In an age where content is king, it can feel overwhelming to constantly post one post after another. Is there an alternative solution?
The power of saying no in a culture where content is king
Social media is a beast. You need to feed it daily with content.
I tried to do that last year and posted on Instagram the schedule three times a week. I have gained a steady following and honestly, I think I can get more if I post every day or even multiple times a day. But this is exhausted. It doesn’t feed me or move my soul. It got to the point where I cared less and less about numbers. This is not to say that I have a huge following.
I’m more interested in authentic sharing. If something happens to me, I’ll deal with it. If I had created an image that I am particularly proud of, I would have shared it. As a disclaimer, this is what worked for me. Your mileage may vary.
But here’s the thing: I like to use social media the way I’m using it to leverage real-world connections. Come to my real-world performance. Come see my real-world work in a real live gallery. Let’s chat. I don’t particularly care about likes, interactions or numbers because I feel that those things are not real. Likes and followers don’t pay or feed my soul.
Which made me realize this: just saying no to everything is fine.
No, I don’t want to do that.
It’s not worth jumping, bending, and twisting just to do something you don’t want if you don’t want to do it. It is simple. It really does wonders for your state of mind.
There is a limit to what you can choose to remove yourself from. I can’t say no to my taxes. I cannot reasonably say no to my medical condition and not see a doctor or dentist. I don’t particularly enjoy doing these activities in and on their own, but doing them at least makes me feel that I’m growing. Doing my taxes is a very realistic way to gauge how financially I am that year. Taking care of myself makes me grateful for the health I have and also makes me realize the privilege I have from living in Australia, where socialized healthcare is available.
Posting to Instagram is like some gerbils on wheels, not so much. I don’t care about it.
Make a genuine connection
I’m still doing photography. But I’m doing it at a pace that works for me. In the name of transparency, I will be doing one, maybe two series of photos per year; but they will be conceptualized in more detail with the express purpose of actually saying something, which adds to the artistic discourse and hopefully contributes to the discipline of photography.
Do meaningful work, say something, and will stand the test of time.
For me, it is significantly more rewarding to see the photos in print, and in a real gallery, than to see similar photos being viewed on social media. I would rather have one person visit me in a gallery and have an honest chat with them than have hundreds of social media followers. I believe the photos are not intended to be viewed digitally only.
For me, it’s about the pictures. There are real world shows and can follow them on something like Mutual Art is the best feeling in the world.
In my opinion, seeing an ever-expanding resume of art exhibitions on Mutual Arts, which sums up the program, is a far more satisfying feeling than any other. something else in the world. I’m not for Instagram.
My other problem with social media is the race for likes. I posted something. I get likes. It’s a dopamine hit. If something doesn’t get as many likes or comments as I thought it would, I would be very upset. What am i doing wrong? To help ease this cycle a bit, I recently started using the free version of At moment later. Instead of a post-like-post-like treadmill, Later helps me create a post and take the time to do it, and then the platform “posts” it at a later date. I try to schedule while working or sleeping or doing other things; this way, when I finally see the actual post and the interactive results, I see a certain displeasure. I posted it not that I watched it.
Find what’s right for you
I don’t want to discount how someone, like you, the reader, can create or share images. I simply share what works for me. But if what worked for me has piqued your interest, here are some closing thoughts.
At the beginning of this article, I mentioned that there are some things I do that I personally don’t enjoy, but are almost a necessity. Unfortunately, social media is one of those necessary evils. Ads, especially smaller ones, have to live with it. But how you interact with social networks is completely up to you.
i think this Brendan Maclean quote, from his Twitter, is a much better summary of this.
Here’s a serious tweet: never discount how simple the simple things of your artistic practice are to everyone. I gave someone in the front row a set list and they were so wrapped up they didn’t even know it existed.
We all feel like content machines but it doesn’t have to be comic sketches and viral media. ‘Work’ is always a fun thing to share.
I did a bit of this on Instagram, but what made the idea come to mind was when I was visiting family from the states. As a small activity of the day, I made some shots of them on film, and then we developed and scanned them together. There is almost a miracle to what advertising can do from the point of view of non-advertising people; they were enthralled! What is boring to you may be magical to someone else.
Which makes me end up with this: what are some of the strategies you use to engage with social media?
