Never Steem while under the influence!
It is hard enough to write a great Steemit post with a sober mind (or at least it is for me). So how well can we communicate when we are being influenced by other forces?
Since Steemit records our posts, comments, and replies for anyone to see, I highly recommend refraining from clicking the Steemit POST button when you are under the influence of ...
Alcohol and Drugs
We all have different opinions about the use of drugs and alcohol. And the purpose of this post is not to argue those differences, but it seems wise to refrain from Steeming when under the influence of substances that can alter your thoughts and/or behaviors.
Although an incoherent post or reply written in a drunken stupor may give a lot of people a good laugh, it may be a poor reflection on your personal brand or business initiatives on Steemit.
Remember that Steemit records every transaction (posts, comments, replies, and payments).
- These transactions are available for anyone to see (ranging from present-day friends to future business partners).
- These transactions are immutable (unchangeable) after 7 days when payment is received.
I understand that some people can harness their creative skills when using alcohol or drugs, but if we are honest, most of us do not put our best foot forward when we are not of sober mind.
Anger
I have seen some incredible work from fellow Steemians who are struggling emotionally. They write beautifully despite their pain and sadness. But anger, which is one of the hardest emotions to control in my opinion, can start to control us in a different kind of way. When we are angry we tend to act defensively, instead of proactively.
I believe that anger is a valid emotion, and there are times when it needs to be expressed. But once anger is unleashed it is very challenging to draw it back in. The ripple effect of anger can be far-reaching. Something shared with one person will be shared with many, and because of the transparency of our community, a single message can be shared with anyone.
Be careful what you write in anger, and be even more careful about what you post in anger.
Exhaustion
After a long day and running low on fumes, most of us are more likely to write poor quality posts and replies. Not only do we become more vulnerable to making typos and grammatical errors, we also are likely to make other mistakes.
For instance, a quick reply that can normally convey a strong message is weaker and easier to misinterpret. Misinterpretation can happen at any time of the day, but especially when we are tired and running low on energy. Our minds are just not as sharp.
Miscommunication can happen because of the sender and/or receiver. If we want to improve the effectiveness of our message, we should try to eliminate any barriers in our current situation that impacts our awareness and ability to communicate. Exhaustion can be as equally impactful on a message as alcohol or anger.
Get your rest and Steem on. Be careful when writing late-night posts and comments/replies.
Your Turn
Let's continue the conversation in the comments section.
- Have you ever written a comment or reply that you wish you could take back?
- Has does writing articles in an altered state of mind impact your writing skills? Do you feel more creative or more out of control?
- What other factors impact our ability to write quality posts and interact well with our community?
Look forward to hearing from you.
@sumatranate
Image Sources:
https://pixabay.com/en/drink-glass-alcohol-bar-whisky-3108436/
https://pixabay.com/en/depression-man-anger-sadness-2912404/
https://pixabay.com/en/boy-male-man-young-sleeping-828850/
I am guilty of the last one - writing under exhaustion. Well not exactly exhaustion but tiredness which makes me take shortcuts and not explain what I want to the way I usually do, in detail - though I never comment "nice post!"
This post comes at the right time when I most of the ongoing flag wars have to do with posting in anger, if not under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol.
This should be a mandatory read for all Steemit users, and I wish there was a notice board to post this!
@maxabit, I am most guilty of the last one also. I appreciate what you are saying about tiredness/exhaustion leading to shortcuts. It is so easy to give less effort when running low on energy.
Thanks for the kind words about this being an important post to read. Your kind words mean a lot to me!
Years ago I realized it was possible to become so tired and unable to think straight that I didn't dare trust my own work. The possibility of mistakes -- let alone risking the wrong words at the wrong time -- was too high ... and I was too depleted to double-check myself accurately. I would tell my husband, I just don't trust my own work any longer -- and we'd close down our computers and get some sleep.
This is doubly hard for me, because I truly love what I do -- but there comes a point where I either quit for the night or I relegate myself to what I call "monkey work" ... work any trained monkey can do. If this is a temptation for you ... learn this lesson before you come to grief over it.
Good job, @sumatranate. Evidently this is lesson whose time has come -- and it does eventually come to us all!!
@enchantedspirit, thanks for the thoughtful response. It is important to know our limitations, and I appreciate that you are sharing this message with our fellow community members.
The more exhausted we are, the more likely we are to make mistakes. Oh so true! Thanks for the wise council. Thanks for stopping by!
I don't drink but it would be hilarious to see what some of my mates do on Steemit when they're under the influence!!
I don't drink either. I think that a drunken show would be more enjoyable for the viewers versus the person under the influence. Just imagine doing something totally out of character and not being able to errase it from Steemit.
This was such an important post!!!! We live in an age where it is WAYYYYY too easy to respond instantaneously. How many times have I come back to a text and thought hmmmmm I could have put that a better way if I had just waited a moment to THINK. lol
and what about the OTHER person's state of mind! Sometimes you can have the best of intentions and forethought on what you're writing!!! but the other person is having a bad day and misreads your tone.
It really goes both ways and people need to be so cautious in their written communication and give LOTS of grace!!! :)
Excellent post! :)
(and if you do come across a particularly funny - and non-offensive- drunk post.... do share! I could use a chuckle!) hahhahaha
@dreemsteem, thanks for a such a thoughtful reply. I completely agree that communication is a two-way street. Even if the sender is communicating well, the receiver still might have challenges that must be overcome. That is such an excellent point!
Tone is so hard to communicate in written text. Completely agree about giving grace. I so often receive it, I should be ready to give it out as well.
well there you go... that was just a gentle reminder that grace should abound! hehehehe
and you're right! have you noticed that we have become so dependent on emojis!!! LOL without a smiley face - we're left wondering, "wait. are they serious? are they mad at me?? why no smiley face?!?!"
just look at the difference between the two.
Hey how are you?
hi
and....
Hey how are you?
Hi :)
I should write a post on emoji dependency! LOLOLOL
Sounds like a great idea. Emojis are an important part of communication on the internet.
Good advice!
Thanks @extrospect. I appreciate you stopping by.
Well, this is a good one. Got a lot of grey/gray area to swim around in here. Some of the greatest artist known in history (not that this is a bragging point) had major substance abuse issues. Depending on what your voice is here, I could see this being very debatable, just because I'm not here to tell someone how to drive their creative brand. Yes, I agree with the implication of being responsible with our new found tool set, and access, but if you are a poet that gets lost in a bottle of moonshine before writing the most profound words of your life (this is anecdotal of course), then who are we to limit their ability to create. I'm also not encouraging it either. As a performer in bars and clubs, I have dealt with this topic a lot. A glass or two of wine while writing, or three fingers of scotch before you take the stage just to help remove the judgmental influences of the frontal cortex can't hurt, in my humble opinion. If you curate though, you have to stay sober because you are reading, understanding, responding, selecting, speaking on, and promoting. These require presence. Art can be found out in the darkness sometimes. Moving to your specific questions though, I don't live with regrets, try not to, so the answer is honestly, no. Even if I had made an a$$ of myself, I wouldn't regret it, I'd learn from it or laugh at it. No one is perfect. I have been completely exhausted trying to play catch up on comments and probably left a couple ambiguous comments or just unrelated ramble, presumably. I've driven places and not remembered because of the same exhaustion, so anything is possible. Now, my writing in other assisted states of mind, debatable, and again probably has a lot to do with ones standards and purpose on the platform. I probably still wouldn't click post without a healthy sober proof-reading.
@mental-extract, I completely agree with your comment about the gray area. I think that the distinction that you made about loosening up to perform and be creative versus activities like reading, understanding, responding, selecting, speaking on, and promoting is extremely important.
We all have different thresholds, and we all have our vices.
More than being a strong rule to follow (because who am I to make a Steemit rule), I hope that this post will help people think about their circustmances and state of mind when they enter our community to post.
Thanks for the great addition to the conversation.
I agree, it's worth mentioning. This isn't your average blog community. Thank you and you are welcome. My pleasure.
Brilliant post.
If you've had too much to drive than you've had too much to go online. There are some aspects for me.
@mr-neil, I really like the comparison between driving on the road and navigating online:
We are becoming a less social society. Thanks for the reminder to engage the people we are with. And it is wise advice to post as if your job depended on it.
Years ago, when I was single I had rule- never text or post on facebook when drinking.
It's amazing how alcohol can alter your thinking.
@goldendawne, that is a very good rule. I have never consumed alcohol (except for communion once) because I am too afraid of not being in control.
I have a hard enough time feeling stable when I am of sober mind.
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really like you say @sumatranate
to write a story or news in need of concentration and there should be no distractions.
better yet we make a post in a place where nothing is disturbing.
there we are free to think.
our minds become more open.
sorry if my english is not too true because i use google translate.
warm regards from me @boyan140799
@boyan140799, you are doing a great job communicating in English. I understand what you are trying to say.
I agree that we need to remove as many distractions as possible, and if our energy or lack of engergy prevents us from writing a good post, then we need to rest first.
The reason for resting is like what you said:
Thanks for adding to the conversation.
Well, a good post. It could have been excellent if you gave warning to posting and being under the influence of narcissism. Snick! Snick!
@aedroberts, you bring up a great point. Being overly interested in one's self (either excessively proud or excessively self-demeaning) can have a tremendous impact the ability to Steem objectively.
Thanks for adding to the conversation!