Why I Chose the University of Georgia

Recently I was scrolling through my Facebook feed when I stumbled upon this trending article:

“I go to Athens because it reminds me of why we are alive.”

The article had been shared by over 12 of my friends on Facebook, friends that are in the same boat as me, about to graduate UGA and face the real world in just a few short weeks. I usually don't read many articles people post or share on Facebook because I don't like the process of having to download specific apps and readers just to view an article, and then the spam that posts on your Facebook afterwards. However, I couldn't help myself with this one.

While I read this article, I had chills and teared up as I read this older man's account of what UGA means to him, even thirty years later. This last semester has been a whirlwind of emotions for me as I have prepared to take on the real world with a new job, and leaving the safety net that is UGA and college, behind forever. I have embraced every second of this last semester, especially these last few weeks, visiting places I've never gone before and enjoying the company of all my college friends, some of who I will not see for quite some time after graduation. 

After reading this article on Facebook, I reminisced on all of the times I've had here at UGA, the good and the bad, all from freshman year up until now. There is definitely no place in the world I would have rather spent my past four years. This school has left an indelible mark upon me, and I will forever cherish these precious memories. It's funny how sometimes all it takes is a Facebook article to bring you right back to the core of reality. Congratulations to all of my friends about to graduate in a few weeks, and GO DAWGS!!

Sanford Stadiums first concert ever brings in over 60,000 fans

UGA students and country fans everywhere have been preparing for this landmark concert for weeks now. Georgia natives Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean brought out a huge crowd of over 60,000 fans at Sanford Stadium Saturday night, the first concert ever to take place at Sanford, and most likely the last.  The concert had social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram buzzing the entire week leading up to the concert, and then of course all throughout.   

Probably the biggest surprises of the night were from the "guest appearances," by Kelly Clarkson and Ludacris. However, Kelly Clarkson's appearance was in the form of a very believable hologram which appeared on stage during Jason Aldean's song "Don't you want to stay." People were tweeting about the appearance non-stop, and it seemed that nobody realized Kelly's appearance was a mere hologram until the next day. Of course this kind of thing poses some sort of public embarrassment for those who were unaware of the effects and posting to social media. However, more than anything I think fans, especially UGA students were just thrilled to be apart of such an amazing experience at a venue with so much sentimental value.

 

Does social media know more about you than your own parents?

Anyone who has a Facebook profile is probably aware of how increasingly more difficult the privacy settings are to maneuver. Facebook's settings used to seem so simple and you would know exactly where to go if you wanted to block certain people, or make posts private. However, more recently social media users have not found the new settings to be as user friendly. Brooke Nepo goes more in depth about the problems some users are having with Facebook in her blog post on Soshable, "Big Brother Facebook Knows You Better Than You Know Yourself – and They’ll Tell Your Dad."

In her post, Nepo tells a story of student at UT Austin, and how his life was turned upside down when his dad found out about his sexuality over Facebook. The student was looking for a LGBT page on Facebook to somehow get connected on campus with a group of similar students, and because he disregarded his privacy settings, all of Facebook was notified when he accepted an invitation into the group on Facebook. This is just one case of this happening on social media. 

Unfortunately one of the costs of being active on social media is realizing that you are putting easy accessible information on the web for anyone to see. It is important that users are aware of the settings for each post or picture privacy if they are friends with people on Facebook who they do not want to share certain things with. Facebook is making public information more public and private info public as well. The real question is where should the line be drawn? Until then, Facebook and social media users need to be alert and wary of the information they choose to share.

Human Rights Advocates take to Social Media

If you have Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or use any other forms of social media, you have probably seen the red and pink equal sign that has been taking social media by storm

This sign has been popular recently because of the Supreme Court meeting this past week regarding the future of gay marriage, specifically Proposition 8. People on both sides of the issue have taken to social media in order to express their thoughts and beliefs on what they believe should happen in regards to these widely disputed issues.

Facebook users have changed their profile pictures to the popular symbol in order to draw attention to the issue, while Instagram users have been posting the picture to their feeds. Despite criticism from others many who say the symbol will have little to no effect on the overall outcome of the issue, there is no doubt that the symbol has caused social media users everywhere to question what the sign is and the meaning behind it. People are talking about the issues more openly, which was obviously the goal and intention behind the symbol all along. 

Changing the Way We Work

Blogger Vala Afshar discusses different ways social media has changed the way we operate in our everyday lives. After interviewing Jacob Morgan, author of the best-selling book The Collaborative Organization, and owner of a strategy consulting firm, Chess Media Group, Afshar summarizes the "Five Ways Social Media Has Forever Changed the Way We Work," and how what Morgan has learned about five important ways social media has enabled us to deal more effectively with issues in society and the workplace.

1. Collective Intelligence- When companies or individuals are unable to solve problems, they can post their questions to social media sites in order to obtain advice or answers to whatever questions they may have. 

2. Serendipity- Information can become even more valuable when organizations share what they have learned with others via social media. Morgan gives an example of a Lowe's Home improvement employee who was able to share a demo of what she doing at one store with others, which eventually led to increase in sales for the product and other stories across the country. The demo helped bring in over a million dollars in extra revenue. 

3. Easy to Find People and Information-  Morgan has implemented a series of collaboration tools and strategies within his consulting firm in order to decrease the duplicated content seen by his employees day to day. Since 25-30 percent of employees spend their work hours reading and looking at a ridiculous amount of duplicated content, this means a lot of wasted time. Morgan says this self-sufficient strategy is more empowering for employees and allows for less time spent e-mailing.

4. Anyone can be a Leader and Employees have a Choice- Social media allows all employees to have a voice, not just the executives and CEO's of companies. People can share their ideas for anyone within the company and elsewhere to see and read. 

5. Transparency and Flatness- Social media allows for a change to the typical hierarchy and structure of most businesses and organizations. Employees can use social media to voice how they are feeling, what they are working on, who they are meeting with, and what is happening within the company. Managers and entry-level employees can communicate with one another and bridge the gap there once was in organizational structures. 

All of these practices have allowed for more efficient businesses practices, and with the way technology is headed, our reliance on social media for quick and improved business will only continue to grow and evolve. 

Reacting Positively: The Jennifer Lawrence Fall

By now, most of us who have television, internet, or any access to social media, are familiar with Jennifer Lawrence's big fall prior to receiving her Oscar for "Best Actress," this past week. "The Fall Heard Around The World," as many bloggers and social media guru's have been referring to it, caused a social media uproar the moment it occurred. Jennifer Lawrence's Oscar moment was the second most tweeted about event during the Oscars, with 71,600 tweets (most which pertained to her fall). After getting up, Jennifer Lawrence graciously accepted her award, and even laughed and made fun of herself. 

Flash forward to the day after the Oscars and social media is blowing up with Jennifer Lawrence mentions, tweets, memes, pictures, and trending videos on both Facebook and YouTube. After the Oscars ended, Jennifer Lawrence did an interview backstage where she answered questions of all sorts from interviewers about everything from what she did to get ready prior to the Oscars, to her "Award Winning Fall." This backstage footage video was one of the most popular videos trending after the Oscars. Would this video have been as popular if people were not already on YouTube searching for links to the video of her fall? Probably not. Throughout the video, Lawrence's honest, down-to-earth personality, really shines, giving fans (as well as those who might not even know who she is at all), a glimpse into the person behind the celebrity.

 Because Lawrence handled the situation gracefully, she was able to turn an unfortunate mishap into one which boosted her social media popularity among fans and people of all ages. Had she handled the situation poorly, or reacted inadequately, the situation might have had a detrimental effect on her reputation or likability. This event just goes to show us how fast people take to social media when blunders like this occur, and how a celebrity's reaction can make or break their reputation thereafter.

Embracing Social Media

In today's day and age, it is important to take advantage of social media, both the good and the bad. JD Rucker emphasizes this in his blog post titled "Don't Fear Your Customers on Social Media- Embrace Them!" In his post Rucker discusses how some people and businesses fear social media because they do not want to be portrayed in a bad light or have people discussing them negatively for other customers to see online. Rucker says that no social media presence at all  is worse than a negative one. He goes on to talk about some of the world's most beloved brands including Disney, Apple, and Amazon. He says that no matter how big and popular your brand is and how much people love it, there are always going to be haters out there. Social media is a voice for people to discuss their likes and dislikes about different brands and specific products. Rucker says that instead of trying to hide and cover up bad press for a brand or product, social media gives marketers the chance to address consumer's specific issues. If anything, the Applebee's social media controversy not too long ago demonstrates just that. By trying to delete comments and hide the issue, Applebees made the situation ten times worse. If marketers take Rucker's advice and use social media to their advantage and work on turning negatives into positives with good, constructive customer service, they will most likely see positive outcomes in the future.