DUBAI: Social media have made life extra fun for a lot of reasons. Nowhere in mankind’s history has it been this convenient to stay in touch with everyone. There are curbs of course, most especially in matters of dos and don’ts.
But as popular American writer, Robert Fulghum would say in his two-year New York Times bestseller of the same title, “Everything you really need to know, you’ve learned in kindergarten.”
In a more clichéd manner of saying, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel. Just follow the basics of real-life social ethics and you’ll get there.
Below is a quick rundown of the most common social media gaffes you’ve probably came across at least once in your cyber life – and they can sometimes cause friends to put you in the “Hide” list, worse, “unfriend” you.
1) Posting cryptic messages. “Oh no, not again.” “Prayers please.” “Uuuuugghhh!” are cliffhanger status updates or “vaguebooking” that leave people like “gawking fans,” as The Huffington Post puts it, to the “attention-seeking” author’s delight.
2) Sharing gory pictures. Who wants to see images of severed heads or a blown-up torso? Ever noticed how you get less “Likes” if at all, posting gruesome images?
3) Ranting, griping. Sometimes it’s fine to do a little venting – we all get disappointed once in a while. But don’t make it a habit, because if you do, you’d most likely lose FB friends.
4) Selfie galore. A new study has revealed that posting too many selfies can be annoying to your friends. It says the habit borders on extreme narcissism — that “I am the center of the universe” attitude which some people may find irksome. Another study says this habit is actually an indirect way to cover lack of self-esteem.
5) Changing profile pictures often. “People who keep changing their profile pictures are insecure, lack confidence and are often very flippant in their decisions. Such people are also found to be suspicious and don’t trust others easily. Some even show traits of split personality and always remain dissatisfied with their decisions,” said Dr. Amool Ranjan, a psychologist who had worked for India’s Ministry of Health.
6) Posting when drunk. Get off it. People can easily tell when you’re drunk and on a posting mood – you sound different.
7) Chain letters. “If you don’t repost this to your wall and tag five friends, you’ll never find true happiness.” For real?!?
8) Constantly changing relationship updates. So, you were “Engaged” then suddenly it became “Complicated.” And now you’re in an “Open Relationship.” Paired.com says, “Unless you are 12 years old, there shouldn’t be so much drama behind it, but yet there is in the world of dating.”
9) Posting your childhood photo for profile picture. If you do this, gawker.com says, “You are the type of person who thinks that everything in the past is better than it is now.”
10) Candy Crush and other game invites. Yes, it’s annoying to the point that Facebook boss, Mark Zuckerberg has vowed to stop it.
11) Posting food before eating. Dr. Susan Albers told Psychology Today people have developed the habit for a range of reasons: from sharing the experience to actually indicating a “problematic relationship with eating” and asking for advice.
12) Posting images of make-outs. Get off it. Photos of intimacy is fine, but making out?
13) Public posting for someone. Called a “sub-post” and sort of like a blind item posted for someone, a boss maybe, or an ex-lover, even a slob room mate – “I would have loved it if you actually washed your meal plates.”
14) Vacation overkill. Social Times reported that data from CyberLink Corp. suggests you might want to think twice before flooding your News Feed with those vacation photos because most probably your FBFs don’t want an overkill.
15) Check-ins. Some people go to ridiculous lengths to post places where they’ve been – hotel lobby, the mall, even the lavatory! But really, others question how can looking at those pictures be fun?
16) Emoting on Facebook. This tops the most annoying FB behavior, experts say, adding that such posts are usually from loners or those with no one to talk to about their ordeals.
17) Posting in all caps. Writing in all caps is equivalent to shouting – the first rule everyone should know.
18) Humblebrags and other types of brags. Waitbutwhy.com says that bragging is “such a staple” that it needs to be broken down to three: the “I am having a great life” brag; Undercover or Humblebrags, and the ‘I’m in a great love affair” brag.
19) Obsessively posting about your child. Okay, all parents love their child but flooding updates about him or her maybe stretching it a bit.
20) Tagging friends in not-so-good pics. It’s called “uncompromising situations” and then poor guy might just end up deleting you.
21) Literal status update. “Headed to the gym.” ‘Beat my deadline.” And so on. Experts say some people post literal updates because they are lonely.
22) Pet show. Most of us have come across this type: people who post photos of their pets without them in the picture. Gawker.com says it says a lot about you. A cat posted by a lady, for instance, could mean she has no boyfriend.
23) Ghost tagging. It’s when a friend tags everyone, including you but you’re not in the picture. Duh!
