The Social Mask

Ah, social media. We love it. We hate it. We’re addicted to it. Regardless, we’re all on it (except Kate Moss…apparently she doesn’t need Instagram). How do you decide what to post, though? Are you voicing your political opinion on Facebook? (if yes, then please stop). Do you even Tweet anything on Twitter or is it your lazy way of getting the news? (guilty as charged…but I still Tweet). Do you go to brunch just so you can post an Instagram of your chia seed pudding and avocado toast? Let’s dig a little deeper.

I was first intrigued when I read this Harper’s Bazaar interview with Karl Lagerfeld, Alber Elbaz and Olivier Rousteing. Although it wasn’t all that much about social media, the idea of the story was about their private lives versus public personas. The question that really stuck out to me was — in the fashion world today, there seems to be a premium on revealing everything. How does this affect your job?

Now I would not consider myself a public figure whatsoever, but with my job I do have to put myself out there in some capacity. And guess what? It’s weird. If you don’t know the story, I didn’t tell anyone about my blog for the first three months I had it. Why? Because it’s not easy putting yourself out there. It’s my full time job now and although I’m much more comfortable with it, I still have a hard time being all HEY LOOK AT MY BLOG. READ MY STUFF. Now I never really dug deep and thought about why I post what I do on social media, but now I have…and if you’re wondering why I share things like this and this (when this is a FASHION blog after all), let me tell you.

I’ve told you before that I had a Twitter account before I had a blog. So Twitter has always held a close place in my heart. It really is a great news source — you basically follow the news you want to hear about — but I do enjoy Tweeting. I like finding stories, outfits, photos, articles, etc. and sharing them with others who might enjoy the same thing. I share similar things on my Facebook page (business, not personal) but not as often as I tweet, and I always try to make them different (as you should have a reason to follow me on various social media sites, after all). Instagram is everyone’s favorite (although I have a love / hate relationship with it) and I know that’s what you’d all prefer to discuss anyway. So now why do we Instagram what we do?

The world doesn’t need anymore perfectly staged brunch shots / flower photos / proof you were at the farmer’s market, but yet WE LOVE THIS SHIT. Why do you think people still continue to post these types of things? They’re pretty, they got a lot of engagement so why wouldn’t you keep posting them? Of course this comes with some sort of editing skill set, whether it be actual Photoshop or apps like Snapseed and Afterlight (because a perfectly exposed photo with the right balance of saturation is key…I think?) I’m not saying they’re such a bad thing, but if you follow more than a few fashion people on Instagram, I can guarantee that’s what your feed mostly consists of.

Obviously neither of these photos are mine…

I’m not going to lie, I’m guilty of some of these things, but only the ones that relate to me. I openly don’t like flowers so I’m not going to buy a bouquet every week just to Instagram them. I’m not great an interiors, so there’s not too many shots of my re-decorating my home. I couldn’t DIY if my life depended on it, so staged crafting photos will not be found here. I post some “serious” things like my blog post for the day so I can shamelessly promote it across all social media (hey, this is my full time job so I gotta do what I gotta do!) but also food (because eating is the only sport I’m good at), Chicago (this is CHICITYfashion for a reason), my dogs (they’re so damn cute, how do you expect me to resist?) and whatever I happen to be doing at the time (at an event, admiring street art, traveling, etc.) If I think it’s pretty, cool or funny, I’ll post it. I’m not trying to make it look like I’m doing something fabulous, like jet setting to Paris to sit front row at Chanel (because I’m not). Typically I can be found at home on the Internet, which is not fabulous at all…but it’s my job! I don’t always post everything I’m doing, as A) I don’t think it’s necessary, B) People don’t really care about every meal I eat and what I’m wearing every single day and C) Isn’t that what Snapchat is for? (which by the way, I’m still not on).

Because we’ve put so much thought and effort into how we portray ourselves on social media, how do we even know who we are anymore? Social media vs. real life — can we even tell the difference when it comes to our own? (Buzzfeed gets it). I mentioned the Harper’s Bazaar interview is what inspired this post but it was this story on The Cut that really made this post happen. It basically says we are definitely not the same person on social media as we are in real life and that we judge people we don’t know strictly based off what they post on Instagram. Even if you consider yourself a non-judgmental person (which is nearly impossible, let’s be honest) I’m sure we all make some assumptions based off what we see on on social media. But I’ll leave you with this (straight from The Cut)…

Being popular online is like being popular in middle school: Congratulations, you’re the king of the worst.

I feel like I always rode in the middle when it came to popularity in school, and considering  there’s many bloggers out there with hundreds of thousands of followers and up, I’m pretty happy where I’m at. After all, I’d rather have less followers who care about what I have to say than a whole bunch of followers just writing nonsense in the comments.

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So that’s a bit about why I post what I post but now it’s your turn. What’s your thought process when it comes to posting on social media? Be honest now!

Images via Instagram and Harper’s Bazaar