I am pretty old school. I know I am still considered a millennial but I am quite pleased with myself for not giving myself fully to this digital world or the digital bandwagon.
I used to be like that back in 2016. Social media got me competing with others, it would make me jealous of things but the truth is it’s all just instant and temporary gratification. I don’t quite remember that thing that sparked me to stop and detach myself from that ‘digital blackhole’ as I call it.
I guess ever since I started being mindful of things I started to observe people on how they were and I kept obsessing about psychology (I am an introvert by the way). I loved trying to understand them and why they behaved like that.
So one day I just realized that I need to stop because I don’t want to be like everyone else (no offense here) because of social media – you know how social media dictates the standards of being beautiful, smart or sexy, and I hate that part because I can never be like that, and I got frustrated and really tried to understand where this hatred towards myself started.
It was because of jealousy and social media making me think I am nothing and I can never be like them that totally affected me. Looking back at it, those were poor choices in my life that resulted in those hardships but I have never regretted them because I am starting to love who I am now. Without those experiences I would not have turned into who I am now.
I vowed to myself that I don’t want social media to define my life, I don’t want social media to be used as a definition of me so since then on I limited the use of social media because, to be honest, most people use it to brag and make themselves feel important but it should not be the case.
Social media has great power if we use it properly – if we are knowledgeable about it but it can be the downfall of most people if they are too naive.
Of course, with the changes I made in my life, in all honesty, social media still sometimes got to me. But because of my goal, whenever I catch myself being manipulated by it (I would normally know because whenever I feel upset and restless that’s because I start to compare myself again and rush myself in life) I stop and go back to my vision and goal in life.
Sometimes it is easy while at times it would be so hard to stop myself from it but it always takes strong will-power and discipline and compelling goals to be able to achieve this.
Whenever I check Instagram or YouTube there are a lot of ads popping everywhere, especially on YouTube where after 3 minutes the video will pause for ads or the famous influencers promoting their ‘haul’ or ‘unboxing’ videos. I often find myself wanting to watch because I want to listen to how they present or say it, or I just am curious about the product and brand?
If the brand is nice what I do is research about it – I have always been curious about how these brands started. I am more after the story of how they have emerged.
I never buy branded stuff normally I get mine from charity shops and thrift shops because they are so unique and vintage. If I buy from those big brands normally it’s unflattering to me and also they all look the same.
I have my style and as my partner would always tell me he loves how I am because I have my style – he would always tell me I have this vibe that says, “I am Nina and I can wear whatever I want with my style”.
Another reason why I do not impulse buy whenever I see ads on YouTube is because I already know what these ads are for. Sorry to be frank but it’s only because they really want you to buy it- they create a need in your mind for you to need it so much and give in.
It is funny and quite the irony because I am not a fan of advertising but I took up Mass Communication minor in Advertising. It’s funny how over time things change and your preference changes until you find your core values.
I believe we are responsible for our moods, thoughts, beliefs, intentions, speech, actions and even our clarity, serenity and vision. No one else is, or ever can be, responsible for what goes on in our consciousness or for what it produces. Social media can influence us greatly but it will always be up to us.
Our job is to be an effective, wise and responsible person in this life we are living. Social media is just a tool but I think the real thing is fixing our thoughts, our inner self, our core values.
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