Ways to Make Facebook and Twitter your Right Hand Men

(Photo via northversailleslibrary.org)

Such a negative stigma has been attached to social media by older generations. In their defense, they are usually right. However, social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter can be positive if you so allow them.

Here are ways to use them to your aid:

1. Time management:

Facebook: While scrolling through your news feed, the best thing to do is keep your eyes peeled for posts that are worth your attention. Ignore those pesky long posts people plaster all over their timelines. Occasionally, those mini-novels are actually important, in which case skimming is a good skill to acquire.

Twitter: Never follow more than 300 people. If it takes you longer than 10 minutes to scroll through an hour’s Twitter timeline, you’re following too many people. If you are, go on a maniac unfollowing rampage. You’ll thank yourself later. Never bite off more than you can chew. Or in this case, never follow as many accounts as you cannot handle.

2. Use them to gain knowledge:

Facebook: “Like” various news pages. With the growth of social media in the newsrooms, if a huge event occurs, Facebook will be the first to hear about it. Then you’ll read about it. And then you’ll be “in the know” as they say.

Twitter: Follow the accounts of your favorite TV shows and bands. Any new information will be tweeted by the thumbs of their social media manager(s). How endearing.

3. Finally, stalk your friends:

Facebook: Since “unfriending” is a virtual slap in the face, I wouldn’t recommend it. However in consequence, you’ll be forced to read the statuses of your old crushes, which may not exactly be a bad thing. There’s something comforting in knowing that all you have to do to stalk a person is look up their name in the search bar and hit enter. And it’s perfectly legal!

Twitter: Most people’s accounts are left unprivated. This empowers you to basically do whatever you want. In this, Twitter invites you to feed your curiosity a second helping, or a third … or a tenth.

So maybe Facebook and Twitter aren’t the Devil’s advocates of this generation.