In the age of Millennial social media, there are a lot of distractions to daily life and living in the moment. Social media platforms are even proven to induce stress as it exemplifies a false sense of reality. It is so easy to get caught up in keeping up with all of the new posts on Instagram and making sure to like every picture as if the person who posted it will be mad if you don’t. There are a lot of arguments caused by who liked whose picture or who didn’t like your fast enough. These arguments are so arbitrary in the long run but are a quick way to slowly ruin relationships. Making your life so public can even prove to be an easy way to showcase to people the idea of having “the perfect life” or making sure someone knows you are “happy”. But is that truly the case or do you sabotage your happiness by working so hard to portray it in the 2 seconds that someone takes to view it? The question arises then of what occurs to make people feel so desperate to prove to others that one’s life is perfect when, in reality, it’s a false perfection. If, instead of trying to take a thousand pictures for just finding the right one to pick, you decided to live in the moment and not focus on other people but instead take the time to focus on yourself, you might get the chance to explore what truly makes you happy as an individual and furthermore what you desire out of life. It’s okay to feel a moment of bliss without posting it on social media. in fact, it might be better not to because it is important to keep certain moments personal rather than vomit them onto many platforms of public space. Take the time to truly smell the flowers, rather than just posting by it. So often we worry that people won’t value us if they don’t see what we have to value. But if you think about it, are those the people you want in your life? Do you want to have to constantly worry about what makes other people like you when you run the risk of losing respect for yourself and therefore not focusing on what makes YOU like YOU?

In the end, YOU are what matters. In the end, YOU are all you have. The two letter word of “M.E.” is basically the only thing that matters in the long run. That might come off as superficial or overly-confident; however, when you get the opportunity to truly embrace the word “me” you run into a whole new world. You realize the true potential that “me” can make a difference and a bigger impact in the world. When your attention is constantly focused on the screen in front of you, who is focusing on the larger matters in the world? Such as those around you that are in pain or need a friend. Those around you that need some attention and T.L.C. but notice that your attention is towards what top a girl in an Instagram picture is wearing and therefore they feel neglected? When you start to recognize that the world around you is what matters and not other people’s world, that is when true change occurs. Social media doesn’t necessarily have to mean that it’s full of shallowness. In fact, there’s a lot of good things that are posted that either raise awareness or are used to recruit members to a certain organization.Social media is an outlet for stress or a confidence boost. But when you become so ingested in what social media is saying or portraying, what is the point of it then?

While Instagram is an excellent way to keep in touch with those far away, it might not be worth the stress of everything else. When I see an attractive female on Instagram, I don’t want to constantly compare myself and berate myself. Facebook is more complex with what you’re able to post. Most often it’s funny videos that people tag you in to brighten your day. Or maybe it’s a long rant about how someone’s day was. There are ways to enjoy portraying yourself on social media without having to worry about your looks. Life is so much more than just looks, and when you realize that, you realize the true fulfillment of life and joy.