Did it occur to you that you barely mentioned to your friend that you were thinking of going on a trip to a specific location, then you picked up your smartphone, started scrolling across your social media application, and got shocked because you noticed the frequency of the feeds and posts about holiday packages, vacation tours, or adventure campaigns in it had remarkedly exploded?  

What Makes Social Media So Magnetic| A Mole We Honor! 

Did it occur to you that just randomly liking a feed, image, or post flooded your social media stream with the same content?

Did it occur to you that a famous search engine asked you to review a place you just visited, about which only you and you knew?

Did it occur to you that you searched for top movies on a specific OTT platform once, and now every time you revisit the same search engine it pushes the news feeds or notifications related to movies, web series, and related topics?

Did it occur to you that just recently you have started getting spam or offensive chat requests, unannounced video calls, or even simple text messages offering relationship services because you had once, by mistake though, responded to one of such prompts?

Did it occur to you that when you look at the opening page of your video search engine you find all the videos extremely relevant to your previous search keywords, with even more appeal so you just keep engrossed in it?     

And as if this all was less mysterious, only once try watching a full-length short video without skipping on a seamlessly streaming video platform, and you will be surprised by watching content of the same kind on and on without your consent.

Or keep talking about shopping a new shoes, and in the next few minutes, your social media applications are guaranteed to show you the shopping spree. 

#What is the Cause?

Everything looks familiar, even scary, yes? And we all have experienced this, just have we not noticed or cared! But yes, we are being watched, followed, or let's say being spied on. 

And how?

I would say there is a mole among us, all the time, everywhere, glued with us, and we honor it happily without even a notice. You might guess our smartphones, yes? Nah! It is not the smartphones but brilliantly designed algorithms that come along with the applications we thoughtlessly install in our devices.

#Unnoticed, at a Time Compelling Behavior 

Just imagine how many times you thoughtlessly press the "Allow" button while getting into the hurriedness of installing an application. Wonder how many times you let social media applications access your personal photo gallery, always! Think about the credibility of the application you use on your smartphone for accessing the Caller ID. 

Just ponder why you are seeing what you see in your social media applications. Have you customized your preferences for them? No! Have you noticed when and where you are being tracked just because you have allowed your location services on! Have you asked for alluring recommendations? No! Then why do you feel helpless in not unhooking yourselves from the charm of social media? Why do you spend hours and hours on social media seeking nothing practically despite realizing the fact that you truly are wasting your time and purpose? Why do your empty moments always need to be filled with social media offerings? Why is this so magnetic?

Because we have fully opened ourselves to these smart (Nowadays AI-operated) algorithms that are relentlessly working to serve you stealthily. Believe me, this might look overstatement, but it is not, that they know what you like, what you say, what you wish, what you search for, what you might have met, where and what you visited, and even why you did what you did! 

Simply put, they feed on your behavior and present to you things only of your liking and desires, tempt you by feeding more aggressive content and habituate you to sticking to the same kind of content so that you can repeat yourselves into this never-ending loop of enticement and magnetism.

Look, it is more than natural that you will indulge yourself only in those things that give you pleasure, reward, and elevation of the mood. Scientifically speaking, they come from nothing but the surge of Dopamine, Serotonin, and Oxytocin inside your brain, collectively called Happiness Hormones. Yes, there are hundreds of ways to leverage these hormones, but most require constant motivation, effort, discipline, and dedication, and there we fail, and there, these algorithms come into play. 

They take advantage of your poor will, boredom, habits, and liking of course! They are the exploiters of your happiness hormones. Every other day you need an extra edge, a little more, and something new, and shockingly they are capable of offering this all to this day. Based on your desires, they create so much magnetism that at times you just keep scrolling without being attached to its sentimental element,  yet unable to be unhooked.

It is so magnetic because it is cheap, it is easily accessible with your fingertips, it gives you what you desire without argument, it helps create a sense of belonging, it asks no questions, it has brilliant fascination values, it creates a sense of being your companion in your loneliness (Actually you never are), it is too submissive, it has no tantrums, and the most important thing, it lets you feel that it is under your control because it is you who operate it but in reality, it is the Social Media Algorithm who controls you!

Even more dreadful is, that it can turn your mindful behavior into a nasty demeanor! So beware and be mindful of what time to dedicate and what you watch and like in it. 

#Are all algorithms the same?

Well, there are hundreds of social media applications, but a handful are used by billions daily. Most are designed in a way to create magnetism and won't let you unhook, but some ask for your preferences and wait for your choices. However, their ultimate motive is to exploit the maximum time of a user and keep offering them what they want.

#What to do? 

Well, don't pick up a knife if you don't want to hurt yourself. The statement might look impractical, yes? Knife is nonetheless required, and so is social media to some extent, because regardless of its darker side it too has some benefits, advantages, and merits. However, what ultimately matters is how you use the knife! 

Here are some curated tips you can use to keep yourself in control and stop being spied on: 

🌟On a video search engine keep the search history off and never click on prompted content, instead type manually what you want to search for. Even more, you can update the settings of your browser by Autodeleting the history after shutting the browser down.

🌟Never ever in the search bar of any social media search for any concupiscent, offensive, or violent content.

🌟Never ever click on the hashtags you are not interested in.

🌟Never ever like, comment, or share content that is out of your preferences.

🌟Pay maximum attention to what you are allowing while installing an application on your devices. For example, allowing an application to use your microphones means that the application can hear you via phone microphone what you are speaking 24x7.

🌟Pay maximum attention to which applications allow usage of your phone camera. Some applications never require to use camera, still they ask for permission and we all, now they see us! 

🌟Never ever watch full-length short videos that seem to lure you, just skip them as quickly as possible.

🌟Open the settings and see for how many applications you have allowed your location services, instead choose only those credible applications that actually require your location service. In my view, no application requires your location service except navigation apps. Off them all right away.

🌟Don't use Coller ID tracking mobile applications, they actually are spying on you. 

🌟To be extra-private you can use the Incognito mode of a browser as well.

#Final words: 

Now that you have understood how this algorithm (Mole) works with you (yet against you), it is up to you how much chance you give this mole to grow and make you addicted to it. Social Media is not outrightly sick. It gives you a chance to unwind and connect with people, gives accessibility to difficult opportunities, and offers myriad ways to educate people and flourish your business, but don't forget it too, it has a darker side, to which we can easily fall for. 

The algorithm works positively as well as negatively for all of us, but most of us choose the later one because it is true what Joseph Murphy in his book "Power of Subconscious Mind" says that the "Human mind is automatically wired to connect much easily to negativity than efforts made to attract positivity". 

Video recommendation by Phraseitup: 

How the Algorithm Controls Your Life