I heard Naval Ravikant state that Social Media is practically just a status game, and it has made me think. A lot.
I’ve been on SoMe apps for as long as they’ve been around. I’ve mostly observed others, and occasionally, in periods, taken a stab at participating actively and sharing my own stuff. I’ve had the intention, and committed to actively participating and engaging on all of the platforms more times than I can count. For some reason, it’s never really felt right, or natural to me. I’ve always had a lingering insecurity about why I felt the need to do it in the first place, and who it is for. I’ve had varying answers to those questions over the time, and I can easily rationalize why it’s a good idea to post and engage.
I mean, it’s the most direct way to social and professional leverage in todays world. It might also be the one unfair advantage my generation have, in order to compete with the established generations. Yet, regardless of how raw and unfiltered I’ve tried to approach it, it’s always felt somewhat fake. At it’s core, to me, it feels like one big hoard of people all screaming at each other “See me! Look at me! See how cool I am! See how smart I am!”. And while that is a very efficient strategy to get attention, and through that, status, it also seems very shallow.
And I’m not saying that sharing your point of view with a lot of people at once is shallow, because it can absolutely be very valuable and authentic. However, I think there ought to be a distinction between the content shared in SoMe posts, shorts etc. that are heavily geared towards quick consumption and algorithm-pleasing, and the long-form content that are mostly distributed through direct channels.
While writing out this train-of-thought, I realize that I’m struggling to explain my thoughts clearly, which is my indicator for something I don’t yet fully understand—so take this for what it is, an unedited train-of-thought, that will likely mature and change in the future as I learn and reflect more.
Because while I know a podcast also undergoes an algorithm, and that the user has to have some sort of discovery method, it’s not the content itself that are tailored to an algorithm. At least, that’s not my understanding. It’s often raw in the way that it’s people having real conversations, with limited editing and retakes. Whereas my LinkedIn post takes me 2,5 hours to finish, because in first draft my thoughts are way to long to pass the character limit. After my first draft I have to figure out what the one main theme of my post is, and get to the core of that - because any more than one clear focus is too complicated for a SoMe post. When I figure that out, I have to rewrite it to enhance readability, write a sharp clickbait hook and a clear CTA. If I don’t follow that structure, my post is VERY likely to end up in the graveyard of posts that never made it to a real human being.
That content format is not optimized for creating understanding, exploring ideas or for sharing stories. It’s optimized to get you to scroll for as long time as possible, so you can see more ads. That’s it.
And it’s insane the toll it takes on your ability to focus, once you’re deep into this behaviour. I can hardly keep focused on reading a medium-long article anymore.
I guess my dilemma is that I realize that SoMe might be the biggest point of leverage I have in terms of achieving social status and financial success, and I feel like it’s robbing me at broad daylight, stealing the two ressources most precious to me—my time and focus.
Now, I did get a pretty solid learning some years ago, that has held true in any scenario I can think of in this moment; nothing is truly black and white - everything has nuances worth exploring. So allow me to challenge my somewhat black-and-white perspective. Good things absolutely come from being active on SoMe as well. I most likely wouldn’t have heard of Plugin, had I not been on socials. And had I not, then I wouldn’t have met Hjalte, who introduced me to Project Iceman, that has become the best work experience I’ve ever had, and has granted me one of my best friends today.
It’s also a great way to get exposed to people who do awesome things, and thereby you have the chance to connect with them and explore synergies. Additionally, having a “personal brand” online also provides an incredible leverage that can be used to boost almost all other activity you engage in, whether business or personal projects. It is also a great place for people who are on your frequency to find you.
So what is the nuanced middle-ground, where the optimal relationship lies? The two things I would optimize for would be to limit my personal exposure to a feed, i.e. spend as little time consuming as possible, while leveraging the feed as a creator. Summarized, it might be; post, don’t consume.
However, I don’t want to post things that are merely pleasing the algorithm for exposure. If I can’t find a way to post authentically, It’s not worth the cost. So maybe a path could be to simply post snippets of the long-form content I’m going to create in newsletters and potentially podcasts, and direct people to those places as my “hubs”. Then maybe I can make it clear that my social accounts are only for distribution, not for engaging. If someone wants to engage with me directly, they’re free to do so, in channels that are more authentic that a social media feed. DM’s, emails, calls, podcasts or something similar, where a “real” conversation can happen. Maybe that is the way?
And then again, another thought strikes me; If it really is as bad to be a consumer of SoMe as I believe it is, do I really want to contribute to that as a creator? Is that a moral neglect? Is it aligned with my values and integrity, to leverage a system I believe is harmful for others, just because it can benefit me? Would the right thing be to take a personal loss by opting out completely, and becoming the example for others to follow—regardless of being a bit harder to find?
I know the answer in my gut. But my brain is not ready to fully own it, yet. As with most things, I’m sure that day will eventually come, because my gut rarely lies to me. But let’s see, this time might be different.
I’ll wrap up my rant here and give it time to cook.
*this was truly a rant, and I’ve not read it through nor edited it before publishing it here. It’s part of the deal if you consume my stuff—sometimes it comes well-prepared like an eight-course meal, and other times it’s raw, uncooked and straight from the fridge. Don’t take it too literally or seriously, but always feel free to come back for more.
