By Angelina Johnson
“What are you doing right now?” I typically receive this question via text message from someone who is curious to know about my current whereabouts. Because I tend to answer with a brief response such as “just chillin’,” I never understood why anyone would want to know what I was doing at any given point in time. Now imagine if my response was not only given to the person who asked this inquiry, but also to my entire phone contact list. Friends, family members, co-workers, and even that friendly person I met on a flight once, would now know at exactly 4:54 PM that I was “just chillin’.” While this notion seems to have no logic, it fuels the massive social network Twitter.
With 140 characters or less, people utilize Twitter to inform their followers of what they are currently doing through messages known as “tweets”. On the surface, Twitter appears to be nothing new in comparison to other social networking sites. Facebook has its users answer the question, “What’s on your mind?” while myspace has a “current mood” section. So, what exactly is making Twitter unique from these other social venues? The difference, perhaps, lies in not only the followers who read these messages, but also the site’s users. Unlike Facebook and myspace, Twitter mainly attracts individuals who fall under the age range of 25 to 54. Due to the site’s heavy time commitment, social etiquette, and lack of customizable profiles, teenagers are unlikely to engage in tweeting.
In this aspect, Twitter has deviated from the norm of social media. Instead of impacting the youth, it heavily influences the professional world. With unemployment rates at a twenty-four year high, businesses are using the site as a venue for both advertising and employment opportunities. Consequently, the majority of young professionals feel pressured to join this realm of social media in order to be kept in the loop.
This is where the dichotomy of Twitter presents itself. On one hand, there is a benefit to relaying pertinent information instantly to a mass large of people. Medical groups such as the World Health Organization uses this social site as a way to inform subscribers about updates on current illnesses. However, the problem of Twitter resides not in its ability to relay important knowledge, but rather the type of information the social media spreads.
Members of the site are in danger when they use the network as a way to portray a false identity to the Internet world. Because most individuals assume they have the power to allow only certain subscribers to read their posts, many users are more willing to write about opinions and experiences that they normally would not express in person. The harsh reality is that the Internet does not serve as an impermeable mask to the professional world. In fact, people have been fired as a result of posting crude comments online. Hence, Twitterers should be advised not to intermix their personal and professional lives. Any information that is meant to remain private has no place in the Internet realm. No young professional should feel the need to routinely inform their colleagues about their daily whereabouts and/or personal opinions, at least not on a networking site.
The question that remains is: if not Twitter, what tool should be used to quickly transmit pertinent information to numerous people? In an ideal world, individuals should remain proactive in communicating with others. Perhaps, the most effective way to fulfill this is to stick to sending messages via e-mail. This may not be as personal as the traditional phone call, but it offers a direct way to converse with others and provides people with the choice of who reads their messages. E-mail also allows the other party to engage in a back-and-forth conversation, while Twitter is only a one-way street.
As young professionals, we should always look to the future and become aware of the latest technology. Unfortunately, an advance in technology does not always guarantee a step forward on the path to success. Two of the main goals of young professionals are to actively form strong relationships and to pursue a career with passion and ambition. Both of these goals lend themselves to taking active steps to manage one’s identity. While there are many avenues that people can choose from to accomplish this, twittering is just not one of them.
Angelina Johnson is a 21-year-old first-year PharmD candidate with an undergraduate degree in Biological Psychology. She writes under a pseudonym to protect her professional identity.
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