How Social Media Can Make Or Break Your Post-Grad Experience | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Politics and Activism

How Social Media Can Make Or Break Your Post-Grad Experience

Don't believe everything your Facebook newsfeed is telling you.

30
How Social Media Can Make Or Break Your Post-Grad Experience
James Massony

We all know the drill. As college graduation comes and goes, recent graduates are frantically searching for answers to a list of questions that only seems to be growing. “Why haven’t I found a job yet?” “How do I afford to live in this new city?” “Why does everyone else seem to know what they’re doing?” The final question tends to mislead people, sending them on a circuitous path of over-critical self-evaluation. While the general pressure of being successful and financially stable, especially at such a vulnerable point in life, tends to be overwhelming, one factor largely contributing to our own self-doubt is rooted in misperception.

One explanation into how we measure our own self-worth is the social comparison theory. In other words, we tend to merit ourselves, our choices and our accomplishments in terms of how they measure up to those of others, more specifically, our like-minded peers. It is important to remember that the misguiding element—the object of our comparison—is not always accurate itself. Across social media platforms, a significant amount of individuals will embellish the more enticing aspects of their lives while almost completely ignoring the more mundane or negative updates. As a result, we compare our entire lives, the good and the bad, to the carefully curated snippets of others’ lives. We’re ultimately comparing apples to oranges.

The desire to embellish extends far beyond a mere Facebook status update and has even affected the way individuals share content and edit pictures. For example, instead of simply sharing a photo on a social media platform, countless aesthetic and composition guides exist for the purpose of editing the picture so that it garners more engagement and thus, more “likes.”

In general, we spend our time on social media one of two ways: actively engaging with the platform or passively scrolling through it. A recent study from Carnegie Mellon found that, while participating in social media activities (i.e. liking, sharing, commenting) resulted in an overall positive disposition, merely glancing and scrolling through the posts of others increased general feelings of isolation and negativity. This is likely because we perceive a disconnect between the actual events of our lives and the types of events we desire. Although, our desire, the embellished vignettes of other users, is hardly organic.

What does this mean for recent college graduates? Frankly, it means that, despite what we see on social media, a good number of us are facing similar real-life challenges and uncertainty, considering almost 50 percent of recent grads are underemployed. As recent grads continue to seek out answers to the mystery that is adulthood, it is safe to bet that at least some of the people with seemingly perfect post-grad experiences are lacking some answers as well. Therefore, we still may not have every facet of our lives figured out; but at least some of us are relatively clueless together.

Though the inception of sites like Facebook and Twitter have revolutionized the concept of staying connected in several positive ways, we must stop taking every update from our peers at face value. While an old friend from high school may post cheery updates about how he loves his new job or while that girl from Anthropology 101 may post killer candid shots from an exotic island, remember that this is not necessarily the full story. The high school friend may actually be miserable and the girl from class probably got stung by a few jellyfish on her trip. It's unlikely you'll see those updates, though. Misery and jellyfish stings won’t get a hundred likes.
Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Featured

15 Mind-Bending Riddles

Hopefully they will make you laugh.

195481
 Ilistrated image of the planet and images of questions
StableDiffusion

I've been super busy lately with school work, studying, etc. Besides the fact that I do nothing but AP chemistry and AP economics, I constantly think of stupid questions that are almost impossible to answer. So, maybe you could answer them for me, and if not then we can both wonder what the answers to these 15 questions could be.

Keep Reading...Show less
Entertainment

Most Epic Aurora Borealis Photos: October 2024

As if May wasn't enough, a truly spectacular Northern Lights show lit up the sky on Oct. 10, 2024

18012
stunning aurora borealis display over a forest of trees and lake
StableDiffusion

From sea to shining sea, the United States was uniquely positioned for an incredible Aurora Borealis display on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, going into Friday, Oct. 11.

It was the second time this year after an historic geomagnetic storm in May 2024. Those Northern Lights were visible in Europe and North America, just like this latest rendition.

Keep Reading...Show less
 silhouette of a woman on the beach at sunrise
StableDiffusion

Content warning: This article contains descriptions of suicide/suicidal thoughts.

When you are feeling down, please know that there are many reasons to keep living.

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

Power of Love Letters

I don't think I say it enough...

460258
Illistrated image of a letter with 2 red hearts
StableDiffusion

To My Loving Boyfriend,

  • Thank you for all that you do for me
  • Thank you for working through disagreements with me
  • Thank you for always supporting me
  • I appreciate you more than words can express
  • You have helped me grow and become a better person
  • I can't wait to see where life takes us next
  • I promise to cherish every moment with you
  • Thank you for being my best friend and confidante
  • I love you and everything you do

To start off, here's something I don't say nearly enough: thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart. You do so much for me that I can't even put into words how much I appreciate everything you do - and have done - for me over the course of our relationship so far. While every couple has their fair share of tiffs and disagreements, thank you for getting through all of them with me and making us a better couple at the other end. With any argument, we don't just throw in the towel and say we're done, but we work towards a solution that puts us in a greater place each day. Thank you for always working with me and never giving up on us.

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

11 Signs You Grew Up In Hauppauge, NY

Because no one ever really leaves.

27965
Map of Hauppauge, New York
Google

Ah, yes, good old Hauppauge. We are that town in the dead center of Long Island that barely anyone knows how to pronounce unless they're from the town itself or live in a nearby area. Hauppauge is home to people of all kinds. We always have new families joining the community but honestly, the majority of the town is filled with people who never leave (high school alumni) and elders who have raised their kids here. Around the town, there are some just some landmarks and places that only the people of Hauppauge will ever understand the importance or even the annoyance of.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments