“Like” is a common word used in our vocabulary. It is a word we often use when transitioning thoughts, when describing things and, when we were younger, we learned there was a difference between liking someone and “like-liking” someone. I was 11 years old when I thought I first “like-liked” someone (it didn’t work out).
Then came my teenage years. I learned that there could be a little grey area between “like,” “like-like” and love. While I was trying to navigate my way through the complexities of relationships, friendships and crazy hormone spikes, Facebook introduced something during my freshman year of high school that completely changed the way we look at social media and, sadly, the way that some of us look at ourselves.
On Feb. 9, 2009, the "like" button was introduced.
It is hard to think back to a time when liking photos and posts was cliché, but I do recall the thumbs up button looking silly on a computer screen. I remember asking myself, “What does a like button even mean on the internet?” Before that time, it was probably only your closest family and friends who commented on your photos to give their approval. And that was enough.
As you know, it did not take long for the comments on posts to grow fewer and the like button to take off. Then came the favorite button on Twitter and, once again, the like button reappeared on, arguably, the most popular social media platform in use by my generation today, Instagram.
Indeed, my teenage years were completely centered on being liked, not only by my peers in the real world, but by sheer acquaintances in the cyber world. Now, not only do my closest friends like my photos, but friends of friends (of friends) now double tap my pictures on Instagram. Some of them are even strangers.
Some people spend hours thinking up the perfect caption for photos. Others spend an equal amount of time manipulating their photos and picking out the perfect filter so the end result looks nothing like the original copy. Even after an hour of methodical edits, some people will delete their post if they did not receive a certain amount of likes within a few minutes. My best friends and I have an unsaid understanding that we will always like each other’s photos, something that seems to have become part of this generation’s “Girl Code.” I have even received text messages from some of them demanding, “Go like my photo.”
There are apps out there that can make your teeth whiter, your skin smoother, and even ones that can warp your body to appear thinner. With all of this work and anxiety put in to produce a single photo, my newsfeed has become a silent competition, with everyone vying for just one thing: likes.
At almost 21 years old, I am now beginning to ask myself the same question that I did at 15, “What does a like even mean on the internet to me?” I admit, I am guilty of being selective when choosing photos, captions and filters and frequently checking my notifications for likes. But as I take a step back, I realize that this like button, this symbolism of approval for my generation, is very insignificant in the grand scheme of life.
How does having 150 likes on your photo make you more significant than someone that only has five likes? This is not to say that likes are not important to people who use social media to market themselves for careers -- like writers, bloggers or advertisers. What I am really trying to stress here is that you should never seek approval as the person you portray yourself to be on social media, but instead, find gratification by being a gracious, well-liked human being by others in this world.
The people that are truly the most important ones in your life will always be there for you, and it should not take hundreds of followers to tap “like” on your photo to show you that the real friends in your life love you. I have noticed that some people who are the most "popular" on social media are actually extremely insecure with themselves. So, don't ever compare yourself to others on any social media platform because, let's be real, they probably took over 200 photos to get that one "perfect" shot -- and added three different filters.
I will leave you with one thought: at the end of your life, when all is said and done, no one is going to remember you for the amount of likes you received or the amount of followers you had. You are not going to be remembered for the tangible things you had or even accomplished. What they will remember, however, is your legacy -- the character you had, who you lifted up, and who you made better.
