You raise some really interesting points about how we use social media. I was never one to have multiple accounts for various facets of myself -- partly because I saw myself as a single package, but mostly because I was afraid I'd cross the streams and post the wrong thing on the wrong page. But now I'm considering it in order to tweak my algorithm.
My parents recently passed, within 11 months of each other, and I'm still very much in the drowning stage. For lack of better grief support in my area, I've reached out online and found some accounts that have been really helpful. But now the algorithm is bombarding me with grief-related content. Sometimes I just need space to be a mom, a writer, a wannabe artist, a teacher, a science nerd, without being constantly reminded every third post that I'm an orphan.
Sometimes I like the algorithm. It brings me content I wouldn't ordinarily find on my own. But it can be very one-note.
So now I'm rethinking how I use social media. I thought I was using it to connect with friends, but I find myself posting less and less now that my parents are gone. Maybe now is the time to shift my approach to it, and make it less about what I am putting out and more about what I would like to bring in.
Nicole, I am sorry about your parents! Yes, that sounds like a good example of the challenges of engaging with the algorithmic feed. Instagram has made it pretty easy to swap between profiles within the app with just a click of a button. It still feels like a big jump to make, I think because I am older and not accustomed to having "channels" like this. But I'm trying to get used to it in part just to feel like I have more agency. I appreciate your thoughts.
You raise some really interesting points about how we use social media. I was never one to have multiple accounts for various facets of myself -- partly because I saw myself as a single package, but mostly because I was afraid I'd cross the streams and post the wrong thing on the wrong page. But now I'm considering it in order to tweak my algorithm.
My parents recently passed, within 11 months of each other, and I'm still very much in the drowning stage. For lack of better grief support in my area, I've reached out online and found some accounts that have been really helpful. But now the algorithm is bombarding me with grief-related content. Sometimes I just need space to be a mom, a writer, a wannabe artist, a teacher, a science nerd, without being constantly reminded every third post that I'm an orphan.
Sometimes I like the algorithm. It brings me content I wouldn't ordinarily find on my own. But it can be very one-note.
So now I'm rethinking how I use social media. I thought I was using it to connect with friends, but I find myself posting less and less now that my parents are gone. Maybe now is the time to shift my approach to it, and make it less about what I am putting out and more about what I would like to bring in.
Great post. Thanks for sharing.
Nicole, I am sorry about your parents! Yes, that sounds like a good example of the challenges of engaging with the algorithmic feed. Instagram has made it pretty easy to swap between profiles within the app with just a click of a button. It still feels like a big jump to make, I think because I am older and not accustomed to having "channels" like this. But I'm trying to get used to it in part just to feel like I have more agency. I appreciate your thoughts.