Living in a world with so much technological influence is awesome. We have the world at our fingertips -- literally. With a few clicks or taps on an iPhone screen, you are instantly greeted with any information you want. Likewise, with the help of social media, we can tell anyone in the world what we are doing within seconds of it actually happening. This makes it great for staying in touch with family and friends and having all your photos or posts kept in one place.

But what if this was actually hurting society and our self esteem? I’m not going to lie, I am a huge fan of Instagram. I find myself scrolling through my Instagram feed or the Explore tab, seeing all these people with amazing photos of their life. All these people do so many fun things, wear the most fashionable clothes, or look perfectly put together, always -- and they have the perfect picture to prove it.

If you’re ever feeling down, having a bad day, or just feeling tired and not yourself, it’s easy to assume that all those people on social media have a better life, or they’re happier, or that somehow you aren’t as cool as them. I constantly find myself comparing my life to others’ lives -- like somehow the level of adventure I have in my life or what I do in my free time can be compared only to someone’s photos on Instagram. But nevertheless, it happens to me, and I know it happens to other people, too. We let a number of likes or nice comments on a photo dictate how well people like us or perceive our life to be exciting.

Of course, social media will probably always exist, and people are always going to post what they are doing because that is just the nature of the world we live in. But, I think our goal should be to focus on just being happy with ourselves. Our worth is not set in an Instagram picture -- and definitely not in another person’s ability to capture the perfect artsy picture with the exact right lighting and the perfect filter.

Like I said, I am just as into social media as the next girl. I like having and taking pictures, so that I have the memories to hold onto later. However, I want to live my life free from comparisons to other people’s lives and social media posts. So here’s to living in the moment, being happy with myself, and not focusing on having the perfect Instagram theme or edited photo.