Influencer Culture and Keeping it Real

Over the past few months, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about my blog, Instagram/social media in general, my brand, what my goals are, etc. In this reflection, I’ve come to a conclusion: I’ve never been wildly in love with Instagram. Creating a blog was my desire, and I created a public Instagram in order to connect with people reading my blog and create a community of (you guessed it) regular folks. Somewhere along the way, I felt like I had to act a particular way on Instagram and I think I lost part of myself in the process. I got too consumed with how I was portrayed and looking cohesive, that I lost part of what my brand was built on– sharing my experience as a regular person.

While I feel like I’ve somehow maintained my true self on my blog, I recognized that I did not have the same voice on Instagram. When I started to reflect on the bloggers or influencers that I personally follow on Instagram, I began to realize how much I was striving to mimic them on Instagram. Short, meaningless captions paired with overly posed photos which don’t capture any part of my personality or really my real life, but instead create the illusion of a curated, empty version of it.

I have never identified with the term influencer and probably never will- partially because my blog is relatively small, plus I have just a modest 800 or so followers on Instagram, but also because I simply despise that term. Something about that word invokes a connotation of a lack of genuineness and attempts to be something that you are not. But I’ve started to see that perhaps my Instagram has started to reflect in that way.

All that to say, I’m trying to flip the script. I’ve been actively changing the way I interact with Instagram, retaught myself to be less concerned with growing my following and likes, and instead be concerned about the following that I’ve already created. I’ve changed my Instagram handle from @RegularFolks to @SaraAnnSutton, as a way to reflect my attempt to be my true self on social media, rather than the picture-perfect blogger. Ultimately, I don’t want act so uncongenial and distant on Instagram that people compare their lives against mine as if mine is one of semi-perfection.

So let me introduce you to the real Sara Ann. She’s compassionate, sometimes quiet, most of the time funny and goofy, she doesn’t take a whole lot seriously, she cares about people, she sometimes comes home from work and cries, she enjoys fashion, she also lives in sweatpants, she doesn’t care much for movies, but she loves binge-watching a good television series, she has trouble saying “no” to ice cream, she writes run-on sentences, she can be lazy, but she can also be incredibly hard-working. (And despite all the things she just listed about herself in third person, she is also pretty humble.)

So, what’s next? I’m still not 100% sure. I still adore this blog and all of you who choose to come follow my life, and I intend to continue with my focus on that. I’m starting to create content on YouTube so that there can be a literal voice to my face on the Internet, and because I think I can share more of my true self in that way. I’m choosing to care less about Instagram. Choosing to care less about looking perfect. Because who is? Most regular folks have dirty bathrooms and piles of laundry that have been sitting around unfolded for too long. Most regular folks aren’t dressed to the 9’s around the clock.  Most regular folks have their share of struggles. And that’s okay.

If there is ever a topic you want me to talk about more here on the blog, always know that my Instagram DMs are open, and you can always comment on a blog post, or shoot me an email. I would love to connect with you! And thanks again for following along with my little space on the Internet ❤️