Living For The Likes

When a young acquaintance of mine recently admitted to purchasing Facebook likes in order to be deemed as a pretty girl at school, my heart sank. I’d heard a lot of stories from teacher friends of  mine about the damaging impact that social media was having on teenagers mental health, but it wasn’t until this revelation was exposed that it really hit home.

For many young women going through puberty, the usual school dramas are doubled, as the intense pressure to play out a way of life that is accepted by their peers increases with every like, share and follow. Personally I never grew up in the social media revolution, so my teen dramas were kept at school where they belonged. And now luckily as an adult I don’t have to relive any of those embarrassing moments through the Internet. But with this new generation who see their social media following as an online popularity contest, and ‘likes’ as a quantifiable rating for beauty, their entire world is dominated by these completely invalid numbers.

Many share intimate details about their lives, add random strangers to boost their following, and in some shocking incidents even post inappropriate pictures of themselves. There seems to be no filter, as the competition to be popular is seen as far more important right now than anything that could possibly happen in the future. Unlike those of us who didn’t have these platforms when we were young, they won’t be able to hide their embarrassment as easily as we can.

Once it’s published on the Internet it’s pretty hard for it to disappear, and despite campaigns for us all to be able to destroy our online footprint, the truth is that it’s no easy task.

These young women are not only making themselves vulnerable to strangers, but they’re also potentially damaging their future selves. As social media becomes all the more powerful, recruiters are now seeking guidance on potential candidates and their suitability via their social media profiles. Basing a percentage of their judgement as to whether they could fit into the work environment and fulfil the job description, on the information their accounts hold.

With mental health charity Mind reporting a 10% increase in calls from teenagers, we should be petitioning for better education about the effects of social media. As many parents are not socially savvy on privacy settings, or even etiquette, there needs to be guidelines in place to ensure that young women are educated in enjoying social media for what it is, rather than what it isn’t. I want women to feel empowered by these platforms as a tool for enabling them to set their own paths in life as they should not be finding their self worth from Facebook, but from the way they change the world.