I don’t know what it’s like to be a man, but I can tell you a lot about what it’s like to be a woman. Beyond the modern conversations of equality, the classic role of the female has been that of muse, even when she herself is a creator.
Technology has given us new modes of communication: text / photo / video messaging, social media, digital content. What are we using these for? As complicated as encryption and security protocols may be, we mainly use the Internet to satisfy the simplest need to connect from one human being to another. We don’t want to be alone.
Muses
I can’t write an honest article about the Internet without mentioning that there is porn out there. It’s weird and it’s everywhere. So, if you were waiting for me to mention it, I just did. Internet porn does play a role in providing muses. But it doesn’t satisfy the need to be loved.
For men and women, true muses are limited to a few people who are terribly important. It is scary how much the opinion of those individuals can weigh on our decisions. Creative people may appear fearless. However, each of us has that one person who we are constantly trying to impress. That is our true muse. Their opinion of our work can lift us beyond ecstasy, or crush us desperately. In the age of digital delivery, it takes only hours to know if we’ve failed or succeeded.
Music
A safe way to deliver a message without having to create it ourselves, is to share songs that someone else already produced. Someone else already combined the lyrics and melody into a celebration or a cry for help. If we’re lucky, maybe they even gave us the dance steps to accompany it.
Even when the finished product is funny, we’re still relieved that somebody else put their signature on it. Think about it. Would you have been bold enough to produce and publish “Gangnam Style”? Aren’t you glad PSY put himself and his song out there for all of us to share? Together, we’ve watched it over 2 billion times! There is safety in numbers.
Amusement
The Internet connects us as much as we let it. I’ve often said, there are 7 billion people in the world, but I constantly, systematically scan the globe trying to find those individuals who truly understand me. Do you feel the same way?
@silviakspiva #twitterforb2b just doing what you do, swimming the Twitter bay. #engage pic.twitter.com/rhnHXGPZke
— Shoeb Shaikh (@NzymeSolutions) August 28, 2015
Think about what you share, and what you are trying to get in return. Do you play video games online? Do you share your real name or have you created a digital persona? Do you start the day by checking websites that provide quotes, images, or other types of encouragement? It’s not the Internet itself that is making you smile, it’s the people sharing content you wanted to find. The relationship becomes real when you start collaborating, and building something together. That’s where the fun is!
So, who is your muse? You don’t have to tell me, but you should be honest with yourself. Do they deserve you? Do they bring music into your life? Are you amused?
Photo credit: Marie-Lan Nguyen / Silvia Spiva
