Stay True to You

In this day and age, technology is second nature. For most, social media is a part of our every day lives. Our online presences can be viewed as fake because people tend to only post the good snap shots of their lives, but never the bad and the ugly.

How do you remain authentic and genuine on your platforms? I am a firm believer in staying true to yourself with each post you share. I took a class for my Master’s degree called Identity and Personal Brands, where I learned how to maintain a respectable online personal and professional presence. If you are on the fence about posting something you may regret later, I encourage you to rethink it. Never shy away from upholding your morals and values. My mentality before posting anything on social media has always been: Am I okay with everyone in the entire world seeing this if they came across it?

The Internet can be quite judgmental, but strive to remain sincere. If you do not have anything nice to say, then do not say it at all. Nobody is perfect (cue the Hannah Montana song), but social media makes it hard to distinguish what is real and what is fake. Beauty standards have become so unrealistic due to photo shop and editing apps that exist to remove all imperfections.

“Beauty begins the moment you decide to be yourself.” – Coco Chanel

Likes, views, and shares truly do not matter to me anymore. When I was younger, the more likes you had on posts ultimately translated into your level of popularity and how well liked you were. Nowadays, comparison has subsided. I do not seek out engagement on my posts, but I know that because I am staying true to myself through my platforms, the engagement will come naturally. My platforms are my personal memory books. Every post I look back on has meaning.

Your authenticity should shine through on your social media platforms and you should not seek external validation from your posts. Everyone will have their own opinions, which is great because that is what makes us unique. However, I know who loves me, values me, and supports me in life, and that is what truly matters. My social media is an honest representation of me. I hope that the pictures, stories, and posts I write and share inspire and make my audience smile.

Your content should be a complete representation of you and the image you want to display. Let your voice shine through. Do not post based on what you believe people want to read or see, but instead post how you feel. You can certainly follow along with the current trends, but do not try and fit yourself into a mold that is not true to you. It is up to you how much or how little you wish to share online, but post what feels right instead of trying to please others.

Do not let social media consume you. Find joy in your relationships and life outside of social media, and find a healthy balance to incorporate social media into your routine. Post what makes you feel happy and keep your values and morals at the core of every post. Open up and share your truth. Be genuine, be real, be raw, and be you.

Remember to stay humble and kind, always!

Thank you so much to Karen Krause, my former Girl Scouts troop leader, for the topic suggestion! If anyone has any topic ideas for me to consider writing about in the future, please send them my way.

Follow me on my personal social media platforms to stay up-to-date with my every day life:

Instagram: jess_puch

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xo –Jess