That Sunday Styles article about Instagram gave me a stomach ache. From the minute I read the title – The Agony of Instagram – I knew what the entire piece was about, and my gut reaction was, don’t read it. Don’t further uncover what you already know; Instagram is making you crazy. Fine, maybe not crazy but definitely a more image-oriented, people-pleasing, showy version of yourself. If I had to honestly assess the motivation behind any given image I ‘gram it would be showing off. Is that so terrible? No. Everyone does it, and I have plenty to be proud of. But is it necessarily good? I don’t know. That same gut that said don’t read the article seems to be saying no.
I went through the same thought process around Facebook a few weeks ago. My friend Ally bravely cancelled her account almost a year ago and feels liberated by the disconnect from every online move the friends (and random acquaintances you feel too guilty not accepting as friends) in her life make. That sounds delightful, but my life of self-promotion (Sunday Night Sex Talks, this blog) requires Facebook (and Twitter too), or so I think.
But Instagram is fully pleasure. I don’t have enough followers to constitute a fan base for this writing or anything else, and it’s the place I post my more personal photos anyway. So it felt like time to weigh the cost/benefit of it all. Yes, an honest assessment of how a smart phone app that shares pictures I put through filters positively or negatively impacts my life. It’s come to this.
NEGATIVES
- I frequently find myself ‘gramming when I should be enjoying the one-in-a-lifetime live moments happening before my eyes.
- I use the word ‘gramming…
- I frequently find myself looking at my Instagram feed when I should be enjoying one-in-a-lifetime live moments happening before my eyes…or just listening to what R is saying to me.
- On more than one occasion I’ve posted a photo solely to make people on the east coast jealous of west coast weather…flowers…scenery…food.
- Other people’s photos make me feel inadequate about my: apartment, weekend, social life, hair, make-up, outfit, and lack of dog/baby/actual house.
- Sometimes I feel bad that I wasn’t invited somewhere when I see other friends together.
- I miss my friends and family far away when I see their pictures.
- I think pictures that don’t have one to three filters applied to them are weird looking.
POSITIVES
- I can keep up with my far-away friends and family even more through their photos.
- I get motivated to be more adventurous when I see other people being more adventurous.
- Recipes ideas.
- A good laugh.
- General creative stimulation created by beautiful/interesting/creative photos.
- Some discounts (I follow a lot of fashion accounts…)
- Something to do when I am bored/alone at a restaurant/trying to determine the strength of my wireless connection.
- I feel closer to Lauren Conrad than ever before.
Does any of that sound familiar?
Does any of that seem conclusive?
I honestly can’t say, though I’m pretty uncomfortable with both sides of the list. But uncomfortable enough to cancel my account? Sadly, I don’t think so. The holidays are coming up, and I can’t bear the thought of missing Lauren Conrad’s perfectly-wrapped presents, and ‘gramming my own, of course.
What’s your take?
Jessie Rosen
Jessie Rosen resides physically in LA and mentally in NY. She writes scripts, books, articles, sex stories, branded content and killer e-mails.
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I’m with you on every point! I can be a show-off, but I hope that my Instagram helps my mom, my old roommates, and faraway friends feel closer to me. The same holds true for my blog – it may be silly to post pictures of our everyday life, but I think those who love my family will appreciate them. So I will keep showing off!
I struggle with the idea that if I enjoy life’s once-in-a-lifetime live moments and disconnect from instagram/facebook then I feel so disconnected from what is going on in instagram/facebook.
Thus the addiction.
We have just begun blogging and have not yet ventured to the land of instagram. What we have discovered is that in life we are living in this “connected,” phase where everything is a bunch of check ins and follow ups. There are different pros-meeting really interesting and great people, and definite cons-absorption vs focus in the “real world.” We try to be mindful of not living online to much in any platform. Its all about balance, but this balance is incredibly difficult. We try to admire just as much the real life moments in the everyday. We have also decided for the new year to disconnect fully on the weekends. Great post, and really insightful.
*gasp* I am obsessed with Lauren Conrad (in a healthy, non scary way)….I agree with everything said in this post. Instagram is totally pleasure. Its nice to see what my friends that moved away are doing or what the latest group of pics posted under hashtag foodporn are or #puddlegram. Seriously, there is a hashtag for just puddles.
I agree with all of the negatives and concluded that I should probably delete my instagram account based on those facts. Instead though, I just decided to follow Lauren Conrad.
Why is that Instagram has this charm that neither Facebook nor any other social platform has? I think it has to do with the ability to capture the moment, the “this just happened” and feeling like you’re part of something. I have left IG, then came back, and fought with myself to not become a news feed clogger. There’s a fine line between how much you should and want to post, without becoming annoying, or boring and forgetful. Every once in a while though, I can’t resist the temptation of posting a picture of my meal..
That Sunday Styles article about Instagram gave me a stomach ache. From the minute I read the title – The Agony of Instagram. have a peek here
The negatives definitely outweigh the positives for me, especially now that I’ve moved back east and can no longer ostentatiously gram pictures of from my west-coast (and therefore greater superior) life-style.
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