I’m a social media contributor and an Instagram junkie. Sometimes my life looks perfect. But there’s things I want you to know that don’t show up in the scroll of what must seem like endlessly-perfect vacations, outfits and party shots.
Here’s what’s true: I live in a great house and have the best husband on the planet. I have three children, who I did not give birth to. I love and adore them, but I only see them every other week. I’m a Canadian living in the US. I’m homesick for my family and friends more often than I can tell you. I run 3 businesses, I’m a part-time Mum and I am always busy. I spend half my life in yoga clothes, tied to my desk trying to show my kids that hard work makes a difference.
This is an actual shot taken minutes before I published this article. I had just cleaned up my desk (not for the shot) because yesterday I couldn’t find my mouse!
Why am I telling you this? We’ve all heard about Essena O’Neill, an Australian teen who informed her 500,000 Instagram followers that Social Media is Not Real. She deleted 2000 photos and then changed captions on remaining pictures to reveal how she spent hours capturing a perfect shot, or was paid to wear a certain outfit or, worse still, how she would starve herself all day before taking a bikini pic.
Her outing brought up a lot of emotions in me. For every shot I’ve posted on Instagram, I’ve got at least 50 I’ve deleted because I made a weird face or I thought I looked awkward. For every post on Rented Lifestyle, I’ve collaborated with my team members, because I’m not confident in my writing abilities or my eye for photos. I’ve yelled at my husband for not getting the shot and I’ve been ready to throw in the towel because posting every day, something interesting, is way harder than I ever imagined.
But, I’ve stayed with it for one important reasonrenting is a way of life and a great way to live life. By now we all know that social media highlights of the best parts of life. It’s that perfect picture of what appears to be a perfect life. Even when we all know that a girl was paid to wear that dress, we still want that look! FYI- I have never been paid to wear or promote anything.
Honestly, had I been offered money to promote something, I would strongly consider it. It’s expensive to run Rented Lifestyle. Not only the large amount of my time I put in every week, but I’ve been scammed by a company claiming to be social media experts. They took my money, did more damage than good, only to leave me high and dry after I insisted they were not allowed to break the law on my website. They made a complete mess of my socials and I am still cleaning up after them months later.
For me, Rented Lifestyle is a way to combat the stress of social media. I’m all about making that picture-perfect life a bit more attainablethrough renting! I may be showing off what looks like a perfect life, but I’m doing it so if you want a picture perfect life, you can have it for a tenth of the cost!
I admire Essena. I think her actions were brave and extreme. Her ante into the the game of recognition was certainly noticed, so I would say she won. But did she really need to hear her call herself a fraud? Instead, can’t everyone acknowledge that we all have a need to portray a great life. whether accurate or not?
I know you’ll all have a lot to say on this one: please share your thoughts in the comments section. Don’t be shy, everyone has their opinion and I respect it.