Facebook was very popular, even this new concept of influencers had already started back then. Of course they weren\u2019t officially \u2018influencers\u2019. They were just users who showed us their lives and their relationships.<\/p>\n
One way or another it had affected my outlook in life at such a young age, I would think how happy those \u2018teen influencers\u2019 seemed. <\/p>\n
At the time they were in fashion, in Miss High Schools, in photoshoots, need I to remind you back then these were teenagers just like me but I looked at their lives and thought \u201cthis is the life\u201d. <\/p>\n
And it has not yet changed today, people are still posting and having photoshoots and blogging and stuff, well of course today Facebook isn\u2019t such a thing as it was before, Instagram and tiktok are the new \u2018Facebook\u2019. <\/p>\n
Things have not changed, actually they\u2019ve gotten quite popular. Everyone nowadays wants to be an influencer, a blogger, an Instagram model. I am not saying it is a bad thing. All am saying is that it feeds us illusions and fantasies. <\/p>\n
We only post the good things, the wins, the success, the promotions, the money, the traveling, the going out and the partying. We only show a small portion of reality and because of that many think that is life, which it is totally not. <\/p>\n
I had a conversation with radio and TV personality, Aissa Cyiza. We discussed how much social media is a filtered life and that sometimes online appearances are different from reality. <\/p>\n
\u201cSocial media life is different from reality, because most people do not want to share everything that is going on. It is a matter of privacy,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
She continued to say that people want to show how fine they are and how amazing their life is but truly reality shows otherwise. <\/p>\n
It is true nowadays that social media will have you believe that if you\u2019re not a millionaire by the end of your 20\u2019s, your life is totally over. <\/p>\n
Were constantly bombarded with pictures and reels and videos of staycations, vacations, baecations, girls trip to Maldives and so and so forth. <\/p>\n
It is normal that people feel pressured to have the same luxurious life but we have to come back to reality and be critical. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou never know how people on socials obtain money, you don\u2019t know what their occupation, you don\u2019t know if the money was obtained legally and morally. Sometimes, they might be spending their parent\u2019s money,\u201d Cyiza said. <\/p>\n
\u201cPeople should not envy what others show they have because in reality you don\u2019t really know what their lives are really like,\u201d she added. <\/p>\n
Young people should not give in to this idealized lifestyle, because too often pressure is accompanied by regret. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf you do something because other people are doing it you will find yourself morally and ethically corrupt,\u201d Cyiza advised. <\/p>\n
From my own perspective I think our favorite influencers should post whatever they like to, but they should not ignore the platform they have and talk about real life and real issues. <\/p>\n
Many go through depression and anxieties and just because of how much they have to maintain their image. <\/p>\n
Aissa Cyiza recalled a story of a friend who had nothing to eat at the time but was posting on Instagram how much life is good. <\/p>\n
This showed me how the \u2018influencer\u2019 job is not an easy task at all, which is why I think being plastic will have you burnt out and miserable. <\/p>\n
We cannot ignore that some are talking about these issues and too they get backlash and the hate never stops. <\/p>\n
The audience plays a bigger role in what these influences post, if they get so much backlash for posting real life issues of course they will never think to post that kind of content. <\/p>\n
It is a very difficult thing to become vulnerable and talk about your issues and challenges, it is hard to tell a friend or family.<\/p>\n
Imagine how hard it must be to share such a thing with a thousand people whom you do not know and who have little compassion, cyber bullying should stop. <\/p>\n
I think we should also remember that these influencers are people just like you and me after all. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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