Outside of the Instagram bubble
Do you dream of growing on Instagram as a creator or as an Influencer?
It’s pretty normal to think of the above question in this era where every day you spend more than 60 minutes simply browsing through your home feed and those addictive reels. What happens when the same thought takes over your mind and keeps you away from other goals?
One day during the COVID lockdown, when my exams were done, I thought of reigniting my passion to click pictures and capture stories. This started well and few months passed by beautifully. I was enjoying the process. If I look at it from a statistic perspective, the below pie-chart justifies the time spent simply putting up one post followed by other activities.
Total 3 hours
Let 14 hrs be given to sleep and other activities, we are left with 10 effective hours with us. Nearly 30% of the effective hours are invested in building a profile on social media. Well, we haven’t factored in one major distractor to this game, the likes, and comments. People check back every two seconds to see if their post had gained another like. Notifications cannot be left behind. They nudge you every few seconds making sure that you come back to the platform again and again. There is nothing wrong with this when you are doing this in your free time.
Back to the story, post my exam and all the content creation journey in that duration, it was time for me to join my college for further education. Since I was so consumed by the Instagram world, I was confused about how I am going to maintain this page and put more content now. I had a word with my senior and guide AD at this juncture and he said one simple thing and I quote,
“Had the time been like before, I would have encouraged you to buy a camera. But post-COVID, I would say to get your finances straight. Things are tough. Focus on the studies first and be really good there! Prioritising is the need of the hour."
Without a second thought, I went ahead with my education. In parallel to this, I started reading more. Now all this is not beneficial in a direct way, but they open your mind to greater possibilities and ideas outside that Instagram bubble. I realized that there is a high probability to succeed and earn income sustainably outside this online world. Growing up in a happy middle-class family, getting our finances straight comes first. I still encourage people to follow their dreams. But now, there is a slight twist in that narrative. Follow dreams but after getting your finances in place. In COVID we have witnessed that hospital and other treatments require huge amounts. Instagram or any platform should be used as one of the mediums to reach out and not the only one. Many fail to recognize this.
Why do I call this a bubble in the first place?
We all probably know that Instagram increases dopamine — the chemical in the brain that makes us happy. Budding artists post their content with good intent initially but sometimes they get lost in the process. This sometimes leads to the unethical aspect of the bubble. Deep down a loop is formed and people get sucked into this black hole. I have seen people posting photos of other creators, posting random pictures just to stay in the game. People even buy followers just to reach the numbers. The constant track of these numbers drives people insane.
Well, you have grown with Instagram if you are in your early 20s or late teens. You have spent more than 10% of your effective hours on Instagram browsing through content while growing up. So it’s not surprising that your mind is going to be developed in that way itself.
That day I received a message on Instagram, asking me for camera suggestions. Well, this is normal, but when I enquired more, he was 14 years old and was going to ask his parents for an expensive camera to start his page. I asked him what motivated him, and his words were, “ I also want to be famous like others.” I was taken aback. I believe this storyline is the same for many people growing up. Children and especially people below 18 years of age whose minds can be easily impacted are falling into this trap of Instagram success. When you see other creators gaining popularity, you wish to be like them someday and you jump in the same boat.
Let me ask you something, what are your goals? And who influenced you to set them?
A leading social psychologist in Belgium, says young people suffer because of a socio-cognitive process called internalization. This is where you “accept a socially constructed idea as a personal goal and it becomes part of your identity”. The research found 47% of 12-to-19-year-olds got their societal, professional, sexual, and physical goals from Instagram, and that negative well-being sets in the moment they don’t feel they measure up.
For the generation out there who are thinking of garnering success purely based on Instagram, let me share with you something. In the book, Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell, the author talks about how the opportunities that we are presented with for success are not only dependent on our inner qualities, our parenting but also on the time that we were born in this world. If you look back, the Tatas and Ambanis are successful today because they joined the industrialization wagon when it was about to begin. Similarly, the YouTubers who are successful started creating content on YT when it was just blooming, far away from all the algorithm changes taking place now. This doesn’t mean you can’t be successful now. For you to succeed, you either need to have a very unique product, a new idea, or a common idea but with a distinctive way of delivering it. Take the example of Abhi and Niyu. They joined in 2018 and paved the path with their unique style of delivery and content.
The 30% effective time as mentioned above is justified in few cases. These are the examples that one should look out for as an inspiration. Take the example of Joseph Radhik, Team Naach, or any other page on Instagram that are using the platform to grow their audience. They have built a strong presence in the offline world and now using the online world to spread their word. I know a few of my friends who have started taking up projects in the offline world apart from the content that they show on Instagram. That’s what growth looks like.
You will find your unique style once you allow your mind to explore the outside world and possibilities. One way to do this is to curate your home feed first by following some great minds. Their content will push you to think in different directions. Not a big step, but a small one that might help you see the bigger picture. Also, you can be active on your Instagram handle trying to make it big along with your education/ job, etc till the time, you don't break the ceiling.
Outside the Instagram bubble, a college degree from a good institute gives you a better safety net and higher odds at financial stability. The whole point of this article was to tell you that do not completely rely on social media to build yourself.
A good degree, a mighty experience, a good idea never goes out of sight if you hold on to it. Work on ideas, work with people, learn from some great minds. This is your time to grow and reach great heights.
I might post a photo tomorrow but that would be in my free time.
That’s a wrap.
I hope you’re taking good care of yourself, masking up, and washing your hands frequently.
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