I grew up talking to people on the internet.
I was lucky, and also judicious, and also helped along. Nothing even close to significantly bad ever happened to me from talking to people online.
Of course, a troll or two, a bad moment or two, are hard to avoid. But I’ve been happy.
A personality trait of mine that has been reinforced by living online is that I don’t quite care about your credentials. In the internet, nobody knows you’re a horse. I care about ideas, and about things you’ve done. I come to think of you as more “really you” as time goes along and I see more interactions, more content, more… proof of self-hood?
It happens sometimes that I’ll be talking to someone and — well, maybe they’re an internationally recognized physician, and it’s weird to them that I’m questioning something mundane (I read recently about a kerfuffle with some medications that you put in your nose, similar to the delivery mechanism of this particular medicine you’re giving me. Are you aware of that? Is this part of that kerfuffle? Is the kerfuffle even warranted?)
And by weird, I say I happily was treated particularly well and she was just mildly taken aback and pointed out credentials. Which I understood to be a way of saying as “Come on, like I would put you in harms way! I know stuff, you know? I’m your physician!”
I tried to explain — it’s not you, it’s me. That answer means nothing. I need the thing addressed. I’m not implying you don’t know. In fact, I’m implying my belief that you would know, which is why I ask you instead of taking things into my own hands.
That’s not usual, I guess?
Then I’m just talking to people in places. I don’t care if you’re the CXO of whatnot, or have ten PhDs; for all intents and purposes you’re a human being, and so am I, and we’re playing at existence and knowledge and society.
And suddenly I’ll learn someone is X of Y; “Founder of a certain company”, “Writer of a certain book”, “Volunteer of a certain organization”, “Extremely competent in something, anything at all” and I’ll be amazed at finding out! Like, I get starstruck on top of liking them as a human being and not the other way around. And I’ll be happy for them and their success.
While the internet allows some people to grow deformed in their souls, I have been lucky to have been molded into a robust posture.
The internet as a medium for just being yourself, warts and all; being yourself as a medium for knowing yourself; knowing yourself as a medium for self improvement.
I’ve been lucky. These behaviors don’t fit everywhere, and I’ve had places to fit into.
Let’s be weird and authentic and open to thinking new thoughts and loving new things and new people — from the comfort of our corner of the world. You can do it, too. The world can be a better place – forget about as a whole, but for you, specifically, like it’s been for me. Hopefully ;).