Not impressed. Image: Pixabay.
It only becomes a problem when the people who follow along become more than just your loyal followers — when the differences between your life and theirs go to their heads.
Content notice: mention of suicide
Scrolling through Instagram can be falling down a rabbit hole: It can easily cloud our ability to discern what is real and what is not.
Being in the industry myself, I’ve actually heard stories about influencers purchasing second homes just to stage pictures (yes, this is actually happening).
When you hear stories like this on the daily, it makes you a little more skeptical about what you are awarding those red hearts to.
If I go back a couple years in my Instagram feed, I can see where things changed for me personally. There is a crystal-clear division between the time when I used Instagram purely to share what was going on in my family’s life and when I really started using it for business (with a little behind-the-scenes thrown in).
I get all of that, as well as the need to actually use this tool for business.
But at the same time, I feel a strong connection to the accounts I follow that have a true balance of perfectly-staged photos and real-life experiences, captured in the moment, non-edited and raw.
We don’t live curated lives that are built around purposeful omissions of reality.
I know: Instagram is a lifeline for many, as well as a way to make a living — I’m right there with you. And, in many cases, people needing to escape from reality look at your beautiful life and wish that they had the same. This, in turn, leads them to want to learn more about you and the products that you are recommending; it’s that transparent.
It only becomes a problem when the people who follow along become more than just your loyal followers — when the differences between your life and theirs go to their heads.
You see, I feel like I am spending way too much time reading articles in The New York Post and beyond, stories of people taking their own lives or putting themselves in dangerous situations — physically, mentally, and financially — based on what they are seeing in these photographs that they covet, the ones we are putting out into the universe.
So why am I not impressed with your perfect Instagram feed and huge amount of followers?
Because it’s not all real.
We don’t live curated lives that are built around purposeful omissions of reality, and there are many, many people who have trouble seeing through that.
Being in the industry, staged pictures stand out to me like a sore thumb — but it also leaves me a little afraid for future generations who grow up with these presentations laid out before them, on their phone screens, in the palms of their hands, every single day.
So what's my message?
I hope that these influencers think about their message and how each photo is being portrayed.
To them I say: Keep in mind your power and how influential you actually are, and use those resources wisely.
