It was 30 seconds ago. I was laying in bed getting ready to go to sleep, and I found myself scrolling mindlessly through Facebook. A baby picture here, a selfie there, and a picture of someone’s late night eats over there. Liking this, upvoting that, favouriting whatever… why?
The drastic rise in popularity of social media over the last decade has been staggering. It has allowed us to connect with people across the globe like never before, readily access information and news as it takes place. And know the exact time and place that Brody just blasted his pecs like never before, with video evidence to prove it.
There are many positives that come with all this information, imagery bombardment, and overstimulation of our brains with just one easy click of a button. Although this doesn’t need to be said, like all things, there are negatives, and these go past Brody blowing up your Facebook wall with pictures of him posing in front of gym mirrors.
It’s something that I’ve fallen into, and have to catch myself when I do—life envy.
The family, friends, and celebrities you follow post amazing pictures of themselves out, enjoying life, drinking with friends, partying, accomplishing great things, making delicious food, eating said food, all the while having a beautiful body.
Now you, sitting in your pajamas, debating whether 10 episodes of Friends is a worthy accomplishment for a weeknight, or if polishing off that Doritos bag that expired 2 weeks ago will tide you over for dinner. You’re taking all this in. We love to compare don’t we? Who has the better car, the nicer house, the trophy wife…the greater life. Now compare those two.
Polar opposites.
The concept of social media is narcissistic in its roots. Post a picture, video, or some sort of message, and wait for validation from others. Feed my ego some approval! Everyone is going to post those pictures of success, of happiness, of joy, triumph, and of some serious muscle swoll.
You’ll never see the pictures of hardship, failure, difficulty, long nights, sadness, the burnt meals, or the other twenty selfies that didn’t make the cut. People convey how they want to be portrayed, not who they are.
Be mindful of what you allow yourself to be visually bombarded with. Follow those who truly inspire you, who make a positive difference in this world, who embrace life. People you respect. And with that, let’s start a movement, #stopselfies.
Jonathan Schouten, B. Kin.
Professional Training Coach
Innovative Fitness Abbotsford
P: 6047463923
www.InnovativeFitness.com
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What IF you could?
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