Social media has grown rapidly over the years and has become an essential part of our lives. From Facebook to Tinder to LinkedIn, the internet has provided us with so many ways to maintain old connections and gives us 24/7 access to develop new ones anywhere in the world. Online networks even keep us up to date with new trends, current events and a variety of other information.
Whether you have an account on every social media platform, just a few or just one, I’m sure we have all benefited from the existence of social media in one way or another.
If you have an active social media account, you probably are well aware of the benefits social media brings to your life, but it’s important to acknowledge that there’s also a dark side to social media.
Social media is a platform where people typically decide to present their best selves. Viewing this can cause a person to believe that everyone else is happy all the time and has it all together. Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with sharing your accomplishments and best features with the world, but being on the receiving end of that content can cause people to compare and wonder why they aren’t doing as well as the other person.
Since people typically don’t post their struggles and journeys that got them to where they are, social media ends up giving off the idea that this happiness and success come to people effortlessly. This can increase feelings of insecurity in others, make people feel bad about where they are in their life and cause them to wonder why things aren’t coming to them as easily as someone they’re following.
Being that we can’t stop people from sharing their best selves or force them to also post their struggles so that we don’t end up comparing and feeling lesser than, here are some tips that can help us prevent those bad feelings from altering our mental state:
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Try to use other people’s posts as inspiration rather than comparing to your own life.
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Unfollow accounts that make you feel bad.
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Mute those that make you feel insecure.
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Remind yourself that no one actually has it together all the time.
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Remember that your worth is not determined but the number of likes and followers you have.
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Try to limit your daily time on social media.
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If you’re feeling overwhelmed when on social media take a hiatus from it.
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Try to have one day dedicated to not going on social media and use that time to focus on other things instead.
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Don’t use social media as a full-time replacement for human interaction.
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Find and follow accounts that inspire you and make you feel good!