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Life is meaningless?


petrichors

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Hey everyone,

 

I'm a 21 year old female. I'm currently in my last year of college, majoring in Marketing - I'm hardworking and my grades are pretty good (3.7 GPA). I'm also working a decent company that pays me quite well as an intern. My family life is fine, and I do have a few friends I can trust although I can only count them on one hand.

 

In junior year of high school, I picked up social media as my hobby - and it was something I poured my heart and soul into. I was able to accumulate 30,000 followers on Tumblr and 19,000 followers on Instagram by posting my own original content that many liked. It went pretty well up until the beginning of this year. Due to some algorithmic changes, my content doesn't show to as many people anymore and I've been losing followers and seeing a large drop in my engagement. I know it sounds stupid, but this has really messed with my self-esteem.

 

I'm considering dropping this hobby because it feels more like a job than something that I can enjoy leisurely. But the problem is I don't see myself doing anything else long-term. No other activity makes me as happy as creating content. I'm starting to feel like I'm losing meaning in life. Other than work and school, there is nothing else that really makes me happy other than my family and friends - but I want to be able to truly enjoy something without the influence of other people. Is this normal?

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Well, you know, everyone has taken a hit in users because websites have changed their algorithms and have dumped users that are inactive. It has nothing to do with you! Have you been monetizing your pages? You should be making some money on your content. Maybe you want to set up a website on GoDaddy or someplace and use Tumblr and Instagram to send people over to your Website where you can sign them up to your own newsletter and build audiences that way. Also look into getting on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.

 

So where you're 19, and you're keeping up a good GPA, you should definitely explore working in social media and start making some money so that you might be able to support yourself through it. I've worked for myself for over 30 years, so it's certainly possible to earn a living at it. But you shouldn't think this has anything to do with your self-esteem. If anything, it should make you work harder to get even more users. Definitely, try spreading out to the other social media sites to find new subscribers.

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I'm considering dropping this hobby because it feels more like a job than something that I can enjoy leisurely. But the problem is I don't see myself doing anything else long-term. No other activity makes me as happy as creating content.

 

In what ways does it feel like a job? What alterations can you make to your own scheduling to keep your enjoyment and make it feel less like a job?

 

If you're in Marketing, you'll need to grow accustomed to the changes and influences that can impact numbers and teach yourself how to reach for creative ways to promote your work. Well, what better platform for that than your own hobby?

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It sounds like you are maturing and a hobby from your teen years in junior high seems as ridiculous now as it actually is, now that you have more mature, intelligent pursuits. Once you get rid of this, you'll have more time for the things that are meaningful to you now like studies, career, family, real-life friends and other interests, hobbies, sports, groups, clubs, etc that are more consistent with your age, level of maturity and what you are doing with your life...

In junior year of high school, I picked up social media as my hobby - and it was something I poured my heart and soul into. I was able to accumulate 30,000 followers

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I agree with wiseman.

 

You have your whole life ahead of you and there is TONNES to explore. You sound like you are maturing, and you show insight into understanding that you may have invested too much into social media and the numbers of followers you have at any given moment.

Life is far from meaningless, but living too much in the bubble of social media can contribute to a feeling of emptiness and isolation.

 

Time to spread your wings. Community involvement of any type would be a good balancer for you, especially with the type of work you wish to pursue. You can do anything- clubs, sport, volunteer, travel. Just go out and enjoy your life away from the screen more often and without social media constantly in the forefront.

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Well, I think you are very lucky. If you love creating content more than anything and you are pursuing a marketing career, then you really will get to do for a living what is your actual passion. Very few people can actually claim that, let alone get to live that.

 

That said, I would look at this as transitioning and maturing. Transitioning your passion into a career and maturing in that you no longer associate your self worth to social media and how many clicks you get. Yes, algorithms will change, you are in a dynamic environment. That's actually part of the fun and the challenge of it that keeps you fresh. I know you don't see it now, because right now it just hurts. Thing is, that once you start doing this for a living, the fact that your work isn't a boring routine, that rules change and you need to get ready and conquer those changes will be a blessing and a welcome challenge to your professional skills and prowess. Trust me when I say that you and most people don't like a job where it's like flipping burgers, same old every single day until you feel numb and dead inside. Down the road, you will find that you are looking forward to the changes and they'll feel like Christmas.

 

All that said, the other posters are correct that in addition to creating content, social media, you need to have a well rounded life in real life. Real life friends and activities, family, relationships, etc. At the end of the day, it's the real life relationships that matter, not social media. Getting too personally wrapped up in social media leads to a lot of problems for many. So much so, it should be called the anti-social media. So make certain that you stay grounded in the real world and never ever allow yourself to connect your self worth to the number of likes on your social media pages.

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Hey everyone,

 

I'm a 21 year old female. I'm currently in my last year of college, majoring in Marketing - I'm hardworking and my grades are pretty good (3.7 GPA). I'm also working a decent company that pays me quite well as an intern. My family life is fine, and I do have a few friends I can trust although I can only count them on one hand.

 

Is this normal?

 

You're feeling the loss of what you expected you would get from your hard work. I'm glad to hear you're young as there was a woman that dedicated her life to youtube. It was all she did and it was her only source of income. They changed algorithms on her and she lost a lot of money. She ended up driving to Youtube headquarters shot a few employees and then shot herself. I recommend you get out of both now and find some other meaningful work. Make something for orphans or the needy as people who have nothing will appreciate your work.

 

https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/03/us/youtube-hq-shooting/index.html

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