Stop Assuming Everyone Lives for Followers

Some of us have lives outside social media — and want to keep it that way.

Photo illustration by the author from a photo by Diggity Marketing on Unsplash.

In the past two months, I’ve had two total strangers email me about my presence on social media. After praising my wonderful my (pick one) writing and artwork, they then tell me how many more followers I “deserve” and how eager they are to “partner” with me to “organically” get me tens of thousands of followers. The presumptuousness is comical.

One told me that despite my “natural talent” at writing, he would help me come up with writing ideas and let me in on the secrets of the Medium algorithm. Good luck with that.

I told him that I developed my natural talent over 10 years writing front page stories for national publications, likely while he was still in grade school. And that he doesn’t know me well enough to address me with “Yo.”

While I didn’t take the bait, I found out from another Medium writer that this guy was charging a “low” $299 — a month!

“Amy” promised to get me the 20,000–30,000 followers “I deserve” on Instagram through “organic” means, not bots. Good to know. Organic is in these days.

Here’s the thing: I don’t need to have 20,000 strangers following me to feel validated. I’m not trying to be an influencer. I’m not trying to build a business. To get thousands of followers, you have to commit to constantly creating and uploading content; these days, it’s videos and stories.

That sounds an awful lot like, um, work. Which I happily retired from in 2022.

I make art and write for my own enjoyment. I am happy to connect with a few fellow writers and artists who comment on my work and support me. I don’t need to spend money on this century’s multilevel marketing scheme.

Somehow, I’ll just make do with honing my natural talent and then enjoying a cocktail while reading a good book. I hear the balcony calling me now.

Thanks for reading! You might like this story, too.

These Were Not the Birthday Greetings I Was Expecting

Sign up here to get an email whenever I publish. I write several stories a month about life as a sometimes cranky, often funny, human. Or maybe that’s often cranky, sometimes funny.