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Should you be friends with your parents on social media?

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Gettyimages
Gettyimages

You love your parents dearly and you don’t want to hurt their feeling by blocking them. But, how do you enjoy social media without filtering what you post? We find out. 

It can be very uncomfortable for millenials to share their social media space with their parents. As young people, we are just living our best lives and want to document everything on social media.

Weigh the pros and cons

The first port of call is to properly think before clicking the ‘accept invitation’ button. Will having your parents on social media embarrass you? For example, they might tag you in your old photos, or reprimand you for what you post online. On the other, you can accept their requests as a way to keep in touch. Once you weigh the pros and cons, you can go ahead and click the accept button. Or not.. 

Establish boundaries

While this may seem taboo to some parents, your social media forms a part of your identity hence it’s important to establish boundaries. Your rules could include things like what to and what not post. Do they comment on your posts or just keep scrolling? Or are you allowed to have mutual friends?

Agree on a compromise

Blocking them out completely on all social media platforms might come across as rude, so reach a compromise. Decide on the one platform you’re both comfortable with and connect there. This will help you avoid embarrassment, stress and having to explain your actions. 

Monitor their online behavior

According to research by Kaspersky Lab and B2B International, globally, 87% of Internet users aged 55 and over are accessing social media. The results show that 45% of South African Internet users admit that their older relatives have suffered an online threat including online scams. So to avoid your parents being the next victim, teach them about the dangers of social media and how they can protect themselves, for instance, having a locked/ private account so that their data isn’t accessed by people they don’t know.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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