Social media mistakes I made in 2020, a thread.

I hope this helps someone else!

1. Accessibility

Earlier this year I had forgotten to add captions to some videos, and add alt text to images.

I hope Twitter continues to improve #a11y , like requiring alt text before posting or auto-generating captions, etc.

But for now spreading awareness will help.

2. Hashtags

I overused hashtags like # 100DaysOfCode when I wasn't tweeting about the topic.

Folks getting started on social media are often advised to use hashtags for exposure, but it can be spammy, so use hashtags in moderation.

3. @ Mentions

I've @ mentioned companies or people more frequently than I should have. I cringe now thinking about it.

Treat every @ as if that person or company will see it. No matter how big or small.

4. Quote Tweets

I have quote tweeted folks off of threads without fully understanding the context.

QTs amplify. It's different than replying in a thread. Keep that in mind and do your research.

5. Uphold your values

I have gotten in heated discussions and made mistakes. I've reached out to folks and apologized when I felt it was necessary.

I'm sorry to folks I haven't upheld my values to.

Keep learning. Keep aiming to do better.

6. Notifications

It quite literally changed my life when I turned on notification filters.

I also turned off all push notifications.

I wish I had done this long ago to reduce the noise and give me more peace of mind.

Settings and privacy > Notifications > Advanced filters