Let’s get one thing straight, upfront: we believe in the power of social media.
Social media platforms have provided opportunities to grow small businesses on a scale like never before, as well as the space to create a portfolio of talent that has carved out an entirely new industry of influencers.
However, it would be silly not to acknowledge the dark side of social media. By existing in an online reality, we can sometimes become detached from how we truly feel about ourselves, our life and our values.
Even if your work is based in social media, it’s important to still be present in real-life moments, and not let Instagram and other platforms take over.
Below, social media expert, Emily Rose Hills, shares five ways to not let social media ruin your day—and aim to strengthen your mental health and sense of self, despite the constant online noise.
Try Not to Overshare
We all have one friend who seems to have far too much time, and chronically overshares every aspect of their lives. For example; ‘Here’s what I ate for breakfast, here’s what I’m wearing to work. Here’s my morning tea and these are my work tasks for today.’ Oversharing becomes a problem when you take to social media when angry or upset. With heightened emotions, you’re likely to post a rant that could end up destroying friendships. Before you post, ask yourself: “Am I happy with my friends gossiping about this?” Some things are simply better dealt with offline.
Weed Your Friendship Garden
Social media is not a popularity contest. It’s not about who has the most followers. Vanity metrics—likes, reactions and the number of followers—no longer play a role in how many people see your posts. It’s all about engagement i.e. comments, saves and shares. Yet, still, we find ourselves accepting friends requests and following people that we don’t feel aligned with. Professor R.I.M Dunbar, PhD told Healthline, that “it appears that our brains can only handle 150 friends including family members”. Why are we bothering interacting with frenemies and strangers when that takes away from the people we truly care about? Try applying the Marie Kondo concept. Think about each friend or follower, if they don’t bring you joy, go ahead and hit that unfollow button.
Don’t Be Fooled By Fakeness
Scrolling through your feed, it is easy to feel unsatisfied with your position in life when you see nothing but fabulous mums and their gorgeous, well-behaved babies looking picture perfect. What the photos don’t show, is all the times their cute bubba screamed like a pterodactyl, all night long. Or the fact that TikTok’s filters can hide a myriad of skin problems, as well as enhance features that are not enhanced IRL. Most people aren’t living an exciting life. They still have to work, still have to do chores, they still poop. Don’t let a carefully curated social feed fool you.
Be Authentically You
It’s easy to cultivate a fake reality on social media because you can be whoever you want. Do you find yourself scrolling, wishing the grass was greener, and feeling competitive; trying to show that your life is just as fabulous? Is the life you portray on social media your actual reality? If you met one of your online followers would they meet the real you? And if you have created a popular social media personality, do you feel like you can’t be yourself? One of the biggest social media trends revealed for 2022, is that people want realness, rawness and authenticity. It’s time to remove the mask and be authentically you. It’s exhausting trying to be someone you’re not and upkeep your alternate reality.
Introduce Yourself to Scheduling Software
This one is for influencers and business professionals. Scheduling software will change your life. There is a myriad of easy-to-use platforms from Buffer to Sked Social, even Facebook has Creator Studio which allows you to save drafts and publish to both Facebook and Instagram. You don’t have to be tied to your computer or your phone all day. Create your content in batches, set aside an hour or two and you can knock out your content for a whole week, basically schedule and forget.
