The rise of social zombies

When I was around 12 years old my friends in primary school were talking all about Facebook. Having a Facebook profile then was considered a super cool thing. So of course everyone wanted to fit in and have a profile of their own.

Not really sure how they signed up for Facebook at such a young age, maybe they had emails made up for them by their parents that they then used to create a Facebook profile, or maybe their brothers/sisters did it for them. Luckily I had an email made up for me by my mum (for email purposes only nothing more)and being quite tech-savvy since I was quite young I was able to create my very own Facebook profile.

You might have guessed it, to impress my friends and be seen as the coolest kid the very first thing I posted was a fake mansion and a cool-looking luxury car that I downloaded from google (Pffff silly young minds). When I look back at this I always smile and feel so embarrassed about how silly I was, but hey I was just a young boy who wanted to fit in.

But this right here was just the beginning of the rise of social zombies we see today

What gave rise to social zombies?

In previous years, we have seen how social media has become the greatest thing to ever happen after the internet. This amazing invention came with loads of advantages and quite a lot of disadvantages as well.

When you think about it social media users are the ones that reap these benefits and also face the consequences brought about by social media. I personally think social media is a very great and powerful invention but only if used in the right way.

The freedom that people have to post whatever they wish on social media gave rise to what I call social zombies.

So why do I call them this?

You see naturally human beings are born with the aspect of desiring social acceptance and this is because it gives people pleasure knowing that other people think that they are this amazing and cool character and hence end up liking them.

But the thing is, people will take drastic measures to get such attention and acceptance which in this modern day is a cause of a lot of stress and depression to some people, especially the younger generation.

When you log in to a platform like Instagram most of the time all you will see is people sharing their amazing moments, luxury vehicles, expensive trips, beautiful designer clothes, expensive jewelry, and all this kind of stuff that portrays a beautiful, happy and lavish life (I mean why post yourself crying and in agony on social media, just doesn't make sense right?).

To some people, this may act as motivation but to some people, it is a major cause of depression because they will tend to compare their lives to the people they see on social media.

The aspect of being a social zombie comes in when people have the urge to raise their levels of social dopamine by posting pictures and videos on social media in return for likes, follows, and comments or even just trying to be like someone cool they know or saw on TV.

What people don't understand is that sometimes all they see on social media, television, music videos and the internet might be a great illusion, an illusion portraying a good, happy, and lavish life that is sometimes covered with pain and extensive lies.

Dont get me wrong not everyone posts fake stuff online but people need to learn to choose what they decide to believe in cause sometimes taking in and believeing everything one sees could cause great damage to them.

This is what being a social zombie is all about

Regardless of your current age, I bet you know someone who is ready to spend a huge amount of money despite their current financial situation being a bit bad to look cool in front of people and on social media just so as to make a statement and be recognized.

People make their own money and have the right to spend it however they like but me comparing them to zombies is just trying to describe the situation in play.

We see how zombies act in films, most of them are just normal people but the moment they get bit by another zombie they turn into this whole monster and end up doing things they might not want to, but they just aren’t aware of that at the moment. It is kind of like being a puppet to your own mind.

A lot of people especially the younger generation tend to go the extra mile to get a life similar to what they see on social media and on the TV but because of the massive pressure that keeps building in them every single day they find themselves making bad decisions that may finally lead to even bigger problems.

My thoughts on this:

I understand at some point acceptance is something we all human beings were born with. You might not seek acceptance by owning expensive items to show off online but you might seek it in some other way like trying to get people to acknowledge that you are the best singer in your town.

Acceptance isn't a bad thing and most of the time it is something that pushes people to work even harder to achieve what they want in life.

But the problem comes when people beat themselves down just because they are comparing themselves to someone with a better life not even knowing them in person and even if that life they are showing is real or not. Some people also desperately try to match that lifestyle by making horrible decisions that might affect them even further.

All I can finally say is that people need to stay true to themselves and their purpose. They should not let social media determine the way they run their life. They should remember that not everything they see on social media and the internet is true.

Feel free to comment below and jot down your thoughts as this article is not a fact but rather a personal opinion and discussions would be very much appreciated.

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Thanks,

Abraham