Cyberbullying prevention starts at home.

Cyberbullying prevention starts at home.

If all your friends jumped off a bridge would you do it too?

Show of hands, how many heard that growing up? I think this analogy deserves a reboot. We are living in strange, uncertain times. Many people are full of anxiety about the in-coming administration and the question I hear over and over again is: What do we do now? In an uncertain political climate, there is still much we can control.

The Social Media Advisory Counsel was established well before the election, but our mission has not changed, it’s need however, has been greatly amplified. Half of what we do as an organization is provide resources and programs for cyberbulling prevention. The statistics of online bullying are dismaying to say the least. To combat cyberbullying, our messaging focuses on education and mindfulness. As Executive Director I feel that this message needs to be sung loudly, proudly, and as often as possible.

Most of you know I can be quite verbose, but I can say this in two words:

Be Nice.

Let’s get to the point here, nothing is going to change until we all remember that we may have disagreements, but the bottom line is we are all people, and we all want a better life. Until we return to humanity and remember that we are all doing the best we can, we will remain in gridlock. Have you ever told your significant other to “calm down” during an argument? I’d be willing to bet our annual budget that it did not yield positive response. We have to calm down on our own, and we have to start by finding a common ground and listening. This is just a matter of efficiency, oh, and human decency.

The good news is that this starts at home!

Each and every one of us is responsible for what we put out into the world, especially the digital world where with the click of a button there is a permanent mark. The government doesn’t need to make a law telling you not to bully someone else.  You choose who you want to be, you choose what you say and do.

What do you want your legacy to be? Do you want to feed negativity, or spur actual progress? Both sides have some very real issues, and both good points and bad. We succeed together when we put down the arrows and raise our glasses together. It may sound pie in the sky, but we will never get there without constant reminders.

That is what the Social Media Advisory Counsel is here for- to provide resources and reminders against cyberbullying or any bullying for that matter. The more we speak these messages, the more we will be able to infuse humanity back into the digital world and the physical world.

I’d love to further this conversation with all of you, please feel free to send comments to [email protected]

#cyberbullyingprevention #cyberbullying #100days #socialmedia #nobullying #stopbullying