How Private is Your Personal Life?

“Ours is a society in which secrets of private life that, formerly, you would have given nearly anything to conceal, you now clamor to get on a television show to reveal.” ~ Susan Sontag

Our private lives have become far too public today. With the instant gratification one can get from social media, it seems that people are in a rush to share every minute detail of their life. Are they trying to live a life like the Hollywood rich and famous they follow, or are they just desperate for attention?

The ones I truly do not understand at all are those who share the most tragic, personal details of their lives. I was raised in a time when we were taught to keep these things to ourselves. What went on in our personal lives was not to be shared in public.

It isn’t just on social media; go into any public place and you will hear people sharing the most intimate details of their lives. At the register both customers and employees speak freely as if the whole world is interested in what they have to say. Walking down the street people will be having “private” cell phone conversations on speaker phone. Everyone appears to be saying “look at me, look at me, I’m important”. Guess what, you are no more important than anyone else, and we don’t care about your personal lives or conversations.

The workplace also is not where one should talk about their private life. Business is business, and your personal affairs should not be discussed at work. You are being paid to work; plus, giving your employer too much information on how you live is not beneficial to you in the end.

It is difficult to be treated with dignity and respect when you don’t respect yourself enough to maintain some privacy in your life. Why would you want to give so many people the opportunity to judge your life, or give their opinion on how you choose to live? Many of the people who overshare are the first ones to complain when someone does judge or give advice. You can’t have it both ways, so don’t share if you do not want to hear what others have to say.

An old saying I heard many times growing up was “Don’t air your dirty laundry in public”. It was some very good advice that has stayed with me, and I passed on to my children. Many times when we talk too much in public we will come to regret that decision. The one person you tell today is not the only one who will know by tomorrow.

We can have wonderful conversations and relationships with others without revealing too much of our private life. Every moment does not have to be an open book for the entire world to see. A little mystery can be far more interesting than the reality.