Transcription
Translator: Walaa Mohammed
Proofreader: gaith Takrity
On that day, I was scrolling through Instagram, and I came across this post that said social media is bad. So I'm thinking to myself, well, I'm looking at a post about how posts are bad. (Laughter) Oh, but that's not even the best part. The best part is clicking on it, and the comment says, "Save this for later as a reminder." So basically, they want me to get off social media but to come back so I can re-read why I shouldn't be on it in the first place. (Laughter) This got me thinking, and I realized that social media is often taught as a terrible thing. In fact, at the beginning of every school year, most high school students sit in an assembly. And part of the assembly talks about safety on social media. They tell you about how you're going to get scammed or kidnapped. But they stop there. They don't tell you about how you can use it in a safe and beneficial way. And unfortunately, these things are very real and happen more than they should. But the way to prevent that is by teaching teenagers how to use it in a beneficial way. You know, I think a lot of people don't realize the real impact of social media on us. In fact, I didn't realize the real impact until one day my English teacher said, "Students, what is the purpose of children's books?" So I thought to myself, well, there are many different reasons for children's books. But one of the biggest reasons is to teach children lessons without them realizing that they are learning. Looking back, I learned not to take food from strangers because Snow White ate a poisoned apple. See, at that time, it was children's books. But it's no longer just children's books. It's all the content that we choose to surround ourselves with: TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, all of it. I'm currently reading this book. It's called "The Things You Can See Only When You Slow Down." And the author of this book, he says, "The world is neither good nor bad." It stays as it is. And the way we perceive the world depends on our individual experiences. So let's think about that from a social media perspective. There are seven billion people in this world. And in our daily lives, we don't even interact with one percent—in fact, it's much less than one percent. So the way we learn about life outside of our little bubble is by doing things like traveling. But unfortunately, we can't always travel. So the other primary way that we do that is through social media. So, if your social media is filled with drama, toxicity, and things that make you feel bad about yourself, then naturally, you're going to look at the world as a more negative place. Whereas, if your social media is filled with positivity and things that align with your goals, then you're going to look at the world as a more positive place. See, the problem isn't social media. The problem is how you choose to use it. I hear a lot of stories about people going through these bad experiences on social media, and I've had social media for a while now. And honestly, the only scary thing on my Instagram is when I look at my archived posts and see what I used to post in middle school. (Laughter) But other than that, it's been a very positive experience. So what's my secret? How do I keep my social media in this positive, uplifting place? Well, there are four groups of people you need to follow. Group one: positive friends, family, and acquaintances. Now, I mean truly positive, because I'll often hear someone say, "I don't like this person. They're so mean to me." But then, you'll go on their Instagram and guess who they're following—that person who's so mean to them. Why would you surround yourself with that toxic energy if you have the option not to? Group two: people who align with your goals. Now for me, my future goal is to start my own business one day so the types of people that I follow are people who have started their own businesses. People who give financial advice or investment advice or just business in general. Because the easiest way to achieve your goal is to ask someone or watch someone who has already achieved it. Group three: people who inspire you. Now, this is different from people who align with your goals. I was a gymnast for about twelve years. I wanted to go to the Olympics. I truly believed I was going to the Olympics. In fact, I used to write "Dear Future Me" letters to myself, and I was reading them a few weeks ago, and they all started with: Dear Future Me, are you at the Olympics yet?" Unfortunately, no. But my point is, at that time, my goal was to go to the Olympics. So the types of people that I was following were people like Simone Biles, Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas. However, going to the Olympics is no longer my goal. However, I never unfollowed these people because they still inspire me. Group four: artists. Now, of course, social media is an entertainment platform. And I'm not telling you not to use it as such. I'm just telling you to be mindful of the types of entertainment you consume. Great examples of positive entertainment are your favorite artists, people like Shawn Mendes, Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift, whatever. As long as what they're posting makes you feel good about yourself. See when you start categorizing your followers into those four groups, not only will you be happier, but opportunities will also start coming your way. Back in May, I came across this ad on Instagram. It was for this program called Beta Camp. And Beta Camp advertised itself as the six-week program where they challenge teenagers to create a revenue-generating startup with the help of business mentors. Now, this sounded perfect to me, but of course, at first, I was skeptical, as you should be with ads that you see on social media because they're often going to be fake. But I was reassured about it. I looked at their Instagram; I looked at their website, and it turned out to be real. And I successfully created a revenue-generating startup in just six weeks. Now, was it good? Definitely not. (Laughter) Did I make money? Yes. So I'd call that a win. But through this program, I was offered a fellowship to continue this journey throughout the school year. Through this fellowship, I was able to take two additional classes: one on platform creation and another on investing. So my point is, just because my social media embodies my goals, opportunities that align with those goals were presented to me. Now, how does this happen? Well, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, whatever, all of these social media platforms love to make money. How do they do that? They put things in your feed based on what you've interacted with in the past or based on who you follow. So follow positive people, follow people who align with your goals. Now, before you all leave today I have two requests. My first request is to start paying attention to the types of content you consume. Start welcoming positivity and blocking negativity. And my second request is: stop participating in spreading the idea that social media is a terrible thing. Instead, educate about the risks while encouraging people to use it in a positive way. Now, I've said a lot today. So to summarize everything that I've said, I'll leave you all with one of my favorite quotes. It says: "Nothing that I say is original. I am a collective effort of everyone I have ever known." Now, that's a beautiful quote, but I'd like to add to it. I'd like to say, nothing that I say is original. I am a collective effort of everyone I have ever known and the content that I have surrounded myself with. Thank you. (Applause) (Cheers)