Sometimes taking a break is better than a breakdown!
Being a creative on a social media platform can be both motivating and also tiresome. with worrying about how much content you’re pushing out consistently to how many follows you have to reach a certain level of clout. It can take toll on your mental health because you’ll constantly be wondering if you’re progressing and like myself, you’ll convince yourself that you are not.
With Instagram, I am constantly ambushed by others successes and not focusing on my own. From getting signed to a major label or going on an all expenses paid trip to a foreign country for a job, it honestly sucks when it is not you. No, I am not some jealous entity that just scrolls and resents the positive moments in my peers lives because that would just be…SAD! I just wish I didn’t compare myself so frequently to those that could be going through the same struggles as I am. People are more adept to share their positive moments and keep the negative to themselves. With that in mind, we all have to realize that even though someone is perceived to be living their best life, they could be hiding their demons in the shadows.
This is the reason I have taken a break off of constantly posting on my photography Instagram, it was no longer a fun outlet and more of a chore. I catch myself worrying about how many followers I have and if I got enough likes on my pictures. I know it doesn’t really matter, but when you get too deep into your thoughts, it tends to matter more. The reason is because the more followers means more opportunities because of the “respect” that comes along with having a huge following. The more people see your content, the more valuable you are because your followers will look up to you in a way. It is a very toxic place to put yourself in if you do not use it as it was intended.
With my time off of Instagram, I have taken more time to myself and worry more about the concepts I want to put out and not about the following I wish I could have. Social media is a wonderful place where creatives can connect, so I can’t trash Instagram as a whole. Instagram has been the reason I have the connections that I do have and cherish so deeply. I don’t know when I will return to consistent uploads and posting funny things on my story like I did before, but for now I will take this time to cleanse and recharge my creative battery…and maybe upload a little more to my finsta hahaha!
Even though I’m not uploading on my Instagram, I am still taking photos! This is one of my favorites of my friends from the other day.
Madi - @miaoy.in
Joe - @joseph_mcandrew