When I was a teen, I longed for an online community that could provide me with encouragement and support from people my age to help me with navigating my teenage years. Still, what I really craved was something that offered a deeper connection… something that offered more when it came to inspiring me to reach my full potential… and something that truly inspired me.
In the age of social media, I realized what I really wanted was to create a positive space in which young people (from teens to young adults) could connect as well as uplift each other with writing, sharing content that they created on any topic of their interest. The only rule was that the content could not be derogatory or degrading. I finally decided to act on my idea by creating a social journalism network called, RIZZARR. Through RIZZARR, I hope young people can realize that regardless of their age or circumstances, they can use their lives to make an impact.
But, some people may not really understand what it takes to be positive online or even the need for it. I can understand these. With all of the negativity being disseminated, it’s easy to feel like we all should just post or write whatever is on our mind- without any regard to how it could impact another person. After all, we are just one person, right? Could we really make such an impact? Well, in fact, you can.
When it comes to being kind online and generating more positivity, every word that gets out there can influence someone – every single word – in a good way or bad way. So let’s change this to only focus on positivity. I have come up with some rules that I think we all should follow:
So… in a world in which there is so much negativity, I believe each of us can eradicate it with positivity. In fact, I want RIZZARR to tap into the positivity for young people. I realize that it may not be easy, but I believe that all things are possible. We as a company believe that every person in the world has a responsibility to make our Internet more positive, and to create the world that we believe is possible. I hope you will join our team in spreading the word about our new platform and that you will support us in this endeavor.
Remember, all it takes is you to make an impact. Generate it.
Cover image courtesy of Flickr
Ashley M. Williams is the founder and CEO of RIZZARR, a social publishing platform for Millennials. She has a background in journalism. Ashley worked as a Multimedia Journalist for USA TODAY Network's Nation Now where she hosted and produced a show for the network called Long Story, Short. Prior to working at USA TODAY, Ashley worked at WBAL Radio and NBC News. Before joining NBC News, Ashley worked in South Africa as a digital reporter and producer for Cue Television as well as a print reporter intern for Grocott's Mail Newspaper. After working in South Africa, she was granted a columnist position with Africa.com. Her columns sparked a series for the site called, My Journey, My Africa, which allowed readers to post stories about their experiences in Africa. Ashley has received many honors, including the 2011 Student Journalist of the Year Award from the National Association of Black Journalists; the Pat Tobin Scholarship from the Black Journalists Association of Southern California; a Hearst Journalism Award Nomination. She graduated with honors from the University of Southern California, earning a B.A. in broadcast and digital journalism as well as minors in international relations and Spanish. She is spokesperson for the National Eating Disorders Association and a member of the National Association of Professional Women.
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