How can I stop people assuming things about me from social media?
"I love almost every single aspect of my job. Almost."
During the four weeks following Donald Trump’s inauguration, we’re publishing a series of guest essays that speak to the key issues Diem stands for. Next:
of on mixing dating and social media.But first, here’s what else people are talking about on Diem:
Decorated war veteran, the only woman officer in High Command. Ask me anything
Can someone explain why my period blood is brown rather then red
Have you ever been to a party where all the dudes want to do is debate you about how what Kyle Rittenhouse did was totally justified?
How about being dragged into the bathroom under the pretense of a steamy makeout sesh that actually transpires as an impromptu crisis meeting about their boss using a slur against them and asking if you could cancel them online?
I don’t know if it’s funny or tragic that both of these things have happened to me.
I love almost every single aspect of my job. Almost. The two things I could do without are the trolls (duh) and people’s preconceived notions of me. When people first meet me (if they know what I do for a job) they assume a few things: I’m on my phone all the time (wrong), I’m rich (wrong), or I’m an extremely triggered social justice warrior (you couldn’t be More Wrong.)
Having a somewhat “public” life online is, for lack of a better word, random. In its lighter moments, someone will recognize my voice on an aeroplane because they’re an avid listener to our podcasts, or start a conversation on a dating app about martinis when I’d never mentioned them before (they soon admitted they read it in the newsletter.) In its more nefarious moments, you realise that someone is more interested in getting you to read their writing sample than their texts, or your extended family turns on you because you’re “liberal and vaxxed.”
For a long time, I didn’t show my face on Shit You Should Care About — I still don’t really. But when I wrote our book, “Make It Make Sense” I decided it would be nice for people to see the girl behind the stories, and that I’m literally just like them (the reader.) By this stage I’d been doing this weird online job for six years, so I’m pretty brave about all that now. Who I am online is who I am in real life, so there was really no point in me “hiding” it anymore. But the thing is, I would still rather someone meet me and decide they like who I am before they can see inside every little part of my brain on the internet. I don’t care what people think about my face or my clothes, but what I do miss is the mystery. Mystery is hot, and it’s one of the few things that make meeting new people so fun.
Until I crack the code on being mysterious while posting my thoughts to 150k-3.4 million people each day, I’m sure I will keep having weird debates with right-wing dudes at parties, and receiving confusing messages from people who know exactly how I feel about a topic before we’ve even discussed it. Anyway, if I figure it out, you'll be able to read about it online.
Luce xxx
ICYMI
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