If I didn’t record it, does it still count?

As I stepped onto the college campus for a walk, I realized I left my fitness band on the charger.
Do you know this feeling?

Why am I doing this if it doesn’t even count?

We didn’t used to think such things. Of course it counts. Things don’t only count when you can share them.

I recently deleted the Swarm or FourSquare app from my phone. I had been compulsively “Checking In” everywhere I stopped my car – maybe even visited the Drive Thru lane. It was gamified – not to brag, but I was the “Major” of several prominent businesses. Many of whom did not know me… but I was giving away demographic and geo-location data to..for the chance at a digital sticker. I was behaving slightly better than my ill-disciplined dogs, but only barely. I had my phone out too often in the car before I even got out of the car. Since I have stopped using the app it feels quite mature even sophisticated to not compulsively check-in at every.single.address.

And some of the more traditional social medias are a bit arms-racish. Spoiler Alert: It feels like some on Facebook and/or Instagram might be showing off. Somethings might not be a good idea to share: that you are way out-of-town, your child’s bare bottom, and some rather dicey life/Friday night choices. Yet people go on and on. They check-in from Vegas. They hashtag the heck out of some images where not even a filter can hide what’s going on in that picture. And they over-share their children, who are the only ones without a say. Guilty as charged – me too – until I took my sharing habits to a blog where I am only subjecting willing family members who purposefully go there for my kiddo’s bottoms.

Friend-to-friend, everything you do matters. Not just if it was recorded, shared, commented on, hashtagged near to death.

Do you practice some similar, ill-conceived digital practices?