While a career in social media can be an amazing opportunity, it has led to some people abandoning education and diminishing its value.
Originally, social media was a way for people to connect with friends and create videos and photos for the entertainment of others. Nowadays, people can build careers on social media. This career choice can lead them to the ideal work situation: generating money through the content they create and post; creating a flexible work schedule for themselves; doing something they are passionate about; and having the opportunity to make money through other ventures.
Today, one in four Gen Z shows interest in becoming an influencer. Although some aspiring influencers are making sure they have something to fall back on, others think they are set for life and feel no need to further their education without understanding the hardships that come with being an influencer.
Education is always valuable. Despite its challenges at times, education should be prioritized, as it can provide many benefits.
A study by Dr. Abdulghani Al-Shuaibi of the Community College of Qatar discusses how education can help people prepare for the future and what it can do for mental health overall.
The first thing the study covers is how education is mostly known for helping people create opportunities to achieve better employment opportunities. The study also examines how most people overlook the fact that education can lead to a boost of confidence as well. Having strong self-confidence can encourage people to take on challenging tasks, which can lead to them believing they can overcome anything.
Influencing, on the other hand, can sometimes cause influencers to suffer a lack of self-confidence. According to a study by inzpire.me, a global influencer marketing platform based in Norway, 47 per cent of influencers surveyed said their mental health has been impacted by their jobs as influencers, and 32 per cent said they have had body image issues because of their careers. Both issues can stem from negative comments made by viewers, and sometimes influencers tend to compare themselves to other well-known figures.
Nothing lasts forever. Over the years, social media apps have come and gone, such as Vine, musical.ly, and Keek. Influencers have also come and gone. Although some influencers are fortunate enough to take their success to other social media platforms, others will leave their social media careers behind them.
The career of an influencer can be very unpredictable and may not be beneficial in the long run. One day, an influencer can make a lot of money and receive brand deals. The next day, the same influencer will struggle to get by. This has been seen many times with multiple people who have had careers on social media.
The amount of money influencers make is normally based on their popularity and number of followers. For example, if someone has fewer than 2,000 followers on a platform, they’ll make less than $50 per post. Even if a person has 50,000 to 75,000 followers, they may only make about $200 per post.
Despite these realities, some people choose not to further their education in favour of pursuing careers on social media. They don’t seem to understand that a career on social media may not last forever, as popularity can fade, and platforms can become defunct.
A short documentary available on the VICE News YouTube channel looks at kids who quit stable jobs and/or chose not to go college and moved to Los Angeles in pursuit of careers on TikTok, currently one of the most popular apps.
The documentary discusses how the life of an influencer is nothing like a “vacation.” Although influencers can choose when they want to work, effort is needed to create content consistently to keep the money coming in. If an influencer wants to go on vacation, that can only happen if they are sponsored by a brand.
As some may learn the hard way, influencing is not always an easy job. When they discover this, hopefully they will realize the value of a good education and how learning is never-ending.
Being an influencer can make for a great side-hustle. But for those who want to be full-time influencers, working toward a diploma or degree to fall back on is strongly encouraged just in case influencing does not work out for them.