Fake Following to Fake Likes - Social Media

Validation. By the looks and sound of it, it might appear that most people don’t crave for it, yet social media statistics speak differently. Why you might ask. This could perfectly be answered by checking the statistics, numbers, hits and Analytics. Yet, from my personal experience of using Analytics, I had seen that those post that’d be talking about being accepted or preferred as a part of society would be gaining more engagements, as in more comments and likes. 

Point is, the psyche that plays at the back of individuals is that everyone wants to be accepted in the societal framework, and craves for a certain percentage of appreciation from the other end, and problems start kicking in when there is a sudden dearth of the required amount of appreciation. While into the process, we’ve entangled ourselves so very much that we hardly realise that our behavioural patterns are being regulated ably by social media. 

And, who is to be blamed for all of this? Social media? Well, do dig deeper, please. You making Arrabiaita Pasta, purchasing a new dress, or vacationing somewhere, do not ever miss putting it up, even put up a picture of yourself sitting inside the flight, with your COVID shield on. Once the post is live, you keep getting back, in order to check the number of engagements your posts has gotten. 

Now, if luck favours you, you might fetch the required engagement that you desired, and in turn, it encourages to share more and more posts, and out of these times, if you do not get the equal appreciation anymore, it’s likely that you’d fall into a pit of depression. My question is what is the need for so much validation? And, that too from social media, where the list of your friends stretch from school, college and workspace, and the ones where you might not even be in touch with for the longest time? 

Rather than awaiting and fretting over not getting the desired results from your posts on social media, the need of the hour could be some intense introspection, as a person if you are the one convinced that your post is worth appreciating, then it is. Period. You wouldn’t be needing an external validation then. 

In a nutshell, as an entity, if social media was authentic, as people deem it to be, then people wouldn’t be quitting WhatsApp, that has always served as a reliable source of communication citing privacy issues, and moving elsewhere. 

Therefore, likes or no likes, it’s all the same.