In the Old Testament, God gave Moses the Ten Commandments as a general set of rules for all believers. In similar fashion, I give you the Ten Commandments of social media etiquette. 1. Thou shalt stop taking so many selfies. I promise no one is concerned about your #ootd everyday of your life. Save the selfies for those special, rare good hair days or when you happen to be standing next to one of the world’s most important landmarks, or something of equal value.
2. Thou shalt proofread before thou posts. Correct spelling and grammar are your friends. If you have made it this far in your education, you should at least know the correct usages of “they’re,” “there” and “their.” 3. Thou shalt not post vague, whiny rants. Everyone goes through tough times. Posting complaints on social media sites may be theraapeutic for you, but it’s annoying for everyone else. Buy a journal. 4. Thou shalt not give into OCPD (overly compulsive posting disorder). Limit your posting on social media to only a few items per day. The world doesn’t need to know that you made a sandwich at 1:05 p.m., finished eating your sandwich at 1:14 p.m. and washed your dishes at 1:16 p.m.
5. Thou shalt live in the moment.
Stop throwing it back every Thursday. We saw your pictures then, we don’t need to see them again. Just remember, every time you repost a photo, it becomes a little less awesome.
6. Thou shalt not post a photo of every meal. This goes one of two ways: you either post a picture of a healthy-looking meal to make your friends feel guilty that they’re eating hamburgers, or you post a delicious-looking meal to make your friends jealous. Either way, just don’t.
7. Thou shalt not subtweet about thy neighbor. If you have a problem with someone, take it directly to him or her so that you can deal with the issue, not make others aware of it. It’s very difficult to rebuild bridges after you burn them.
8. Thou shalt not show OPDA (online public displays of affection). Your Facebook account is not the most appropriate place to write disgustingly adorable or adorably disgusting posts to your #mcm or #wcw, who also happens to be your boyfriend or girlfriend. Just like last week, and the week before that and the week before that.
9. Thou shalt post more about your life and less about controversial issues. I understand that your opinions and beliefs are important to you, but other people feel the same way about their own opinions and beliefs. If you choose this online warpath, at least find a more reliable source than www.crazyomgwow.com to pull your arguments from.
10. Thou shalt have nothing to hide from potential spouses or employers. From tacky photos with your ex on Instagram to bad-mouthing your employer from two years ago on Facebook, these practices could jeopardize your current relationship or future. Nothing on the Internet stays hidden very well for long, sometimes even after you delete it.
