of us, adults and children alike -- to make negative or snarky comments about things and people online which may not seem like a big deal when you make them, but can actually harm someone's reputation. It is a great thing to build someone up, but it is never okay to destroy someone's character and self-esteem by tearing them down. In a world where so much of childhood social life is conducted online, this kind of behavior can be devastating for the people who are targeted.
But it is also important to remember that when you build your social media empire, you are also building a record of yourself and who you are. The pictures you post of winning a championship or a great grade you got on a test can show how great you are, but a nasty comment made about a classmate can be an equally permanent record. Even seemingly harmless comments can lead to serious ramifications for your future career and life goals down the road, just because they were made public in a digital environment.
Each time you go to make a post, no matter the platform and whomever the audience, take a deep breath and think about how it might affect other people. As the old saying goes, "If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all."
Use Your Popularity For Good
One value we try to instill in our customers at Lizabela is the importance of social grace. With a focus on helping people grow to be caring, responsible adults, we take care to stress not only how to become vital members of a community, but also how to responsibly wield the power that comes with popularity in that community.
On social media, as we grow our followings, we also grow our mouthpiece from a whisper to a royal trumpet. The more friends and followers you have, the greater the responsibility you must shoulder for the things you say. To denigrate a person becomes that much more impactful when other people look up to you, but so too will your compliments carry equally greater weight.
We encourage people to lavish praise on their friends as they succeed and triumph in the world. Each of us has different interests, and the sharing of what they learn is core to our strategy of uplifting each cohort as a collective. Putting someone down for their hobbies or interests is never okay.
To Be Debonair
The rulers of old empires often struggled with governing their empires justly. Today, this responsibility to act with grace and humility has been distributed to each one of us, as we govern our own social media fiefdoms. We challenge our clients at Lizabela to grow as and into an individual who is seen by the community as indispensable, who is loved and loving, and who can be turned to in times of trouble. We aim to help customers become their best selves, and in this day and age, that includes how they conduct themselves online.