You vs. The Overwhelming Noise of Social Media.
Have you heard of the phrase “the noise of social media” in the recent years? Whenever such a headline would appear on my news feed, it immediately grabbed my attention for the one and simple reason – it was somehow relatable. The word “social media” and the “noise” go well together, as it gives a slight good sense about what this phrase means in a daily practice for a user just like me and you.
What does really the “Noise of Social Media” mean and what implications has it on us individuals?
It depends. You can look into this in depth from many different angles, such as psychological, political, social, cultural. These are an experts that pull out some data and numbers to make conclusions, predictions or just simple observations between social media and its users. When it comes to “individual”, (meaning an average user and not an influencer or companies that use social media for profit), you can look into this topic from different angles too.
Asking questions like how does social media impact my social life? Does it in any way impact my confidence? You can dig deeper and ask question like how it impact your time, your focus, your motivation or even demotivation?
These are exactly the questions that I started asking myself, every time I would finish reading some of the experts article on the internet (for example: I was lost in the cesspit of social media in Guardian).
Social Media and it’s negative impact on my life and maybe yours too.
I will share my own perspective and experience hoping, many of you can relate. I chose 3 areas of my life, which after my own observation, are greatly impacted by social media in a negative way. Mostly, I look into it how this “noise” blurs the lines between what is out there online versus what I already have, own or achieved in the offline world- the real world.
The 3 following categories of my offline personal life are to a great degree blurred or negatively impacted by online content, due to its overwhelming effect that it has on us: self-worth, gratefulness and motivation.
Selft-worth
Since I was a teenager, I have been working on my own relationship with my own body, soul an spirit. And yet, right here in the beginning of my thirties, I am still very well aware of that fact, that this chase for a healthy relationship between ‘me, myself and I’ is a run for a lang haul. I read the tens of self-development books, watched thousands motivational speeches and lastly, saved and watched gazillions under 1 minute Instagram videos and posts thinking “this is gonna change me to a better” this is gonna change me, thus also change my life!
The word “overwhelming” comes in handy here, because in this regard, the social media has truly become an overwhelming source of content, because that is what it does – overstimulates. My “save for later” feed or screenshots of quotes on the phone has built up over the past months and the new saved content for later still keep coming. Yet, I never get back to this content to rewatch it and even quick a thought of looking back at this “saved” content makes my brain turn upside down, pressing into my sculp and creating that anxious feeling of how much potential life changing content is waiting there for me to be rewatched.
The amount of content full of inspiration and motivation in the category of “self-worth” is so overcrowded on the social media these days, that even if I try to filter it to my own preferences, I can’t never look at it twice. It has became a pile of abstract nonsense quotes that have zero impact on me and the superficiality of it will never make it useful enough for me to take any action in a real life.
Bottom line: I have been reading those “source” of inspiration, yet not taking any action on it, spending hours a week and wasting my time.
Gratefulness
As for gratefulness, which means, being appreciative of everything what I already have in my life, the impact of social media also blurs the lines between my own reality and online world. Let me explain, on two examples of summer vacation season, gratefulness for experiences, and place called home, gratefulness for materialist things.
In 2024, I took a vacation at the end of the June, took many days off the work get married and logistics around it. Basically, I accepted the fact, that my “vacationing” season for 2024 is June and for the rest of summer I will be at the office at my usual Monday-Friday 9 to 5 job. What happened in the middle of August?
I was so down and desperate, envy of all other people vacationing during the entire summer. I ended up so frustrated, that I forgot that I have already had my prime summer time. Somehow, it felt like, all the other people, friends other Instagram users have much longer vacation than me, how it comes that I had it so short only? You see, the point is that the perception of my own reality was getting blurred with what other people are doing while I was working. That feed kept feeding my head into thinking that everybody is vacationing but ME.
Motivation
Motivation regarding what? I narrowed this down to my passion and hobbies including movement/exercise/pilates. I go straight for the example, as this is an overwhelming influence of social media that irritates me the most. EXECRISING.
I can’t stress enough the fact of me being so naive that I got manipulated into this non-sense of saving whatever the lifestyle hacks, meals, food, exercise, morning routines from my feed. Have I ever got inspired by any of them? No. Have I ever replicated the influences morning and evening routines and incorporated them into my real-life daily routine? No.
So why am I keep saving all these inspirations of perfect aesthetically curated far away from reality tips? I don’t know. But I know for sure, that at this point it is overwhelming and not practical at all.
All these glittered and sprinkled visuals of the cool colored matching exercising clothes, yoga mats, fancy studios I chose to ignored few months back. When I was taking my first reformer Pilates course and felt ashamed for my boring black leggings and whatever sport bra and shirt I found. After a while, I order another 4 same looking black leggings, 4 similar sports shirts and bra and that is it. I keep it clean and wash it over over again, but never looking back to these brands matching sweet abs and buttocks of influencers ever again. They won’t sell me a thing.
Offline tools that actually works for self-worth, gratefulness and motivation.
Self-worth
As they say, back in the days, it would be the conversations with friends and people you can be vulnerable with, where you share your insecurities, celebrate small personal accomplishments, share a little wins – all these moments that build-up your your self-worth and are still happening in the offline world, the real world with the real people, not through “save for later” aesthetically crafted quotes.
So instead of scrolling for 30 minutes, texting that friend, going for a walk, sending the text message, inviting a friend for catch-up meeting. You know, the old school stuff, meeting and talking offline. That is it, that serves the purpose, no need for more saved quotes, there is no space for them. The space is filled out with out friends and family. Drawing a clear line between what serves and does not serve will do the job. Friends and family serves, online content has not proved to be helping but overstimulating.
Gratefulness
I remember a few years back that we did not even have a basic appliances, which we now have and for which we saved money and spent money for. But the content full of influencers renovating or buying something makes me feel like I should have the newest version of “that” thing too. Airfyer hype? Of course, we had to have it. Do you have it? Guess how often do I use it- as many times as a full moon maybe shows on the clear night sky.
Stop for a second to see that “I already have everything I wanted and needed”. I had my 2024 vacation, I got my new airfryer, boots, jeans, blazer. It is the content on social media that makes me forget that this month I have already something I wanted in the previous, because guess what, they need keep selling. But do I need to keep buying?
To counter combat this sneaky marketing move of all social media demons, luckily, I have been learning about and building a “Minimalist” approach to my closet, home and lifestyle. You can read more about how to become a minimalist in my previous articles (xxx,xxx).
For motivation
The social media made me feel like I am not doing enough or not trying the hottest exercise routine or missing on this cool outfit that everyone is apparently wearing.
Instead of scrolling, saving and watching I could use the 30 minutes for a walk around in my neighbourhood or simple evening stretch while watching tv with my husband. Just something, at home, at that small living room, next to my bed, just please stop waiting for the perfect time and place for the movement. Just do it, whenever you can and wherever you are, as you are – no fancy, no aesthetics, no photos – just being here in now – offline.
x.o.x.o Tina