Why Arguing Politics on Social Media is Unproductive

I have always been an avid person when it comes to politics. I have been involved in politics since high school. I even attended a book signing of Sean Hannity when he came out with one of his first books. I listened to Rush Limbaugh religiously in High School, College, and when I joined the workforce. I won a contest on a local radio show to attend an election party downtown Chicago in which I gave an interview live on the air.

I was very involved in the Presidential race in 2016. I was not a fan of Hillary Clinton. I felt that the last two Democratic candidates should have not even been finalists in the races due to their connections to corruption. I was excited when Trump won in 2016 because I felt like he was the underdog, not a politician, and would “drain the swamp.” I knew exactly what the world would be getting with Trump in office. Does Trump have traits of a Narcissist? I would definitely say yes. Was Trump professional as president? I would say no at times. While those are a few negative things with his personality, I would certainly say there were a lot more positives, if you look past what the news media reported.

During the election of 2016, I was very active on social media, including Facebook and Twitter. Perhaps too active! I posted many links and got into many heated discussions about politics. This included friends and family. I spent hours researching, posting, and commenting on politics.

Then after Trump lost the election in 2020, I stopped following and posting about politics on social media. It was probably the best thing I ever did. I do occasionally listen to podcasts and the radio with regards to politics. I do this mainly to keep up with current issues and sometimes they mix with economic issues.

Why did I stop arguing politics on social media? The main reason was that it was very unproductive. If I spent that time reading or studying, I would have educated myself more. If I spent that time working an extra job, I would have had more money. If I would have spent that time organizing and selling items online, I would have made more money. If I would have spent that time writing books, I would have some published.

Looking back, I lost a lot of friends on social media. I also unfriended a lot of people due to politics. I aggravated family members by arguing on social media. Was this healthy? Not at all, I later learned.

My advice to anyone, including recently to coworkers, is stop posting and arguing politics. Take that time and spend it on something else. If you do this, you will find yourself less stressed and more productive.

Although I have stayed off social media with politics, I will continue writing about politics on my Medium blog. I am not happy with the current administration, the state of our economy, our foreign policy, and the way the Covid Virus is being handled.