Posting for Performance vs. Posting with Passion
Being on social media most of my life has been a psychological journey I never expected. The idea that people live based on constructs through tech instead of through their own perspectives is interesting to me, considering I have been one of those people without even realizing it.
Something shifted when I saw a creator on TikTok talk about how people in today’s society live through the perceptions of social media. For example, instead of posting or living normally, people have another “lens” that influences decision making. Most people feel pressure to post the best times of their lives, only showcasing the highs and never the lows, because that’s the norm on social media. There are unspoken “rules” or ideas that change how people make decisions. My personal example of this is that I used to take posting too seriously. I would hold back from posting pictures I previously spent like 5 hours staring at. Or I wouldn’t post something if I didn’t feel it was perfect. It held me back because I was posting out of performance and how I “think” people would perceive me. Looking back, it’s so silly because now I literally post pictures from years ago from WHENEVER I want. I don’t care about anyone’s perception of me because I’m posting in alignment with myself.
When you start to post with passion, everything falls into place. Being too rigid based on ideas online can place your creativity in a prison that can be hard to break free from. Not everything has to be perfect. In fact, in today’s society, it is celebrated when something’s not perfectly curated. There’s beauty to raw emotion and experiences, whether that’s accepted by societal norms or not. And now more than ever, people resonate with who people are, not necessarily how they present themselves.
Consistency is important in growth. But at the same time, it’s just as important to post and create coming from a place within yourself, not from outside of yourself. Keep doing what’s authentic to you, and the rest will follow.
<3 Marley