Self-Promotion & Oversharing: How Much is Too Much?

I remember the days of Facebook when everyone’s profile picture was merely a picture of themselves that was cropped from a group picture. Or, just a group picture.

Rarely did you see pictures of someone standing by themselves.

Fast forward ten years.

Enter Instagram.

The discover page is full of carefully crafted pictures of people posing — by themselves.

(I know this, because I am one of those people. Ha!)

When did everyone turn into “a brand”?

To be clear – I don’t think self-promotion is always a bad thing. Self-promotion can breed confidence. Some of the most successful people in the world have been rejected, told they weren’t good enough, and criticized. In fact, I think extra confidence is more helpful in the business world than not enough.

I probably saw more of this just because I worked in TV, but still.

To care about social media, or not to care — that is the question.

I wrestle with thoughts about this from time to time.

Sometimes I feel like I’m selling part of my soul to be popular on social media. Turns out, I’m not even popular! Ha.

Do I really need to hit people over the head with a “highlights of 2017” post?

I mean, you can just scroll down my Instagram feed, if you’re really that interested. I thought that was the point of having a page that archives your posts…

But at the same time, I think it’s good to look back on your past accomplishments, happy times, and experiences. So many times, I get caught up with ambition and focusing on the next step, I forget to give myself a break — and see how much I’ve already done.

Do I really have to post a video of me working out?

Working out takes enough motivation as it is… Plus, do I make my husband video me? I already ask him to take pics of me when we travel.

***Sidebar: Can we create a job for this? Like a certified Instagram Assistant? Or just a badge people can wear if they’re willing/able to take a decent picture of me and my husband when we’re traveling at at some touristy place.

Rebuttal: Whenever I post a picture of my abs or anything about me working out, I feel obligated to keep it up. If someone sees a picture of me looking fit, I don’t want to blow up and look like an entirely different person the next time someone sees me in person. Ha.

Do I really have to share every personal issue with the world?

I saw on Facebook today how someone is doing a *Facebook Live-stream* of them giving birth!!!

I almost choked on my coffee when I saw that. To each their own, but that seems a little extreme to me. Like are they going to have someone do a boomerang of the baby coming out of the womb? Or take the baby’s first picture with the dog filter on it?

Hell, if we’re going to do that, whenever I have kids, I’m going to make a TMZ-style video of my birth, complete with fast, in-and-out zooms, set to a soundtrack of Flosstradamus.

Does your fifth-grade classmate or your plumber really need to see a live-stream of one of life’s most intimate experiences? Do you save anything for just your close friends and family?

But at the same time — the people who post the most personal things get the most feedback and likes, it seems. I know it’s hard to put yourself out there. And knowing you aren’t alone can really help. Plus – people are nosy. We like to know everything about people. See: Us Weekly. Reality Shows. YouTube Stars.

However, the upside about the internet and social media is that everyone has a platform.

Just because the paparazzi isn’t following you around, doesn’t mean you can’t have pictures of your #ootd.

And just because you look like Quasimodo in that group picture, doesn’t mean you deserve to look ugly online. This is what selfies are for! Not, today, bad lighting!! People say social media hurts self-esteem, but I think it can actually help sometimes.

Signed,

Someone who frequently looks like Quasimodo in group pictures.

P.S. Is anyone actually interested in topics like these, or should I just be posting makeup-tutorials? Ha. I feel like the only successful blogs are those “lifestyle” ones about fashion and makeup. I, however, am terrible at both of those. So I am not passing that ineptitude along!