As I write this, I am laying on my couch, with a cup of collagen-infused water, and the great Amanda Bynes flick What A Girl Wants playing on the television. Thank goodness for reruns of the early 2000s films I grew up on. I am currently avoiding prepping content for Instagram and returning to the blog as I’ve been largely neglecting it this year. Don’t mind me if I pull a few great lines from this movie while writing this post.
On a normal night, I would spend it looking for photos I haven’t already posted. Or I would be re-editing a photo I’ve already had queued up to post on my Instagram. This could be simply because I decided I didn’t care for it anymore. I go between having new photos to sparsely sprinkle into my feed, to searching through the archives of photos and outtakes I haven’t already posted. Sometimes that content well runs a little dry. In hopes to stay relevant, people say to post daily, to be consistent. This is where there is an internal struggle for some creators.
Consistency: Quantity vs Quality
How far are you willing to take being consistent? Are you willing to possibly sacrifice the quality of your content in order to up the quantity to posting at least once a day? I went for a long time with feeling the need to post daily. I would cripple when it would get towards the end of a day and I had not posted anything. Now, if I have nothing to post, I don’t even wince at the thought of it.
Never put pressure on yourself for creating content, except with the instance where you may have a partnership and a deadline, which you should give yourself as much time as possible to work with to produce your best content. You don’t want to create content for a company or brand that doesn’t fully hold up to your normal work. This leads to my next point…
Representation in Your Feed
When you create your content, you are representing yourself. Or at least the version of you that you’ve created in your online profile. Here’s hoping that the version that you’ve created is a good one. Also, it keeps some of your true personality showing through.
I’ve recently had a couple of people comment on my real-life personality. Comments after finally meeting me in person instead of just my Insta-personality they have only seen in Instagram photos and Stories on the gram. Thankfully, these were both instances where my real-life personality surprised people in a good way. This goes to show that you always need to put your best foot forward, whether it’s online or in person, even if you’re a little bit sarcastic and dorky. Find ways that make you unique and thrive off of that.
Why are you trying so hard to fit in when you were born to stand out?’Ian Wallace, What a Girl Wants
After you get your personality in check, you have to stay true to yourself with what you’re posting. When you start accepting collaborations and products, you have to eventually learn where the line is. This line is what you accept and what you pass on. You can be thankful for opportunities to arise, but not every single one of them aligns with what you represent. You would be surprised to find out what people are thinking when you post about things that aren’t your “lifestyle”. People are keen to your normal content. But they can also spot a needle in a haystack when it comes to posting about something you aren’t fully supportive of. As Daphne states in the movie, “I don’t want to be a plonker.” Stay true to your personality and what I like, and your feed with help represent all of that.
Let’s Get Candid
Some people do amazing well to show their personality through their posts, but most likely through their candid Instagram Stories. This is a struggle for some people to really show candid moments. Makeup or without makeup, in pjs or decked out in popular designer brands.
“Don’t let him in, I’m not even cute yet.” Daphne Reynolds, What a Girl Wants
Yes, some people go the full nine yards. They really let people in on their day-to-day life with their victories and their struggles, and everything in-between. Even for myself, I tend to stick to the less candid moments, but try to push myself to show daily life candid moments to anyone that wishes to watch. I often don’t wear makeup throughout the week and tend to avoid Stories with my face in front of the camera. I am working on just posting more random moments. It helps keep family and friends in the know of my life. It also shows the world a little more me.
Taking a Refresher
Sometimes you just need to escape the social gathering, hope on a motorcycle and ride off to avoid the paparazzi. Just kidding, that’s just what Amanda Bynes and Colin Firth did in the movie. I’m telling you, this movie never gets old. It’s a good one. Taking a break to refresh your mind is never looked down upon. It should be freeing and used to get your mind back in focus. You must always have a clear vision of why you’re doing what you’re doing. Whether you’re an “influencer” or content creator, or just someone that likes to post on social media, sometimes you need a break. It helps to get those creative juices flowing or even just acts as a social break to reconnect. Definitely don’t neglect your friends and family for the gram. Go on, take the break, be refreshed!
Well, that’s all I’ve got for you now. Well, actually, the movie just ended and now I’m singing along to the credit music. When you’re battling Instagram’s algorithm, there are always other platforms and that blog you’ve put on the backburner for too long. Get creative!
