How social media became an icebreaker

It’s been a little over a year now since I got social media.  First it was Facebook.  Then Instagram followed.  Now I have Pinterest…and a second Instagram account for my photography.  In middle school, when all of my friends had social media and I didn’t, it was because I was afraid I would become so distracted with the feeds that I wouldn’t spend time studying or using my time productively.  A year later, my feelings about social media and its power has changed and is continuing to evolve. 

When I first got media, it was more about keeping up with friends and where they were traveling and what they were doing over the summer.  Now that my accounts have grown, I see social media almost as a way to form conversations and gateways to friendships with people whom I always see in school but never talk to.  It’s that weird feeling I sometimes get.  Maybe it’s that person I see in the gym frequently.  Or the person who I always walk by in the library but never talk to.  The common thing is that these are people who I want to start a conversation with, but can’t find a way to.  I still prefer to talk to people in person, but sometimes it can be awkward or I may not come off correctly.  I don't want to come off as weird and I certainly would not want to take the person by surprise.  As an alternative, social media has become an exemplary icebreaker for these sorts of relationships…the kinds where you see people around enough so that you know them but can’t fixate upon the first words. It's a pretty relaxed environment, where people generally like each others posts regardless of whether they've talked to them. Whether someone uploads a post, or sends a story, I’ve found that commenting or replying to them is a wonderful way to extend a conversation.  

It starts off with a simple comment.  It’a a simple word, phrase, or sentence.  And that’s all one needs for that icebreaker, because before I know it, there’s a conversation going back and forth over the social media.  The comment on the post expands to different topics and before I’m aware, there’s already 10 messages sent back and forth.  And the beauty of it is that now, not only do I have someone who I can say hi to and perhaps approach in person, but that one post or story could be that icebreaker in real life.