It turns out that everyone has an opinion on this topic! There is a thread that runs through these responses — each with her or his point of view. In this column, adopted from the familiar “Heard on the Street” format, we offer our responders a chance to answer the question posed in the title. These are their replies reported verbatim.
Love It!
I absolutely LOVE social media. I will confess my love for social media is almost borderline addicting! =) Personally, I think it’s a great tool in keeping up with old friends from various stages of life and current friends. Professionally, we are starting to see companies use social media as a platform for advertising their company and brand. As an avid social media user, I cannot stress how beneficial it has been in helping me promote our company and brand.
Sam Fung
Emerson Fisher LP Gas
McKinney, Texas
I would consider myself a closet (not anymore) social media addict. One post is too many and 1,000 is not enough!! I hate to admit it, but I spend more time scrolling and posting than I should. At the end of the day when it’s just me and my phone, we enjoy a little quality time together. With that said, I enjoy watching a good comedy routine or motivation/faith-based post. You will not find me fighting or arguing politics on Facebook — no one EVER wins those battles!
Judy Taranovich
Proctor Gas Inc.
Proctor, Vermont
Social media has become a large part of our culture. Initially, I found some forms, such as Facebook and Instagram, a good way to communicate with friends and colleagues. It is nice to see what my family and friends are doing that live all over the country. I also use LinkedIn for my business by looking up contacts and seeing some trends in the market. Unfortunately, some of the platforms have been used for negative actions. We live in a society today where many people agree with free speech when they like what is said, and not when they don’t. Social media has a purpose. It can be a very positive tool. There will always be people and organizations that will use it for selfish purposes to create division and confusion. It is a platform to share and respond to friends on issues and many other things. It is not a reliable source for serious news or personal advice. I will continue to use social media to support my friends and family in their lives. I like to acknowledge accomplishments of my colleagues, support friends that need it and share my happy personal moments. I will also use it positively for my business, charitable causes and encouragement of my network. Let’s make it something to have fun with and make a positive difference in our lives.
Ed Varney
Topline Management
McKinney, Texas
Leave It?!
Everything in life has a set of pros and cons, social media included. For me, a few of the pros are being able to easily keep up with friends and family that do not live nearby, finding events going on around the area, and it creates an easy way for small businesses to share what services or products they offer. Some of the cons would be the distraction it can cause when you are physically with people, the mental health toll it can induce when comparing yourself to what others are doing and the ability for people to make comments they would never say directly to a person. If I had to choose, I’d say leave it. We lived many years without it and did just fine!
Abby Thurston
Rural Computer Consultants
Bird Island, Minnesota
I left all social media, except LinkedIn, several years ago due to the blatant censorship and misinformation produced by those platforms. (Not that LinkedIn is pure by any means.) They allowed themselves to be compromised by those with political and ideological agendas that superseded facts. ... It continues today and for those reasons I’ll stay off of them. I enjoy the additional benefit of not wasting time on them, so I suppose they have done me a huge favor.
Boyd H. McGathey
Energy Distribution Partners
Parkville, Missouri
Leave it! The biggest problem is that a large majority of people, whether it is good or bad, have to throw what is on their minds out there. Then, it may turn into something else as it goes down the social media trail. The whole review of your business is something now that you can’t escape. One bad review and it could start a chain reaction, not to mention the work that may be needed to clear that review. OK, yes, I know it can be used as an effective tool in today’s world. However, I feel you could have an absolute perfect “everything” profile, both personally and/or on a business profile, and someone on social media will find some fault with it. Give me a rotary phone any day of the week!
Richard Strycharz Jr.
Walter’s Propane
Sunderland, Massachusetts
This month’s question could not have come at a better time. About a week ago, I got rid of my social media. For me, having social media had no positive advantage. I understand that some folks out there might feel differently about it than I do. For me, our world has gotten so fast paced and stressful as it is. I do not want to voluntarily have something that will add more to it. I am an old soul and miss the good old days. The days where we didn’t have instant gratification and had to put some effort in to research something — not just type in our questions and get instant answers.
Jon Shepard
VK Inspections LLC
Mercer, Pennsylvania
On The Fence
Like most things, I believe social media is best in moderation. It can be an excellent marketing tool in business or for connecting with loved ones and long-lost friends. However, when consumed in excess, it can do more harm than good.
Jessica Johnson
National Propane Gas Association
Asheville, North Carolina
Like any tool, social media can be useful, but it can also be misused and abused. I enjoy the fact that instantaneous communication with individuals or groups of people is readily available to users. Unfortunately, we have seen that social media has the potential to do great harm to individuals through abuse and to the public at large by the dissemination of inaccurate information, either accidentally or intentionally. Personally, I limit the amount of time I spend on social media, even though pop-ups and notifications are continually beckoning for my attention.
Bruce Swiecicki
National Propane Gas Association
Tinley Park, Illinois
Social media: I don’t love it, but I also don’t want to leave it. What I love is that it’s a great and easy way to stay connected to friends and family we don’t see often enough. It’s also a fun way to archive some of our experiences and holds many memories and reminds me of them. The part that I don’t love is how often and easily people forget that what you see on social media isn’t reality. People rarely post their daily struggles; they post life’s most beautiful and fun moments. If you let yourself believe that other people have the life you see on social media, not all the real-life truth behind it, that can be unhealthy.
Lauren Clark
Berquist Inc.
Toledo, Ohio
Can you both love it and hate it at the same time? I do. I like Instagram as a consumer of products. Seeing new things to make my life easier in a format like flipping the pages of a magazine. [Life]hacks are my favorite to watch. Who thinks of these shortcuts? I dislike social media when trying to “curate” content — I do not have the creativity for this.
Julie Johnson
Ted Johnson Propane
Baldwin Park, California
I certainly do not love social media but understand it is a requirement in today’s society. So many people require it for their “news,” “stalking” people, communicating to the public and so on. I just scratch the surface with it but do think it’s a good way to keep up with friends and business acquaintances that I would not otherwise do. When used properly, it can be the best way to communicate and share information to reach audiences that we could not reach before. It is just amazing how quickly things keep changing, and I guess “progress” has its pros and cons, as does social media. If I was going to be an orthopedic surgeon, I would specialize on thumbs with the fixation everyone has on phones with social media!
Tom Krupa
NGL Supply Terminals Co.
Richmond, Virginia
Take It or Leave It
This column does not aim to change your mind, but with our colleagues’ input, it can help to give an issue a second thought or shine a different light on it.
