The good of social media

My name is Aliyah Minka Anthony, and I am from the island of the Caribbean, Dominica. I am 23 years of age and I have a great passion for learning. Before I came to know about Athena Global Education, I started my Master’s program in International Business at Monroe College. Since I was already comfortable with this school, I pursued my Bachelor’s degree in Business Management with a minor in Finance. I was very skeptical about moving to another school. Basically, I could be considered a loyal person. However, it is wise to open your mind to new things, so I decided to adapt to a new school and Athena was my choice.

Social media is the new trend, 56.8% of the world’s population uses social media. Social media is a computer-based technology that allows people to share concepts, opinions, and knowledge by forming virtual communities and networks. Almost everybody is active on some form of social media whether it is Facebook, which is the most popular, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Pinterest, Tiktok, LinkedIn, YouTube, or WhatsApp.

In the 1980’s, social media was not yet invented. When I was a teenage girl, my grandparents would say things like “since they created phones, people no longer have meets and greets or family time.” Whilst this may be true, I still had a fun filled childhood compared to the 2000’s generation. In Dominica, there were games we would play like marbles, hide and seek, mummy and daddy, I declare a piece of land and morals. Today’s generation don’t play those games because social media has more fascination for them. 

Back in the days, when businesses had to relate to customers, they would have to send mails or have face to face interaction but this has changed. Social media now allows you to connect, nurture, and communicate with your target audience regardless of their location. When a company interacts with its audience through social media, it can increase brand exposure, lead generation, sales, and revenue.

In Dominica, there is a craig listing and marketplace where you log in on Facebook, browse and you see all types of clothing, furniture, household appliances, vehicles and  much more. If you are interested in an item, you message the Facebook user, and they send that item directly to you or you pick it up at a specified location. Users can talk about what they know and what they want to be recognized for by using social media. Prospective professional and personal connections will throng to you if you share your knowledge. You will have more opportunity to interact with like-minded people if you learn how to communicate your professional expertise, accomplishments, and successes. 

In addition, if it were not for social media my colleague would not find out about the good offers of Athena and pass on this vital information to me to continue my educational journey. Social media has its disadvantages just like most things in this world, but it keeps everyone up to date. In 2018, I had a very emotional experience on Facebook where I met my aunty my grandmother told me about, whom I had never met in real life. While I was scrolling on Facebook one day, I saw the name Gesica Anthony, so I clicked her profile and browsed. I sent a message to contact her and after some days she finally responded. We exchanged phone numbers, and this was a once in a lifetime experience. 

Social media has its negative impact on the lives of people, but I would consider it a boon. People are in control of their lives so they should remain focused and not let the negative effects of social media prevail but explore the positive side.