The Thumbs-Up That Changed the World. Like it or not, the Like button has reshaped our economy, influenced politics, rewired human behaviour, and even nudged evolution itself.

It started with a sketch on a napkin.

On May 18, 2005, a Yelp employee named Bob Goodson doodled two crude symbols — a thumbs up and a thumbs down.

Inspired by Gladiator, where Emperor Commodus decided life or death with that simple gesture, Goodson thought it might be a fun way to encourage people to express their opinions on restaurant reviews.

He had no idea that tiny doodle would change human behavior forever.

In the mid-2000s, platforms like Yelp, YouTube, and Twitter were all experimenting with new ways to keep users engaged.

But it was Facebook that turned the humble thumbs-up into something far bigger-a universal signal of approval, belonging, and self-worth.

Ironically, Mark Zuckerberg resisted it for nearly two years. He feared the button would trivialize complex emotions. When he finally relented, the results were staggering.

Engagement skyrocketed. People spent more time on Facebook. And every click, every like, became a data point — a small piece of the puzzle that would drive the trillion-dollar digital advertising economy.

By 2025, Facebook, Google, Amazon, and Microsoft are projected to earn over $500 billion from advertising fueled by a never-ending stream of content, notifications, and dopamine hits.

The Hidden Cost

For most of human history, life was a long stretch of boredom broken by brief bursts of excitement.

Boredom wasn’t bad, it was the space where imagination, art, and science thrived. It gave humans time to think, to wonder, to create.

Now it’s flipped.

Endless scrolling, constant noise, instant applause. The Like button gave us a voice but turned us into performers. We’ve swapped reflection for reaction.

My Wake-Up Moment

During the COVID lockdown, I started blogging.

At first, I watched the likes roll in until I realized the algorithm was creating me, not the other way around.

So I changed my goal.

I write for an audience of one —me.

Take it easy until next time.

Blogging is something I enjoy, and I share my thoughts on my blog most weekends. Explore all my blogs at https://lnkd.in/ejq7CWaQ.

Views are my own.

Blogging is something I enjoy, and I share my thoughts on my blog most weekends.

Read all my “Notes to Self” at view all blogs.