A new year, a new opportunity to reset how we think, talk and behave

I AM rather a reluctant participant in social media. I freely admit that it’s something I tend to use for work rather than any personal need for connection.

I was invited by a colleague to join LinkedIn around 2009 with no real idea what it was about. Given my profession is communications, I felt compelled to take the blind leap into the Twittersphere a few years later and I set up a Facebook account around the same time.

There is not really any media platform that I can justifiably ignore, although I am quite content that I’m considered too old for SnapChat and TikTok, which, I am told in no uncertain terms by my offspring, is off limits for old people.

The luxury of mostly observing, aka stalking, can be hugely entertaining but as I became more involved in politics the giggles and light-hearted memes took a darker turn towards hysteria, trolling, sledging and ranting.

Having said that, I do find that the balance of pleasure and pain derived from ‘the socials’ is about even.

And while I need to be across the topics of the day – or the hour – social media is not generally what I’d consider a healthy source of feedback.

However, I have found that there are sometimes terrific insights among the dross.

As the Year 12 students received their results and will now be looking at the university offers, I thought it timely to share some sound words of advice from the tweeps. “You are not your ATAR” was a simple but effective statement that was often repeated.

Hopefully it was also reassuring for the current crop of students who’ve faced unprecedented barriers to effective learning during pandemic restrictions.

The multitude of examples of people with high scores admitting they had made poor choices and the converse situation of low scorers achieving incredible success was startling.

The high scorers were advised to stay true to their original preferences and not be lured into a different career choice purely ‘because they could’. It seems the road to happiness is littered with disillusioned law graduates, like the roadkill of vocational matchmaking.

Those with an underwhelming result were strongly urged to pick themselves up, persist, persevere and pursue an alternative pathway to their dream. There were many stories of grit, surprising new opportunities, chances taken and reward for effort.

For several days, the Twitter feeds were full of heart-warming stories and empathetic encouragement.

I took screenshots of some of the comments, ready to send to anyone I knew who had suffered a setback. One in particular made me smile as it absolutely articulated how I have ended up in the world of politics.

“Find what in the world/society makes you angry and then pursue a job/course/career that can do something positive about that.” Thank you Professor Kay Cook for that pearl of utter wisdom.

There is really no other explanation for entering politics and it certainly summed up neatly why I am doing what I do.

Back in 2012, I was angry that us ordinary people couldn’t penetrate the local government process and feel heard.

I was furious about the response I received, along with other residents, to common sense suggestions for improvement and offers of expertise.

I was outraged by the culture that treated ratepayers with contempt, when our approaches were made with courtesy and respect.

I decided back then – a decade ago now – that if I was going to complain I had to stand up or shut up.

There are so many positive ideas out in the community that can enhance the gorgeous region we live in. There is so much energy and intelligence, wisdom and skill, across all ages and demographics.

And yet we can so easily get bogged down in negativity, complaining and pointless arguments. As humans we are all on the same team, are we not?

As we head into a new year, we have a fresh opportunity to reset how we think, talk and behave.

The mood is one of supporting people who try, investing in new ideas and technology, facilitating innovation and backing in those who articulate a vision.

Let’s look forward with confidence and optimism, embrace positivity and get to work.

Cr Stephanie Asher,
Mayor