Hi, firstly thanks so much for clicking in to read this post, I appreciate you and your time! :)
Sooo, today I wanted to talk about the rise of the social media ´influencer´ and what a few of my thoughts are on this increasingly popular term. From the Kardashians, to micro-celebs who have grown massive audiences over Instagram or have become Tik-Tok famous, the word influencer is a box they have all been placed into. It seems to be that the word is so easily given to anyone who has won the popularity contest with regards to how many followers they have.
DISCLAIMER: Firstly, this post is NOT to take away from the fact that influencers come in all forms and from all facets of society, but today I am solely focusing on the social media influencer. Now do not get me wrong, amazing influencers do exist and even more amazing bloggers and content creators. My problem, does however come in with the word ´influencer´ itself, and all that that entails. So without any more rambling, here's why I'm hesitant before using the word influencer to refer to anyone:
Let´s break the concept down, shall we?
The word influencer stems from the root word influence. Influence by definition is:
the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behaviour of someone or something, or the effect itself.
Now if you ask me, that is a BIG responsibility. Having people´s attention is an honour and should be treated as such...but another level is added by the fact that influence is having the POWER to affect someone´s, and I quote, ¨character, development, or behaviour.¨ That shouldn't be taken lightly.
So, I think before anyone decides they would like to be an ´influencer´ or before that word is so easily assigned, a very important question needs to be asked first:
1. WHAT are these ´influencers´ influencing?
I do not believe that the title influencer should be so easily dished out, without first looking at what the so called ´influencer´ is influencing. Is that influence positive or negative? And in what ways are they using their influence to effect change or to better the lives of their online communities in some way?
- You have the power to curate what you consume on social media:
If I look at who I follow on social media now, compared to who I did a few years ago, there is a massive difference. That difference came about when I realised that my social media following is something I can curate and control. Well duh, you're probably saying, but think about it...we get bombarded with so much bullsh*t from the media and society that we can't control being exposed to. SO social media should be the one place we should be able to have a bit more control about what we see. Yes, it's not entirely possible to be bubbled in from everything on social media platforms, but we can control who we follow. I choose to follow accounts that leave me feeling uplifted when I leave their page, rather than drained and insecure like some pages made me feel in the past. That shift made a huge difference for me and my social media consumption. If we are what we consume, then I want to consume all the good stuff.
Also I would just like to highlight that I have been more positively influened by the people who would not call themselves influencers at all, yet are spreading positivity nonetheless. I am also so inspired by the bloggers and content creators who form apart of my online community. These individuals have influenced me more positively than any celebrity or massive 'influencer' ever has. So a warm hug & shoutout to those wonderful humans whose content and / or voices inspire me everyday.
So final words before I end this post, we all have the power to choose who we give our attention to and in turn who we are influenced by. So choose wisely, choose people who leave you feeling uplifted and whose content is value-packed for what you want to see. It IS A CHOISE and one you can curate for yourself if you so wish. 🌞
Jess x