Wednesday's Words of Wisdom: Dr. Barbara Lavi The Power of #Hashtags to #Empower Us

"Hashtags when used wisely have the power to empower the powerless and change the world." Dr. Barbara Lavi

Thought for the Day: We are living in very troubling, yet exciting times. If someone woke up from being in a coma for a year or two, they would be shocked to learn that a simple sign on a keyboard like a hashtag (#) could be changing our world. Hastags played a major role in the Arab Spring revolutions. In the last few days, we had yet another example of the power of hashtags to make a difference. Ramaa Mosley, an LA director and mother of two created the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls after hearing about the kidnapping of 200 Nigerian schoolgirls. The tweet went viral and it has led to worldwide pressure to free the girls from their captors. As a psychologist, I spend my days helping empower people by better understanding themselves and those with whom they live and work. My words of wisdom for today are: "Hashtags when used wisely have the power to empower the powerless and change the world."

On Monday I wrote about both the positive and negative aspects of social networking. The power of hashtags to empower us is yet another new development that is giving back a sense of power to those who have felt powerless. Hopefully, we will learn more and more ways to connect humankind and overcome adversity. The world is in our hands for safekeeping. Find ways like #BringBackOurGirls to make it safer for us all.
Here's the video about how #BringBackOurGirls went viral.

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