As a society, we are so used to documenting our lives whether that be through Polaroids, camcorders or posting on social media. We want to save these memories to reflect on and leave ourselves a digital footprint of our memories, but do some people take it too far? Documenting every moment of our lives has even become a job; influencing, where many are paid more than highly skilled workers. These influencers even record their most vulnerable moments of breakups, getting engaged, and their children growing up. Inviting strangers into their lives and removing any sense of privacy creates a toxic cycle where people’s fulfilment is only achieved through the validation of others.
Without full-time jobs, these influencers have excess time, enabling them to do all the fun things they document. This often makes audiences feel bad about themselves and wonder why they can’t fit the same amount into a day. Despite 70% of Gen Z saying that social media makes them anxious and depressed, over half want to be influencers. This highlights the cyclical effects of posting your life on social media. The desire to be liked transforms into the urge to become an influencer of others, creating isolation from reality.
I assume most people have attended a concert and their view has been obscured by phones recording the performance – if you are this person, you should never be allowed to purchase gig tickets. By documenting this moment, we are not present, we are watching the performance through our phone cameras. I personally never look back at videos I have previously taken at concerts, so why spend the whole concert recording something you will never watch again?
However, it is equally of great importance that marginalised groups document their lives, sharing their experiences to help people feel seen and heard on social media. Especially as most popular influencers are white women, unreflective of the entire population! An influencer I love is Brittany Packnett Cunnigham, she shares valuable political content, regarding black rights and social justice. She is a great example of an influencer correctly using their platform and offering education on the historical marginalisation of the black community.
I want to see more people who are authentic on my feed. Students who are documenting the reality of student life; not always being on time with assignments, being hungover or missing that lecture. Here are some influences that encapsulate this reality of being a student while documenting it; April Rose who documents the ups and downs of being a student, Kate Brock who is a great example of retaining some privacy while also providing lifestyle content and tips and tricks for students to create routines!
Maybe we should be thinking again before posting that picture on social media, and reflect on the intentions behind it. We should resist comparing ourselves to our favourite influencers, as it is all a highlight reel and nine times out of ten none of it is real! Document things that will bring joy, not to gain validation.
Image by Mantas Hesthaven on Unsplash