Last week I jumped onto Instagram and scrolled. The first thing that popped up was a notification from the app asking if I wanted to see like numbers. After a few seconds I decided that I didn’t want to see them. It was only later in the day when I had some time to myself that I asked myself why?
Why did I decide not to see the like numbers? Simple, I didn’t like how it made me or my peers feel. Let me explain.
Chasing validation
The whole point of social media is to interact with friends and family, see how they’re doing on a day to day basis or get their thoughts. In theory a ‘like’ is there to show the person that you agree with them or you enjoyed what they posted. In reality you might post a status or photo and get likes and comments. At the time when you get a few likes you feel good. You feel validated. But, what happens if your next post isn’t as popular? What if it doesn’t get the same amount of adulation? You feel sad or you question what you did wrong. Thus next time you post something you go back to what you did the first time and BOOM! All of the likes and comments. Your brain is filled with dopamine and your brain associates likes and the validation that comes with it as a good thing. You then repeat the cycle to get your fix, but every time you feel you need more and more to satisfy that itch. In other words you become addicted. That is why you may find yourself endlessly scrolling through Instagram or Facebook, they’re built to be addictive.
Likes as currency
With that dangerous mix in came big business and the influencers. Influencers would chase fame and the likes and validation that came with it. If they did something and gained praise for it, then they repeated it and gained more “clout”. Because they were seen as big in the space, they then drew the attention of brands who then paid them for sponsorship spots in posts. Since they got spots it made them seem even more valued in the eyes of both influencers and their audience. The cycle continues on and on.
This also had a knock on effect that when someone sees someone acting a certain way and getting praise for it, more people jump on the bandwagon. In the end you have a homogenous group begging and asking for likes acting in more and more extreme ways. When people don’t get the validation they crave, they fall into a depression. On the other hand, people who are successful can feel trapped by the cycle they have found themselves in.
No one wins in that situation. You compare your numbers to someone else and you feel worthless or less than. Or you feel trapped by your own success.
That is why I chose to not see the numbers. In some small way I’m breaking that cycle. I can like a post or post something and not have to see a reminder of how well or bad it’s doing on Instagram. It can just be there and you know what? I wish more platforms did it. If you want more articles like this one then why don’t you check out our Blog page? We publish articles every week so it’s worthwhile following us on Facebook, Twitter or checking back in with us regularly.
