Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, whatever it may be, these social media platforms are changing the way we view the world.
Ask a normal teenage girl and she will probably not be able to give a definitive answer as to how many times a day she thinks about what pictures she could or should post on social media.
Therein lies the problem with validation.
Is it necessary to have people like and agree with all that you will share? Do the parts of you that are shown to the world define worthiness and hierarchy?
If the answer is yes, then there lies a fear of the ego being destroyed through social media. There is no correlation between how cool you are as a person and the pictures you post on Instagram, as much as you want to prove to yourself that there is.
Sure, anybody can take the time to perfectly plan out an outfit, find great lighting, and pose well but that isn't real life. What emanates from a person and how they carry themselves, that is real.
Some some it's an enigma that somebody has doesn't necessarily have to be paired with insanely good looks to be considered worthy. Not all of us are models, and at the end of the day not all of us would really care to be.
Even some models who aren't naturally thin, will sometimes starve themselves in order to try and live up to insane expectations because once put into a world that begs for approval based on aesthetics, they are constantly comparing themselves.
We live in a world of constant comparison and ideals, when there really is no “perfect”. The popular look, or trend goes out of style and then something else comes. As with beauty, some things are purely subjective and a sign of the times. For instance, back when Marilyn Monroe was the hugest sex symbol her body was an ideal, when now her figure would be considered overweight. And say whatever you want about the Kardashian's and their speculated plastic this or that, but thank god Kim K. brought back the fuller, curvy figure.
There is no exact look that fits the universal mold of attractiveness, we are all beautiful to somebody and that in itself shows that it’s opinion. I’ve had friends not even take a second glance at McDreamy or Zac Efron for crying out loud, opinions are simply that, they are what somebody else thinks.
As long as you know that, at the end of the day, you know that your worth has nothing to do with the amount of likes on Instagram or favorites on Twitter you get, then you are a lot better off than those who care. I can only bring to the table what I’ve got and I have accepted that.
We are as much as we allow ourselves to be and that can be extremely mundane and human. We are HUMAN. That selfie probably doesn't look like you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and that is perfectly okay. Remember, that also applies to everyone else.
Heightened reality through social media is just another reason why we compare ourselves but the key is remembering that regardless of how something may look or appear, there is always someone just living there life behind that screen and they are trying to figure it out just as much as you are.
The next time you get jealous of someone else for looking a certain way or having what you don’t, think that maybe they could be thinking the same of you. Be cool to them, be kind to them, and maybe you two can figure some more out about life together.
