When Social Media Doesn’t Feel Social Anymore
Where I’ve been, where I’m headed, and why it matters.
Hello friends, happy Tuesday. It seems there is quite a bit of focus from everyone about what we dislike about social media post the TT ban and recent revelations. I’ve been fairly quiet about this online but have expressed my feelings deeply to those close to me. Ahem, studio mates, you feel me!?
It’s a tough feeling to process. I tried deleting my Facebook and Instagram accounts more times than I’d like to admit over the years. But I always get sucked back in. It’s where most of my audience is and how a lot of my work is seen, but I just don’t enjoy posting there anymore.
I miss when it wasn’t about finding trending audio to go with your reel, and you could just post a whimsical picture of seemingly nothing and all your friends would comment and like it. Remember when it was an unspoken rule that IG photos had to be from your phone to be cool? Hashtag #shotoniphone! We’d slap a cute filter on it - Nashville, anyone? And best of all, your friends would actually see your posts, in order, because the algorithm didn’t hide them. Sigh. I remember that, too.
Before Instagram, I had a lifestyle blog called Unruly Things. Maybe you read it? I shared wishlists, outfit ideas, musings on life, and even a column called “Show Me Your Stack,” where ring-loving friends showed off their stacks. At its peak, it had over 150,000 monthly readers, which felt incredible. Even now I can’t believe that there were that many people interested about what I had to say.
When Instagram first launched, it felt a bit like mini blogging. Let’s be real - having two small kiddos was taking all my energy, and posting a quick photo online for my friends and followers was so much easier than sitting down at the computer to write a full blog post. So in 2016, after nine years of writing, I let Unruly Things go. But I saved all the posts and still look back on that time with lots of great memories.
I’ve been wanting to get back into writing for some time. I tend to be a little wordy on Instagram posts and I’m sure you’re like, where’s the TLDR? I like to think that in a way, my Substack and newsletter will feel like a fresh take on that blog - just more personal, a little deeper, and full of what’s inspiring me right now. Plus I do hope to eventually share a little more about self publishing and photography tips along the way. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, "You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step."
I’m getting there friends. And I’m so glad you’re here.
If you feel inspired to, leave me a comment and let me know what you’d like to read about! Photography? Styling? Creating Art? Fashion? Life?
Feeling the same here Alyson. I absolutely hate the time that gets sucked out of my day, each and EVERY day, just trying to come up with boring as shit stuff I can post about on IG. Hardly anyone sees my posts, and it mostly ends up being just the farmers in the collective seeing and liking and sharing between us all. Such a waste of time. If I thought it was genuinely helping me to grow my business, I’d really commit to it and give it my all. But in all actuality, I’m providing content FOR FREE to the Metaverse and I’m getting trashed in the process. It’s growing HIS business, not mine. Ugh. So glad to see you here! I’ve been spending most mornings just scrolling thru the Substack feed instead of IG and at least I’m getting a much more interesting start to my days now.