This article was originally published on January 14, 2022 at https://medium.com/non-monetized-together/you-dont-need-to-go-viral-to-make-an-important-post-online-5b3f99e1c00e?source=friends_link&sk=4f40ea7de73ae401902bc679722b8c1e

I’m serious, participating in online discussion could be the #1 way an ordinary person can cause some change in the world! I get the sense that others think that very online people are wasting their time arguing with strangers. No, it’s a big deal. And it doesn’t just have potential to result in social change — it IS social change. People remember what others say online. It has an impact on others. Even if it’s just a small amount of people, like a few dozen. You won’t likely get that type of exposure in “real life.” If your post has few views but is effective, it may impact the reader’s attitudes and behaviours, which impacts other people! And you can make hundreds, or even thousands of these posts! The thing about viral social justice campaigns is that they are under pressure to conform to norms. They just make people feel like they have their beliefs validated. That’s not social change right there. Social change is being honest and not worrying about being popular. Most people aren’t even aware of this and use Internet discussions negatively! If you use it positively, you stand out. Oh, and remember, you have the chance to view even your most heated online debates as a learning experience, not a boxing match. Sometimes a learning experience for you, but not always. It can be a learning experience for those who you are interacting with, those who can join in, signed-out “lurkers,” or even readers from the future! Even when the discussion feels “hopeless,” it’s not. There are also people like me who like discussing things online because I have the freedom to type things out, make sure I’m saying how I really feel, and organize my thoughts. I don’t have the opportunity to think things through in a real-life debate. Hopefully, YouTube’s removal of the dislike button will encourage people to contribute their part to the necessity that is the comments section.

Oh, and I forgot to mention! Going on the Internet can help you learn about problems in society you wouldn’t have been able to know about otherwise!

#Change #Progress #InternetDebate #InternetDiscussion

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Source: DALL-E

This was originally posted to Medium on May 19, 2023 (https://medium.com/non-monetized-together/want-to-have-fewer-toxic-online-discussions-work-on-writing-without-a-rough-draft-6d30bfe32500?source=friends_link&sk=dd7e0c163d05b4d1b14d32e769257ff2)

#WritingOnSocialMedia #SocialMediaEtiquette #TheEducationSystem #InternetDiscussion #InternetComments

How We Communicate Online Is Important

Today’s world is mostly shaped by what people say on the Internet. Even though it is hard to find trustworthy statistics on social media scope and usage, anybody can see that it has become the norm for people to use social media. Almost all decisions people make in the physical world are influenced by the media either directly or indirectly, with social media being one of the most-consumed forms of media. From this we can see that much of our lives are shaped by what we see on social media.

Especially important are discussion-centred platforms like Facebook or Twitter. Yet many have noticed that Internet comments tend to be more toxic than other forms of communication. Because of the way social media leaves its marks on other areas of society, this is very concerning and could possibly lead to a dystopian society.

The reason I joined Medium was because I noticed that I am one of the few people who lean toward co-operation and civility when I’m typing out comments. I knew that I could resist the negative influence of online comments by starting an online community centred around freeing others from these influences.

Ignoring Advice From School

How am I able to consistently keep my online posts in check? By ignoring a piece of writing advice that I was told all the time at school — to make a rough draft of my essay before writing a clean draft.

I thought it would be a waste of time to rewrite an essay like that, so I always began writing my essays in full sentences and paragraphs. Then I would re-read it a few times, and once I couldn’t find any new ways to improve it, I would hand it in. Most of my assignments were essays, so I would get a lot of experience with this method, and it would become the natural way I would write when typing on a computer.

Positive Results

This helped me behave more appropriately online because it turned writing into a very deliberate, careful, slow process for me. Because I didn’t have a rough draft to refer to, I had to put a lot of thought into how I chose my words and phrased my sentences so I could get a good grade on the essay. Since I spent so much time writing in school, it ended up characterizing how I write whenever I use a computer keyboard. Now when I type a comment on the Internet, I find it extremely difficult to write anything without pausing every few seconds to consider what I am going to say next. I always feel an urge to type and retype parts of sentences before choosing the option that sounds the best. If I ever get a job where I need to type messages quickly, I might have to break this habit, in which case I would create a writing template I can look at while typing my message.

However, when I am communicating online, my writing habit ensures that I won’t send many regrettable, impulsive posts to devices around the world. Instead, I can communicate on the Internet clearly and productively because I learned how to write carefully without a rough draft.

Conclusion

In order to fix the problem of toxic online discussion spaces, the education system must teach students to write without a rough draft. If you’re in school and you care about this issue, maybe you can try avoiding rough drafts to see how it goes. The more you use this method, the better you will get at it. Not only can it help you be a better writer on social media, but you might make a more beneficial influence on society too.

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