As a creative, a business owner or a human in general, I think it's so important that people find a space where they feel like they belong and they are seen. That's where social media can act both ways. Depending on how you use the likes of Instagram or tiktok, you can either find like-minded people who you truly connect with or you can send yourself into a spiral of comparison and self-doubt.

I want you to take a moment to think about how you use social media, does it serve you?

If the answer is yes, that's great! If the answer is no, I have a few words of wisdom to help pull you out of the social spiral. I want you to take a look at the list of people you follow and do a real clean out, Marie Kondo style, if they don't spark your joy let them go. I want you to look at each person and consider if what they post brings you joy. If you have a personal connection with these people don't be afraid to admit to yourself that their presence doesn't serve you, there is two options here either unfollow or mute these people temporarily. This is a form of self-love by setting your own boundaries, just because you are prioritising your own mental health online doesn't mean you're a bad person for unfollowing someone.

I think we need to normalise the idea of only investing our time and energy into the people who have a positive impact in our lives by being their authentic selves, sharing their creativity and being vulnerable. These small actions are necessary to move towards the people we truly connect with, we free up space for those we love, we free up energy which would be used on comparison and we free up space to be our authentic selves both online and in real life. I know a lot of people will feel uncomfortable with the idea of unfollowing someone to save any feelings being hurt, in that case if you're comfortable, mute these people and when you are in a space to interact with them you can directly head to their profile. We do this all of the time in real life so I encourage you to protect your online space too. 

Social media gets a bad name for causing decline in our mental health, trying to keep up with algorithms and what our peers think of us. Yet, imagine if we went to our Instagram feeds and felt a sense of comfort, that we had curated our own community of people that lift you up and inspire you. It can change the way we use these platforms and have a dramatic positive effect on our own mindset on a daily basis. Some food for thought.