Kayleigh Moore
Social media takes up a fair proportion of our time whether we want to admit it or not. So maybe just as when you are on holiday you don’t do work, social media should also get a break.
For university students in particular, being active on social media can often be seen as an essential. Not only is it used for staying up to date with societies but sites such as LinkedIn are seen as crucial for finding and maybe even getting that internship or grad job.
The psychology of posting on social media is far too extensive to go into here, however it is worth asking yourself: why are you posting that photo?
Most of us are guilty of posting Snapchat stories and Instagram posts by the pool or exploring an amazing city, but why? The psychology of posting on social media is far too extensive to go into here, however it is worth asking yourself: why are you posting that photo? Are you posting to keep friends and family updated on your travels, maybe you see your posts as your own personal log to look back on, or are you posting to show off that you are on holiday and perhaps make others jealous?
The reasoning behind your post may help you decide whether using a holiday as an opportunity to switch off from your socials is for you. You may decide not to completely switch off, instead only going on it at night or when you wake up. Or you may go all the way and log out until you get back home. But taking a break from social media may be just what you need to really get the most out of your holiday.
It can be difficult to distance ourselves from social media when they use notifications to draw you in and personalised algorithms to keep you scrolling. But studies show that constant use of social media can be bad for both our physical and mental health so taking a step back is probably beneficial for the majority of us, especially for short periods of time such as during a holiday.
The reality is most of your followers don’t actually care about that sunset
Is it not better to fully enjoy a city without trying to take the perfect photo to put on your Instagram? That time could be better spent exploring. Why not just enjoy the most beautiful sunset over the sea instead of trying to get a camera to do it justice? The reality is most of your followers don’t actually care about that sunset. Would it not be better to live in the moment with those that you are with? Create the memories that matter, take photos if that makes you happy, but only post it on social media if that also makes you happy. Properly happy, not happy that depends on the pictures hitting a certain number of likes. If a photo of a holiday doesn’t get the response you want, does that mean the holiday was any less enjoyable? It shouldn’t, but for many it can feel that way.
So next time you go away consider logging off from social media, as that may be the real holiday that you need.
Kayleigh Moore
Featured Image courtesy of Edgar Chapurro via Unsplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to the image.
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