Social media is mostly free. So it kind of tricks us into thinking that there’s no cost associated with it, but that cost is sort of hidden in burnout and the waste of time and energy, emotional capacity and your mental health as well. So as some of you guys will know in 2016 is when I first became a social media manager and it only took a couple of months for my love of social media and spending time on these platforms to become this digital overwhelm and eventual burnout. So since then it has become my mission to make it a better digital experience for both consumers and creators on these platforms and for us to find new ways to protect our mental health when it comes to our social media use.

And that’s especially true for us as entrepreneurs, where we can really create an impact through our own social media presence and make it a really great place for our audiences to come to, to learn and engage and feel connected and supported, and respected and represented in the content that we’re putting out there on our social media profiles.

And while this can absolutely be a much bigger topic for us to explore. In this video I just wanted to give you three quick tips that you can implement right away to make your time spent on social media, a more positive experience for yourself and for your followers as well. Because I know firsthand what it’s like when the one thing you’re trying to avoid is also the one thing that you need in order to grow your business, which in this case is definitely social media.
So let’s change that today. Starting with my very first tip, which is all about controlling the algorithm. So here it is – your behaviour on social media changes what you see. I know you might be thinking, you already knew this. But did you, did you really know it? Because I don’t think I did until I watched The Social Dilemma doco on Netflix.

I didn’t realise that the actions I took on social media so drastically change what was actually appearing my newsfeed in terms of recommendations and the posts I was seeing from the people I was following. And I didn’t realise that I could just make really little tweaks to see more of the stuff I wanted to see and less of the stuff I didn’t.

Check out my Mindful Marketing course on Skillshare here.

So here’s all it takes for you to improve your experience on social media. The next time you see a post on Instagram that you like and would like to see more content similar to it, just go in and engage with it. Make sure to like it, comment on it, save it, share it, do whatever you need to do. Watch it if it’s a reel or any other kind of video, remember that your watch time counts as engagement.

All of these kinds of engagement are a really great place for you to start. So really help the algorithm whenever you can, to deliver you more of the content that you actually really want to see. And the next time you see something that you really don’t want to be seeing on social media from your newsfeed, tell YouTube or Facebook or Twitter to stop serving you a particular ad because it’s repetitive or maybe you just aren’t interested in a particular organic post from someone you follow, let these platforms know by actively using the functions that they give you. You can also mute people on Facebook for a specific period of time or stop seeing their stuff all together. Not to mention you can also restrict people on Instagram from messaging you.

Because you deserve to have a really fun, positive experience on all these social networks, but you do have to give the algorithm a little bit of a boost so it knows what kind of content you want to be seeing more of what kind of content you want to be seeing less of and why. So it can sort of train itself through that. And I would really, really encourage you to also schedule some time in your diary to do a cleanse of the accounts you’re following on Instagram or channels you subscribe to on YouTube and see if it actually still makes sense, or if it was like an impulse follow and an impulse subscribe, but you don’t actually want to be seeing their regular content. So try and regularly, keep check on that because it can really help you to only keep seeing the kind of content you want to be seeing from the creators that you want to be seeing it from on your social networks.

And speaking of Instagram, let’s get into my second tip, which is all about redeveloping your social side for yourself and for your audience. Because for an industry that literally has the word social in it, the social media field actually is very far from social a lot of the time. In fact, multiple studies around the world have confirmed that we’re feeling more insecure, lonely, and antisocial as a result of social media usage.

Not to mention that a lot of us have sort of come to expect that people will blindly follow us without us really giving them any personal value in return. So yes, we do give out bulk value through educational posts and information, but very few creators actually take that extra step to give personal advice and personal, to support to their followers.

And that is what’s going to really make you stand out, but it’s also, what’s going to make you really fall back in love with social media. Because you will start to see the people behind the numbers. As creators, we’re always measuring our engagement rates and impression rates and click through rates without actually remembering that there are people behind those actions, those stats just represent things that people are doing and engaging with our content.
But we kind of forget that bit. So at this stage, I really just want to encourage you to engage with your community on a one-to-one basis. Whenever possible. And it’s easier than you think! Next time somebody follows you.. Send them a quick voice clip, thanking them for following you and commenting on something that you really like about their profile.

So ask meaningful questions from your audience when they take the time to engage with you. Go to their profile, find out their name, use their name in your answer. And when you’re engaging with them and ask follow up questions. Don’t just thank them for commenting on a post or asking something in the comments of your video, but actually ask them something about how you might be able to help them.

And don’t be afraid to really offer support without self promotion, because promotion will actually come from that support. Remember that people don’t buy from faceless brands, they buy from people they know, like, and trust. And also remember that in order to grow a really successful business, all you need is 1000 true fans, not a million or a hundred thousand passive subscribers or followers.

Just 1000 people who appreciate the absolute crap out of you and are so excited about every single thing that you post and share on social. 1000 people. That’s it! That is all it takes. And the way that you build up those 1000 true loyal fans is through this kind of personal connection. And now let’s talk about something that we’re all a little bit familiar with, which is the impostor syndrome.
So it was coined in the 70s. So it’s been around for a long time, but initially it was thought to only affect women, but we now know it affects everyone. And it’s essentially just that feeling that you get when you start a new job and you suddenly feel under-qualified for absolutely no reason, or you’re just about to jump on stage, to speak at an event.

And you’re super prepared. You know, your presentation’s good. You’re hilarious. The jokes are going to land everything’s great and the person who goes before you is hilarious and the audience is loving it. And all the sudden all of your hard work seems minuscule. And it seems like you’re not ready for it.

And they’re going to hate your presentation. Completely irrational. But that is the feeling that all of us get at some stage in our lives. And unfortunately, social media is kind of like this virtual stage where everyone seems richer and prettier and funnier and more talented and just better in every way, shape or form, even though obviously nothing could be further from the truth.

And most of it is Instagram filters and clever editing. Yeah. But that is how it makes us feel on a day-to-day basis. So how do we combat this for ourselves and for our audience in order to make it a better experience for everyone? Firstly, I’d encourage you to share more raw unfiltered content that people can relate to believe me, that the future of influencers lies in authentic and relatable content.

And also share your story with people who are just a few steps behind where you are right now, tell your audience what it was like for you to get to where you are today. The mistakes, the hustle, the long nights, the tears behind the perfectly edited videos and expertly written blog articles. All of this will really help your audience feel like they can accomplish what you’ve already accomplished.

If they work really hard. But also it will help you to be more confident in where you are today. Because it’ll force you to actually look at your past imperfections and remember how far you’ve actually come in your journey. Also, please do not try to be the next Gary V or Simon Sinek or Tony Robbins or whoever the influencer is within your particular industry, because your audience is following you for you.

And they love to be there because you are providing a unique perspective on something that they have not seen before. Your uniqueness is your superpower. So remember that! It’s okay to learn from other people who you aspire to, but don’t compare your success to theirs. Remember that you’re on two completely different journeys.

So really the only person that you’re competing against is the person you were yesterday. And if you can just be 1% better than that person, then that’s already a big win in my books. And that’s it. Those are my three quick tips for creating a better connection between your social media and your mental health for yourself and for your audience.

Thank you guys so much for being here. I hope you found that really helpful. If you did let me know in the comments, and if you would like more tips on how to grow your business in an authentic and sustainable way through more mindful marketing strategies, like these, make sure to check out my Mindful Marketing course on Skillshare here.

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