by Sarah Kenny
Technology is the bridge that connects one stranger to another. Through the screens of our tablets, devices, computers and laptops we can see inside the life of another individual. All of our information is out in the open, free for anyone to access, making online strangers non-existent. We share our information through social media allowing individuals to view our life story, or at least their perception of it. So what does this mean for our identity?
Social media has become a visual online resume. Our identities are formed through our social media pages and we use it as a way to present ourselves to strangers, friends, colleagues, and acquaintances. The photos and videos that we post through social media capture a moment of our lives and reflect upon us. One of the top social media apps is Instagram, which directly revolves around images. Without the use of many words in this app, we need to relay on the images to guide viewers through our lives. This also means we need to be careful with what we post.
If you are a user of Instagram you are familiar with how this app works. If you aren’t a user, you may be wondering how it acts as an online resume. Lets take a look.
Posts on Instagram
This social media outlet’s central use is for sharing images. We use Instagram as a way to promote ourselves, and our social activities to others. The overall goal is to become “insta-famous” or in other words, you want thousands of people to view your posts. If you look at someone’s Instagram page you are taking a quick tour of his or her life activities. You are able to see where they have traveled, what they have eaten, whom they have loved, and how they have spent time with friends. Essentially, it is a screenshot into the life of that individual.
Similar to a resume, we are able to view significant aspects of their lives with just one glance. With this being said, it makes your Instagram page a reflection of your character, and your posts pretty important. Many individuals take this as an opportunity to only post photos that highlight positive and exciting aspects of their lives. Just like on our resumes, we want the people viewing it to only see our best qualities.
The downside to Instagram is that you are relaying on the pictures to represent yourself rather then words or descriptions. Certain photos stand out on your Instagram page, whether good or bad, and this is going to create an instant perception of your character. And the individuals who don’t know you are going to gage their opinion of you through your images, so you want to make sure that they speak highly of you.
Today’s generation is solely focused on the constant access of viewing what other individuals are doing. Not only do we love viewing what other people are doing, but also we love to share what we are doing. It is a whole generation revolved around images and social media relationships. This is bad for two reasons.
1. It takes away from our own lives. When we are so focused on what other people are doing and viewing their lives through our devices, we lose out on living our own lives.
2. It creates two identities. We have our normal identity, and then our online identity. When we share ourselves online through social media we are only sharing a portion of ourselves. The images we post can sometimes create a misrepresentation of our identities.
Instagram isn’t the only app that can be used as an online resume. Anything that we post online can be traced back to us and directly represents us. We are judged and portrayed through all of our social media use and nothing is private once posted. This makes our identities free to the online world. So if you are going to share your life through social media, make sure you are sharing the right story, and the correct representation of your identity.