the flattening of experiences
I recently saw this video by John Green - The Instagramification of Human Experience. The title is self-explanatory - a lot of people experience things only through social media.
I've seen both sides of the coin - in 2025, I quit social media for almost 1.5 years, and it was great. I was not worrying about what other people were doing or what the latest "trend" was or how I was presenting myself to the world. I was in my backyard soaking up the sun with a book in my hand. I was spending my time on hobbies that I had long forgotten about. I actually did my research before believing what someone would tell me.
Social media has changed our lives in so many ways - we believe information fed to us in carefully catered 15-second videos brought to us by an algorithm that doesn't care for us - all it cares for is to keep you scrolling. "People are dying! Okay next, oh wow these celebrities are dating? So cool. Next please. Woah, chocolates are so bad for your health, we should really focus on our health this year." I saw a beautiful argument about this in a reel once (how ironic) - "I quit social media after I watched someone's video from the peak of Mount Everest; I did not deserve to see that. I did not have that experience of climbing Mount Everest."
I installed social media again this year because a lot of my friends use it for messaging and to make plans. I'm glad that the things I learned during my time off social media have stuck with me. I get bored of watching reels and would rather play the guitar or go on a walk.
Coming back to my point about the flattening of experiences. It takes a lot to go out and actually do something. When you have an "image" to maintain for your followers, it takes even more! You've gotta be ready to take cool and interesting photos that you wouldn't feel awkward sharing on Instagram. However, when you dispose of all these predispositions, your experiences suddenly have an unexplainable depth. No two people actually feel the same way when they experience a sunset or a great song.
There's so much pressure to make plans with people nowadays! What if I don't enjoy it? What if I get there and it's not what I thought it would be? Man, everything is a win if your goal is to experience. What else is the point? We're very ordinary beings and don't need to set extraordinary goals to find fulfilment. We can simply go out and do things.
I still remember the old days of Facebook when the only people you interacted with were your friends. You'd have to make an effort to find out things - to find out what else was going on in the world. That is no more. They're milking your attention, dumbing you down, and you haven't a clue.
Take back control! Be mindful of your time and spend it on meaningful experiences - the grass is greener on this side. If you're my friend, call me goddamit!