Because of the internet, we can present ourselves in a way that was never possible before.
There was nowhere to hide before the advent of the internet.
We only had our real selves, our offline selves.
We shopped around real people.
We congregated in parks and shopping malls around real people.
We were intimate with real people.
Nowadays there is a screen between us and others for many activities.
The more we use the internet and social media, the more we leave a digital footprint behind.
The more present we are online, the more we are establishing this online persona.
An online version of you that is oftentimes an “enhanced self” when you compare it to your offline self.
Now we have this unique task of taking care of two “selfs”: the real offline self and the online self.
Ask yourself: which one do you prioritize?
Are you showing off online while in reality you’re not feeling, being, and behaving that way?
Just because on any given day more people may see your online self than people see your real self, doesn’t mean you should invest more time, energy, and effort in improving that online self.
Improving your online self is easy. Writing any claims about yourself is easy. Modifying photos to make you look better is easy. Boasting is easy. Pretending to be busy is easy.
Improving your offline self…now there is a challenge. Eventually, you can’t hide from your offline self.
Making your claims reality is harder. Going to the gym and looking the way you want to look is harder. Being confident is harder. Being productive is harder.
While all the above may be harder, when you do achieve those objectives….now that’s a level of satisfaction and happiness you will experience that can’t be described in words.
As the quote goes: “If you are willing to do only what’s easy, life will be hard. But if you are willing to do what’s hard, life will be easy.”
Prioritize your real self. When you do that, you don’t need to spend so much time on your online persona because well…you’re already that person you want to display. You can just be yourself.
Your thoughts and ideas are aligned with your actions. The online version is aligned with the real version of you. The only “you” there is.