The LIKE
Warning: I’m about to make a Confession…
I never thought I would be so slave to it but I must admit, I am profoundly affected by “THE LIKE.”
You know what I’m talking about don’t you? We all suffer from this.
That powerful little button at the bottom of your Blog post or Facebook page awaiting judgement from the outside world?
I hate to say this but it really truly matters. You may not admit it, but I have no doubt you feel the same way. How can you not?
Recently, I consulted my Site Stats and was overwhelmingly delighted to see numerous visitors to The Expressible Café.
There were patrons from such exotic countries as Thailand, Turkey and the Philippines, intrigued guests from culturally stimulating Brazil, France and Germany and even interested visitors from thrilling Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom.
I was beyond ecstatic to see the little map filled in with colour on my admin page. That is… until I glanced at the “Like” star.
To see that many patrons pop by and few leave any mark in the way of “Hi, I liked what you’ve done here” was very discouraging. Were they too tired or distracted to click? Did they perhaps not like what they saw?
Why are we so wired for immediate feedback? What has happened to us that we require such validation from others, both friends and strangers alike?
Why can we not be pleased with merely the number of our viewing audience and leave it at that?
Because in this crazy modern world, we have become slave to instant gratification. If we aren’t recognized for a funny comment or photo posted to our Facebook page, somehow we feel alone and isolated from the rest of the world, like no one cares.
If we are paid a glance or two by Blog visitors without a little “Like” tap, we tend to feel that we haven’t done our job as writers.
It can be unnerving to say the least.
What did I do wrong? Was I not funny enough? Did they not get my poetry? Was I too obscure? Boring? Mundane? Blah?
I cannot know what motivation or intent brings patrons to The Expressible Café. I would like to think perhaps they appreciate an ounce of my talent (at least I think I can write).
Yet, all that complaining aside, I do sincerely appreciate every single passerby and especially treasure my followers.
I value the views on my little chart graph and will carry on in my efforts to earn your “Like.”
But, if nothing else, I do hope you will continue to at least stop in at The Expressible Café and enjoy a little look around.
Paula Antonello Moore, Thoughts. Copyright: Tuesday, May 26, 2015.
Image: from Yale Daily News.
LIKE!! 🙂 B. On 2015-05-26 10:35 AM, “The Expressib