Kerry Parnell: Six things it is never OK to post on social media
Social media is a huge part of our lives and it is easy to drive people in our friends lists mad with annoyances large and small. Kerry Parnell lists the biggest social media don’ts.
Opinion
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Social media is a huge part of our lives and it is easy to drive people in our friends lists mad with annoyances large and small.
From endless holiday snaps, to the humble-brag, how many of these social media sins are you guilty of?
The phrase: “Hope it’s OK to post this — please delete if not allowed!”
This is the No. 1 most-annoying statement on social media.
The fact that you see it multiple times a day in Facebook groups — particularly neighbourhood ones — means you can safely conclude it is OK to post about your missing dog/cat/request for plumber recommendations. If it isn’t? It won’t get posted.
All your holiday photos
We’re delighted you’re having a lovely time in Santorini/Lake Como/Paris. Honestly, totally made up for you, while we go to work and go to bed and go to work and go to bed and … you get the picture.
One or two happy snaps of your travels are quite interesting. Burglars, in particular, love them. But all your holiday pics, every day, for weeks? Please stop.
They’re the digital equivalent of whipping out three packets of photos you got developed at the chemist’s and talking through every one to your colleagues.
“Day one, this is where we went for breakfast, oh here’s a funny story …”
People used to do this in the ’90s. We hated it then.
Over-sharing
Similarly hogging everyone’s feed with constant updates about your day is the equivalent of talking non-stop at someone and never letting them get a word in. It’s the very meaning of over-sharing and will lead to a stealth-mute.
Ever wondered why some Facebook friends stop commenting?
Shouty posts
Had a fallout with someone? A quiet mute or unfriend is much more satisfying and effective, than an angry un-motivational quote about them being toxic.
They don’t even know they’re dead to you, for ages, until they try to look you up and see the button, “Add friend”, which of course, they can’t, because they thought you already were friends and now they can’t show you they know.
The sting lasts for weeks, er, according to a friend.
Motivational quotes
Maybe it’s just me and everyone who doesn’t live in America but motivational quotes should be illegal.
Who needs chippy upbeat mantras set against background pictures of misty lakes? Not us! We’re happy being cynical, with a healthy dose of black comedy, employed at the very worst of times. That’s what makes us feel better.
Humble-bragging
This despicable social media manoeuvre has previously been confined to the realm of celebrities and influencers, but has seeped into the wider world.
Posters write something seemingly-sincere about loving spending time with their kids, nature, husband, llama, that “just happens” to feature a photo of them looking crash-hot in a bikini, in their expensive car, or luxury home.
Listen, if I had a body, house, car, or anything, come to think of it, worth plastering on Insta, I wouldn’t need to be fake-thankful for sunsets.
There’s even a new variety of humble-brag, which is the humble-bag-brag, where your Birkin just happens to be in shot. Don’t humble-brag, just brag, it’s much quicker.
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