During the past few months, internet usage has sky-rocketed. From office meetings to classroom learning, major everyday activities have shifted to the online environment. Staying home for weeks at a stretch, individuals took to social media to satiate their hunger for entertainment and news.

The Covid-19 crisis had made even those who were reluctant to use technology, jump on the digitally-charged bandwagon. A report by WPP suggests that there was an upsurge of 82% in social media usage with 453% more people using digital platforms to consume news.

Besides popular social media applications like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, people also started using ZOOM Meetings, Microsoft Teams and digital streaming platforms like Netflix and Hotstar more actively. Though this is definitely helping people to pass their time we need to introspect whether it is becoming the new way forward.

Why did the need to become Digitally Social arise?

For some the shift to embracing digital platforms was inevitable and for others, it was the only option in the absence of being able to step out of their homes.

Communicating for Office Work

During the lockdown, many homes turned into a mini workplace. Those employed in the IT, Media and News industry may call it a blessing or a curse, depending upon the work schedule they had been delegated by their employers. But the reality is they have been hooked to their laptops and have been spending most of their time using digital platforms to communicate and even attend meetings. 

Children’s Education and Learning Activities

Schools and Colleges have been using the digital platform to conduct classes, right from as early as March. The professors and teachers have gone out of their ways to take seminars, give projects and conduct exams. The result is that children are spending several hours a day, using digital platforms to attend classes or submit their assignments. In between that, they take frequent breaks to play games or socialize digitally with their friends!

Some individuals are also using social media as a tool for learning. From coding to cooking recipes, social media is flooded with information on absolutely everything!

News and Entertainment

For some, it has neither been about work nor about learning. Still, their social media usage has increased exponentially. This is because they have been using social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to follow celebrities, influencers and artists. As they are not able to head out to watch movies or attend events, social media has become their daily dose of news and entertainment.

What are the Benefits of Becoming Digitally Social?

You will certainly acknowledge that Social Media has been the best thing that has been with you during the past few months. It is the only way you have been able to know what is going on in the world.

Helps in Staying Connected

This is a major benefit of social media. Except for the physical interactions with your friends, social media has not let you miss out on anything. It has provided loved ones with an opportunity to hear and see each other, though digitally! We all know that human beings are social animals and the need to interact and connect with others is of paramount importance. You would not even want to imagine how the past few months would have been without social media.

Doing New Things

For some, social media has opened up newer opportunities. From learning new talents to realizing how much more you can do, social media has become a best friend! Some have successfully garnered freelancing work while others have given a try at blogging. In fact, one of our employees from the HR department recently conducted an online workshop on Interview Skills. Now, this is something that she never thought about doing but all thanks to the Digital Media. 

Major Concerns of Being Digitally Social

Health Concerns

This is the primary concern of spending too much time in front of screens. Though technology has become an integral part of our lives, too much of anything can be detrimental to having a healthy life. Possible health concerns can be vision problems, headaches, stress, obesity, sleeping and hearing problems.

Digital Addiction

Many research says that if you do a particular activity for 40 days at a stretch it may become a habit. You may not realise but spending hours on social media platforms must have become your daily habit if not an addiction. You may sometimes even find it difficult to stay away from your phones for a few minutes. Nowadays, children and even adults are so busy chatting with their friends on the phone that they end up ignoring the family members who are sitting right next to them. 

Even the sleeping patterns of some have gone haywire. People are staying awake late in the night spending time on social media. Digital addiction is something we should not become a trend. All the negativities associated with it can have a significant impact on our lifestyle patterns.

What should be the way forward?

The recent pandemic has inevitably transformed the way the world is going to function by showing the active role that digital media plays. There are a lot of opportunities that the digital medium has to offer for the ones who want to grow. But like everything else, it is necessary to balance`` the time we spend using online platforms. You should try to learn new things instead of just browsing the feed section of social media applications. The way forward for our Digitally Social journey should be about creating and growing instead of just browsing. This will help shape a better future.