We get it; at one point or another, nearly everyone experiences drinking alcohol in college, some more than others. While it may seem like the ‘cool’ or ‘fun’ thing to do at the time, for most of us it most likely is an illegal activity. People even go as far as posting themselves drinking and consuming alcohol on their various social media pages. It’s not that we’re jealous you’re out partying, it’s not that we think of the hangover you’ll most likely have in the morning, it is that we care about your perception to the rest of the world. Once you post that selfie with the beer can or tweet about how many shots you’ve consumed, it becomes trackable even after it’s been deleted. Anyone can search your name and find a picture of that one stupid night even you might want to forget. At the end of the day, we all know you’re having a blast at college, so why continually post about it?
Posing with that Budweiser can or the Coors Light cup does not add any significant value to any picture you post. You may think it is ‘thrilling’ doing something you know can potentially end up wrong, when in reality not many seem to care what you’re drinking or who you’re drinking with. This idea that posting consumption of alcohol on social media is ‘cool’ is simply a figment of the imagination; many could honestly not care less about how blacked out drunk you got or how many beers you shot-gunned. If most people themselves dabble with the idea of alcohol in college, why would one feel the need to boast about it on social media? Posting photos with alcohol seem to actually have the opposite effect than intended; it shows a more reckless, careless behavior with no real concern for what anyone truly thinks. If that one picture with that one bottle of wine becomes the one picture that people first see of you, what kind of first impression does that create? What most don’t realize when they post that picture is who actually will see it and be influenced by it. Family members and potential and current employers can changes their opinions and their perceptions of you. It takes one photo with a red solo cup for an employer to switch from hiring to firing you. There is no ‘good time’ or ‘wild night’ that vital enough for the need for it to be posted on social media, while opportunities fly by. Alcohol takes away from the focus of the picture, which should be you and the memorable event captured by the photograph. Your Instagram page deserves a lot more respect than to have alcohol interjected when your only memory of that night becomes that photo.
Your life is more than the alcohol you consume. YOU are more than the alcohol you consume. You are amazing, talented, and gifted person. You have so many amazing things ahead for you in life not to be ruined by a handle of vodka in the background of a photo. You are not a spokesperson for Miller Lite, you are not getting paid by Corona, and you are not a walking-advertisement for Heineken. You are an individual who is so much more than the label by the product you are holding. The point is not to stop consumption of alcohol; it is a private decision and private matter to be made by the individuals themselves. However, once that privilege is given up and made public on social media, all bets are off. Not only do these decisions we make affect us now, they can hold prevalence in our lives long after we click post.