The Art of Minding Your Business

Social media has given everyone a platform to share their voice. You can tweet your thoughts on Twitter. You can write on someone’s wall on Facebook. You can comment under photos and or stories on Instagram. As a result of this, people have become a little too comfortable with giving their opinions on things and or people that do not concern them. I get it, your voice matters. Sure, there’s this thing called freedom of speech. But the reality is, that everything online does not concern you. Even deeper than that, your friends and or family members’ business is not your business. Whew, I know that part might have triggered some of you reading this. So let’s discuss how to master the art of minding your business.

Ask first before you give your opinion. This one is especially hard to do when it involves your loved ones. See, we have been programmed to think that the people we love want to hear our thoughts, comments, and or concerns regarding their personal lives. I’m here to tell you, they don’t. Sometimes people just want a listening ear, or sometimes people are not interested in what you think they should or should not be doing. For example, your friend is making a huge change in their life and you feel the need to warn them of all the things that could go wrong. Stop. Did your friend ask you for your opinion? I think not. Also, no one likes a negative Nancy so mind your business unless asked otherwise.

A mother knows best. Hey mom, I love you but you actually don’t always know what’s best for my life and or my happiness. Mothers are truly a gift from God. They love you unconditionally, and parenting never stops even when you become an adult. But that’s just it, it comes at a time during motherhood where you have to let your adult children do them. Yes, you are wiser and you have more experience in this game called life. But the reality is, your experience is not your children’s experience. We all experience life at our own pace, and your path may be very different than the path God has called for your children to take.

Double-tap or keep it moving. You’re scrolling on the gram and you see a post that just upsets you to your core, so you decide to leave a nasty and or negative comment. That person decides to block you, and you’re left wondering “Well why did they block me, all I did was share my opinion?” Or my favorite “I was just trying to have a healthy debate.” Well, queen, this is not a debate club, and you don’t have to comment on things you see online that do not concern you. Didn’t your mama and or grandma teach you “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it at all”? We need to get back to Mama and Grandma’s life lessons. I’ll go a step further, maybe you’re not the annoying person who leaves a negative comment. But instead, you share the page with a friend and talk crap in your DMs. The same premise applies. Don’t you have your own business to attend to? Why are you wasting your energy focusing on someone else’s life when you could be focused on your own? Although the world has become strange and uncertain, one thing rests assured: mind your business.