When Everyone's Watching

When you post something on the internet, it’s there forever. Writing for something like a blog or any social networking page, I have learned to choose my words very carefully, to explain myself thoroughly, and to assume that what I say will be taken seriously.

Because the human race is so spread out across this planet, everyone is born into different cultures with different ideas, values, expectations, etc., and that combined with the individuality of each person makes it hard to find any one thing that we can all agree on. With that being said, we can reason that regardless of what we say, someone is going to disagree or feel differently. When I was a little younger and less mature, I thought this meant that I could say whatever I wanted, because regardless, there was going to be someone who didn’t like it. However, I was completely wrong. Now, when writing for a public audience, I make sure that I understand the gravity of what I’m saying, even if it isn’t a big deal at all, and I pay more attention to my word choice as to not offend as many people as possible while still getting my point across. This is important to me because I want people from all different backgrounds and cultures to be able to read what I write and connect to it in some way, and I don’t want anyone to feel disrespected or targeted.

Beyond that, I have also learned that it is necessary to explain myself and what I am saying extensively, so that there is less of a chance of my words being twisted into something I didn’t mean. This includes doing my research or just being knowledgeable about the subject matter that I’m writing on. Because I am behind a screen just writing and posting online, I don’t always have time or means to defend or further explain my words. This is where the research and already in depth explanation come in handy, because I can avoid questioning of my work and ideas if everything is laid out in front of the reader.

Going along with that, I understand that, although some things said on the internet are supposed to be taken as a joke and aren’t meant to be offensive, not everyone has the same sense of humor. This means that anything can be taken in a way that you don’t expect. Knowing this, I try to keep a more serious tone in my writing, that way I don’t throw anyone off or make anyone uncomfortable. My overall goal in my public writing is to get my points or thoughts or ideas across and out there without causing distress or discomfort to anyone reading along.