Who Cares? Rethinking My Relationship with Social Media
I’ve realised that I’ve never used social media the ‘right’ way—or at least, the way that feels meaningful to me.
I loved Instagram but I’ve stopped posting lately.
During my most active time, I would post 10-15 stories on Instagram per day. Before Instagram, I was firmly on the Twitter bandwagon. The number of people following my accounts organically grew but never in a meaningful way.
Why?
People do not care about what is going on in my life, they care about what is going on in theirs. I posted because it was fun, because I wanted to share my life. But mostly, because that’s what you’re supposed to do, right? Be ‘present’ online.
It’s taken me a long, long time to learn this but it is true. I slowly learned—mostly from the silence after my posts—that people care about what relates to their lives, not just snapshots of mine. Social media isn’t a mirror, it’s a lens, and people look through it to find something for themselves.
People do not care about what I am posting unless the content I post fits into one of these areas:
Family & Friends — I am apart of their life. As in, family, friends and people I know outside the platform. Tiny cohort.
Niche — There is an overlap between what I am posting and what is happening in the viewers lives. For example; if I’m posting Ironman related content, people interested in Ironman may enjoy it. Similarly, if I’m posting startup related content, people involved in the startup industry may be interested. Multiple medium sized cohorts.
Funny — It makes them laugh. Large cohort.
Shock & Awe — It shocks or gets large emotional response from them. Large cohort.
What do I want?
If you’ve ever watched the movie The Notebook, there is a scene where one asks the other “What do you want?” out of frustration of trying to understand the other.
I had never asked myself the same question about social media… what do I want from it?
I do not want to spend my time on social media simply making people laugh as… I’m not that funny.
I do not want to become the next Mr Beast and create shocking videos… I would be awful at it.
I have a WhatsApp groups for my family and friends.
It leaves me with point two; “an overlap between what I am posting and what is happening in the viewers lives”.
What to expect? A Renewed Focus
I love fitness. I love health. I love creating digital products. I love building and growing businesses. Creating content around these four pillars to showcase the fun, the struggles and the growth around pushing myself to achieve as much as I can whilst I’m on this planet will be the focus.
I’m taking this in a new direction, and I’d love for you to come along—not as an audience, but as fellow travellers. This is the journey I want to share, not just the highlight reel.