As Nikola Tesla suggested, the key to avoiding conflict is eliminating the distance that divides us, in all its forms. Social media may serve to bridge that gap, with the help of the law of attraction.
For a new project, I’ve been researching Nikola Tesla, a 19th and 20th century inventor and engineer. I’m interested in his work with scalar energy but beyond that he’s considered one of the main contributors to the development of electricity as we use it today. In reading Tesla’s autobiography, My Inventions, I came across the following passage that brought the benefits of social media to mind. Though Tesla is speaking specifically about war, his point can apply to human conflict in all its forms.
TESLA WRITES OF WORLD PEACE
“War can not be avoided until the physical cause for its recurrence is removed and this, in the last analysis, is the vast extent of the planet on which we live.
“Only thru annihilation of distance in every respect, as the conveyance of intelligence, transport of passengers and supplies, and transmission of energy will conditions be brought about some day, insuring permanency of friendly relations.
“What we now want most is closer contact and better understanding between individuals and communities all over the earth.”
Then today I saw this @mashable: Social Networking Usage Surges Globally. Based on statistics collected by the Nielsen Company, there are 314.5 million active social networking users around the world, with each person using these networks an average of 6 hours per month. It seems to me this is the kind of progress Tesla envisioned — an “annihilation of distance” for the “conveyance of intelligence” and “transmission of energy” for “permanency of friendly relations.”
Still, I hesitated to blog about the connection, as I wasn’t sure I wanted to touch on the concept of war. Per the law of attraction, focusing on what you don’t want will only attract it to you. And, in fact, that is precisely what happened. I was debating about this blog in the living room today. The TV was on and I thought it may distract me but I decided to leave it on anyway. While reading over this passage in which Tesla references war, the local newscaster announced “Hollywood turned out today to protest the war in Iraq.” Turns out today is the 7-year anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion.
Synchronicity spoke (i.e., I attracted it to me). Indeed, this is a timely topic worthy of a blog post.
ATTRACTING PEACE THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA
To the heart of the issue, can social media bridge the gap that divides us? Not just among nations, but organizations, political parties, families and individuals? Maybe the answer lies in application of the law of attraction. If we approach social networking as an opportunity to connect with people on shared points of interest, our differences will come to pale in comparison to our similarities. When looking for friends or followers online, focus on those whose interests you are attracted to. Your expressed interest in them will return the favor.
For instance, when I’m deciding whether to follow someone on Twitter, I put a great deal of weight on the content of their bio. If they state religious or political views different from mine, I look for something else that can bring us together. Maybe they are an environmentalist, like me. Or they’re a vegetarian, like me. Or they’re a writer, like me. Then their tweets that reflect our shared point of interest (i.e., attraction) are the ones I retweet. And vice versa.
In other words, instead of using social media sites to focus on the differences among us that create conflict, we can focus instead on the similarities. And ideally these similarities are made immediately evident in a quick scan of a profile page. So to that end, include in your bio all the descriptives you can to present all the versions of you. Imagine 314.5 million of us doing this on a regular basis — a number that is only going to dramatically grow larger. One day we could all be connected via social media, preferably on points of interest that ultimately promote the shared interest of peace.
Image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tonynetone/3717759677/
With gratitude,
Meredith Simonds, Social Media Reviewer, Blogger and Consultant
