6 Tips for Staying Sane on Social Media

In the age of social media

Being a millenial, it’s no surprise to me that social media is such a big part of our lives. I grew up in the age of MySpace and then it was Facebook and Twitter and eventually YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat and probably a bunch of others that I don’t even know about.

I don’t know about you, but I just don’t have time to keep up with all of these social channels! I barely have time to have a real social life, how can I possibly have time to be online socializing ALL THE TIME?! Is it just me or does it seem like there’s a requirement to update your every move on social media? When did we stop enjoying life as it happened and instead focus on the best Insta photo and caption? Oh, and hashtags. Lots and lots of hashtags.

Social media for business

Now as a beginning blogger, I feel even more emphasis on social media as I’m trying to build an online presence and audience. If I don’t post to every channel at least once a day, I start to see my engagements drop, my followers unfollow me and my hard work quickly slips through the cracks! How do I keep up with everything? Let’s be honest, I don’t.

But being a social media professional in my full-time job, I also see the business value in cultivating an engaged audience online. It’s your ticket to growing a brand, being an expert in your field and a go-to source for your topic area. There is plenty of value in connecting online, but with every positive, there are also some negatives.  

I hate comparing myself to others. I hate having travel envy and fashion envy. I hate obsessing over the number of likes and number of followers on my channels. I hate feeling like I need to post at just the right time to be seen. I hate dreaded algorithms.

But at the same time, I’m learning from others. I’m seeing the world and learning about new trends. I’m building up a following slowly but surely. I’m experimenting with timing and repeating what works while scraping what doesn’t. And I’m trying to please the algorithms so that my posts are seen.

I guess at the end of the day, I’m trying to see the positives and using social media as an ongoing learning experience. So if you’re finding yourself in the same boat, the sailboat without sails in a hurricane called social media, please read on.

Here are my tips for staying sane on social media:

You don’t need a perfect picture

You need a good picture, a great picture, but perfection is near impossible. Especially on Instagram, yes, high quality pictures are a necessity. But no one, I repeat NO ONE, is perfect. So don’t feel like you need every picture or every post to be perfect or even close to perfect. Be yourself. Be true to your brand. Be honest with your audience. But know that imperfections are okay.

Life is not as it seems on social media

Yes,there are some awesome accounts out there who are exploring every corner of the world with perfect hair and chiseled bodies, but not everything is as it seems. Whether you’re following close friends and family or famous people on social media, the posts that you see are literally one second of their day. There’s not background on how they overslept for work that morning or how they got into a fight with their boyfriend as they were taking this seemingly perfect photo. You are seeing a still image or a static post and we all know that life goes beyond the pages of our online accounts. Don’t forget that whoever is posting is human, too.

You can’t be superior on every platform

Especially for bloggers and businesses, it’s important to remember that we can’t do everything, all the time, really well. Nope, it’s just not possible. So all the articles and courses out there telling you to be on every platform and get 10,000 followers in two weeks, it’s just not realistic. Unless you are able to be on social media 24/7, it’s not possible, and quite frankly not healthy. Choose one, two, maybe three platforms to start and build those up. Master one platform before you move on to the next. It’s not a race to the top, but more importantly a steady growth of engaged followers.

You don’t need to spend hours a day on social media

I’ve learned to limit myself to a certain amount of time each day to engage and interact with social media. It’s very easy to get sucked in and spend hours scrolling through posts. But guess what? You’re missing out on real life! It’s important to be active on social media to stay in touch or build your following, but it’s not necessary to waste all of your time online.

Remember the reason for social media

These platforms, no matter which ones you use, are meant to be social. It’s about networking and making connections. It’s about getting your name or your brand in front of more people. It’s not to criticize or compare yourself to others. It’s not about only expecting people to like your posts, but ignoring other people’s content. Use the platforms as they were intended and you will see results.

Be transparent and consistent

It’s really important to be yourself and to represent yourself well online. Remember, these are public platforms that everyone and anyone can see. That means friends and family, future clients and partners, and current and potential employers. If you’re working on behalf of another brand or building your own brand, it’s important to be up front about what you believe in and what you represent. It’s better to be open and honest than to misrepresent yourself.  

Final Thoughts

Let’s face it, we live in a world that’s fueled by social media. But that doesn’t mean that it needs to rule us. Use social media to benefit you, whether that means staying in touch with close friends and family, building a brand or sharing your knowledge with the world, but at the same time, be true to yourself and remember to live your life in the real world offline.

How do you handle social media in today’s world? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!