What a world we live in ay?
The last 7 years or so have spiraled into a flurry of social media craziness. Blogging/vlogging is currently enjoying its position as the new and dominant kid on the block and along with that has come a whole new set of standards that people aim to live their life by, by way of social media sites such as Twitter and of course, Instagram.
Oh Instagram; the tool that dictates how popular you are based on filters, themes and followers. As if we didn’t have enough pressure on ourselves to look a certain way and live a certain lifestyle, we now have this added pressure of maintaining an air of perfection for strangers online. Everybody wants to be a ‘somebody’ online. I myself have often been a victim of this; trying to create really pretty photos that fit into a general minimalist/white theme that so many e-socialites seem to have on their Instagram feeds.


It can be really depressing when it seems like everyone around you is living this incredible life filled with photo shoots, blog meetings, expensive restaurant visits, sponsored Instagram photos and freebies, but what we need to remember is that the photos that a lot of people share online only catch the highlights of that person’s life. We don’t know what they go through on a day to day; we don’t know how long it took them to stage specific photos for Instagram likes and to be honest you have to think to yourself ‘would you want to be spending hours posing for a photo for likes?’
There have been plenty of times where I’ve felt either deflated or unhappy with how I look and where my life currently is because of what I’ve seen on social media. Comparison is the enemy of progress and it’s something that is naturally instilled in all of us, especially when you’re in a community filled with people that have similar interests and who are within the same age range as you. Some things to remember:

• Life isn’t a race
• You don’t need to live up to anyone’s expectations. You aren’t perfect. None of us are.
• Social media is a highlight reel. Not the whole movie.
• Love yourself and be strong in your identity.
• Be confident in who you are. Be confident in your brand.
• Remember that we are ALL on a journey; whether it be financial, appearance wise, mental health wise or anything else, someone you ‘envy’ may be lacking in a department that you have in abundance.

People aren’t perfect. We aren’t perfect. We need to stop pretending to be. I don’t know about you, but I find immense pleasure in seeing the ‘reality’ in people I follow online. Seeing the highs and lows and know that this person is relatable to me.  It’s one reason why I love snapchat because I find a lot of people tend to drop the presence and just show up on the snap looking tired and raggedy. I LOVE IT.
So in conclusion, you don’t need to be selling tea that makes you shit, or teeth whitening products, or have an all white/pastel instagram theme to feel ‘included’ within the loop. You don’t need the validation of strangers to make you feel more of a person, or more beautiful. You already are awesome; show the reality of that.