If you had to guess the world's most popular social media network right now, what would you pick? I'd go with Facebook. But with great social media comes great social media responsibility — which means that we all owe it to our friends and followers not to make these common Facebook mistakes. If you don't understand social media, you can't possibly understand yourself, since we are what we purport to be on the Internet. Let that sink in for a minute.
Facebook obviously isn't the only social media site where it's useful to pay attention to mistakes you might be making, even if you don't realize you're makng them. People are prone to making goofs on Snapchat (a 200 second story is honestly way too long), gaffes on Twitter (you don't have to subtweet your ex, or even worse, your current significant other all the time), errors on Instagram, and even mistakes on dating apps (which can be definitely be considered a type of social media, as far as I'm concerned).
In order to avoid doing something embarrassing on Facebook, take a look at some of the most common mistakes people make on the website and app — and how to fix them. It's easy, I promise!
1. Posting A Status Multiple Times A Day
I get it: You have stuff on your mind. But Facebook has moved away from being a platform where you can wax lyrical about how cute your dog is or how many times you peed that day; now, it's a way to cultivate deeper, more meaningful relationships online as well as off. Save those thoughts for Twitter, which is designed to house your inane thoughts in manageable, 140-character bites.
2. Posting A Status Directly About Someone Without Elaborating
Unless you need some sort of help and aren't using names for privacy or security issues, being vague in your Facebook status is generally irritating. We get it, Kurt, you broke up with Tim last week. We all saw that he's dating someone else now. But must you post things like "he ruined my memories and ruined my trust" or "men are worthless, never trust them" all the time? Quit Vaguebooking and start Facebooking.
3. Using A Super Low-Res Image For Your Profile Picture
It's pretty standard for there to be some Facebook stalking going on when two people add each other, and the first thing they're likely to look through is your photos — which means that your profile picture is usually where someone's first impression of you online comes from. If you've got a low resolution image in there, it probably isn't doing your beautiful self justice; as such, it might be worth changing. Why not make an effort to make that first impression a good one?
4. Tagging Someone In A Photo Who Is Not In That Photo
We've all had this happen to us. You're going about your day, when suddenly you find you've been tagged in a photo. How exciting! You click the notification to see what's going on... and land on an image that has no pertinence to you. You might not even have been there when the photo was taken. Are you tagging me to make me jealous? Are you tagging me to get my attention in general? What is happening?
5. Liking Posts And Photos From 2009
There's no doubt that it can be funny to like something from back in the day, thereby bringing it back to the newsfeeds of my entire friends list... but doing it in excess is boring and potentially mortifying. Stick to liking or commenting on just one throwback every blue moon.
Happy Facebooking!
Images: Giphy (5)
