I mean, I know social media isn’t often a place for getting real. Everywhere you look there are gorgeous picture of perfectly filtered people with immaculate kitchens/faces/children (or whatever….)
With each click and at every turn we’re bombarded with imagery of perfection and unattainable goals. It’s exhausting, don’t you think?
The simple truth is that social media is a breeding ground for insecurities, and insecurities are big business. When you really drill down into WHY we all feel we have to look a certain way, it boils down to commercialism…creating a need and filling a void.
Being comfortable in your own skin doesn’t make you buy stuff. Aspiring to look like a Kardashian sister or a fitness model means you need to spend money. Self-confidence is available to you if you only buy this/do that/click here… it’s endless. Looking glam all the time is expensive and image is power. Especially on social media.
Take the picture I posted the other day, for my first post on my new Insta account. It was taken at a wedding. I was wearing full makeup, a new dress, fake lashes and for once my hair was out of its usual messy bun. Truth be told, I literally look like that a handful of times in the average year. That shot is about as good as it gets… And still I put a couple of pretty filters over it to make it look fancier.
Why did I do that? Why do we all feel the need to share such a polished exterior with the outside world? I mean, we all like to look nice. There’s nothing wrong with that, and if that’s what it takes to make you feel confident about yourself I’m certainly not trying to stop you. I love a new lippy as much as the next girl.
But next time you look at a picture on social media, have a think about whether you’re basing your own value or self-worth on a comparison to an illusion. Tune in to how you feel about yourself in that particular moment. If you’re finding yourself coming up short… think about the motives behind the post you’re reading. Is someone trying to sell you something? Or are you comparing your life with someone else’s heavily filtered Instagram mirage?
You can’t always choose the people you have to spend time with in real-life, but when it comes to social media you have to power to mute and unfollow. So do yourself a favour… remind yourself that social media should be fun.
If it’s dragging you down, take a break or unfollow those who make you feel-less than. Look at who you follow and think about whether you’ve chosen wisely. Would you want these people whispering in your ear in real life? Do you like how you feel about yourself when you see their posts?
You can’t control what other people post, but you can do your best to control how you react to what you see. So today, I challenge you to unfollow at least three people whose posts aren’t adding value to your life. Let your social media feeds lift you up, not drag you down.
ps… if you’d like some positivity in your social media feeds you can follow me on Instagram and Facebook.