I’ve left insta for 6 months, I’ve gone deep into scheduling new reels - both ends of the spectrum.
What I’ve learned overtime is to think about what’s realistic and sustainable. We live in a world where social media also brings connection. I have friends who are completely off and some that only communicate through DMs.
As a creator, to avoid the void of algorithms, I take breaks during the week and allow myself to go on instagram during the weekends. I’m typically busy anyways but if I’m hanging out, maybe I’ll schedule 1-3 posts during the weekends. The flexibility is what keeps it sustainable. However, mine is a side business and I’m becoming more focused on in-person collaboration and events, so I do feel less pressure to have a strong insta persona.
First of all, your work is lovely! 🙌🏽💜✨ And yes, I can relate. I’m a collage artist, currently working on a tarot deck and I don’t want to have to post everyday and do reels and videos the whole time. I’m also guilty of refreshing the page on IG and on Substack as well. 🤦🏽♀️
There is something so intimate and satisfying when you sit with your art before releasing it. I also notice little things I can improve after I’ve left a collage alone for a few hours.
I’m going to batch my work. I’ll do a bunch of collages privately and then make posts and videos. This will also give me a content runway, which will alleviate some pressure. I’ll let you know how it goes. 😉✨
I love this. I just started my career as an artist and EVERYONE has been asking me for my socials. In all of my jobs before this, I have had to manage social for whatever brand/company. And when I was stepping out on this journey last year, I deleted all my personal accounts (like actually gone forever deleted). I made an intentional choice not to create socials for my art, and the more I grow into this profession the harder it is to stick to that. I went from telling people I wasn’t on social to adding “right now” at the end. And, yes, like someone else said in the comments…Substack can be just as instant gratification-y, which scares me a little because of everything you just shared. Thank you for sharing. And no, you’re not alone. 💛
first of all, congrats on your art career! it's such a wild (and sometimes isolated) path, and social media only adds to the madness. I am glad you found space on substack (and hopefully it continues to be a better vibe than the rest of them). :)
I always had a challenging relationship with socials because art takes time! And because my work isn’t the kind I can churn out today, to stay relevant I felt like I had to post progress photos, and taking them and thinking up captions and hashtags yanked me out of the work. So I just gave up socials entirely - if it makes you feel bad, it’s not serving you, you’re serving it. I love how you captured this feeling in your illustrations.
as someone who works professionally in social media but ISN’T the focus of the content, i find it fascinating how much i’ve connected myself to the graphics/videos/captions i’m in charge of. i’ve been struggling to disentangle my sense of self from work in that way and it’s VERY hard.
now this is so interesting! In my experience, the stakes of being part of the creative process, whether you're the focal point or not, tends to feel high and so intertwined with who we are.
I understand where you're coming from and I'm so glad we're here on Substack!! There is no pressure here and everyone is incredibly nice. Lots of love ✨
grams was always such a struggle for me. I tried so many things, participated in art challenges and events, made reels and stories...eventually I just got tired of doing it all for no return, only one or two likes. When I started doing an email newsletter, I had so much more fun doing that. I'd even get emails back that were really nice! Now we have substack it's very much a similar feeling to writing to my email list and there's many interesting things to discover. It's much nicer
It’s really interesting to me to read what goes on behind the Instagram scenes… Don’t you feel like we’re all in this weird sick dance together - as consumers and content creators - and this crazy whirling reel of a dance is leaving us all increasingly dizzy and angry about being used and manipulated… That’s why I now much prefer Substack, where I can just focus on reading about the meaningful thinking and creating of artists I admire! Thank you for sharing these musings!
Yes!!! You describe this feeling perfectly—it's absolutely dizzying. I agree that Substack feels one step removed from madness of some of the more popular social media apps. Hope it stays that way!
"Sometimes projects take time," "But like any other muscle, I'm going to keep practicing it" 🩷 I feel hardly seen yet but I can relate about the "rat race" anxiety and pressure. This was so inspiring for me. Thank you.
Feeling this! I have a much more modest following on insta but have had similar feelings. Which is a big part of why I’ve laid low recently! But not without worries!
omg haley i felt this in my soul😩 i used my account for acting and comedy when the industry was slow during covid and now i feel like my career is forever intertwined with how my reels perform (and i definitely feel blacklisted since posting less😭). this was so validating though!! can’t thank you enough for making me feel not so alone! it feels like everyone else is just saying f$@% it! let’s make MORE MORE MORE! and ig is literally sending me emails offering collectible figurines as an incentive🙄🙄
Oh my gosh yesss. The anxiety about what will happen when you post less is so real (something I’ve certainly struggled with!). Glad we’re talking about it ❤️
This is such a familiar feeling! Do you ever schedule older art so you can give yourself a break? On the positive side, it’s really awesome that you’re excited by your work and can’t wait to share it!
I'm grateful I found this gem on your 5 year recap post!
I’m so glad you did too!
Love this post Haley!
thank you :)
I’ve left insta for 6 months, I’ve gone deep into scheduling new reels - both ends of the spectrum.
What I’ve learned overtime is to think about what’s realistic and sustainable. We live in a world where social media also brings connection. I have friends who are completely off and some that only communicate through DMs.
As a creator, to avoid the void of algorithms, I take breaks during the week and allow myself to go on instagram during the weekends. I’m typically busy anyways but if I’m hanging out, maybe I’ll schedule 1-3 posts during the weekends. The flexibility is what keeps it sustainable. However, mine is a side business and I’m becoming more focused on in-person collaboration and events, so I do feel less pressure to have a strong insta persona.
Curious to hear your thoughts!
I love this take!!! Scheduling out is such a great solution. May have to try for myself (but need to get much more organized haha)
First of all, your work is lovely! 🙌🏽💜✨ And yes, I can relate. I’m a collage artist, currently working on a tarot deck and I don’t want to have to post everyday and do reels and videos the whole time. I’m also guilty of refreshing the page on IG and on Substack as well. 🤦🏽♀️
There is something so intimate and satisfying when you sit with your art before releasing it. I also notice little things I can improve after I’ve left a collage alone for a few hours.
I’m going to batch my work. I’ll do a bunch of collages privately and then make posts and videos. This will also give me a content runway, which will alleviate some pressure. I’ll let you know how it goes. 😉✨
Totally agree—the waiting to share work/take time to fiddle with it is such a wonderful part of the process. I look forward to hearing more!
I gave up posting on instagram, perhaps my art is just not relatable enough, unlike yours.
I love this. I just started my career as an artist and EVERYONE has been asking me for my socials. In all of my jobs before this, I have had to manage social for whatever brand/company. And when I was stepping out on this journey last year, I deleted all my personal accounts (like actually gone forever deleted). I made an intentional choice not to create socials for my art, and the more I grow into this profession the harder it is to stick to that. I went from telling people I wasn’t on social to adding “right now” at the end. And, yes, like someone else said in the comments…Substack can be just as instant gratification-y, which scares me a little because of everything you just shared. Thank you for sharing. And no, you’re not alone. 💛
first of all, congrats on your art career! it's such a wild (and sometimes isolated) path, and social media only adds to the madness. I am glad you found space on substack (and hopefully it continues to be a better vibe than the rest of them). :)
Thank you for your kind words!!! 🥲
I always had a challenging relationship with socials because art takes time! And because my work isn’t the kind I can churn out today, to stay relevant I felt like I had to post progress photos, and taking them and thinking up captions and hashtags yanked me out of the work. So I just gave up socials entirely - if it makes you feel bad, it’s not serving you, you’re serving it. I love how you captured this feeling in your illustrations.
Yes!!! It sounds like you came to the right conclusion ❤️
as someone who works professionally in social media but ISN’T the focus of the content, i find it fascinating how much i’ve connected myself to the graphics/videos/captions i’m in charge of. i’ve been struggling to disentangle my sense of self from work in that way and it’s VERY hard.
now this is so interesting! In my experience, the stakes of being part of the creative process, whether you're the focal point or not, tends to feel high and so intertwined with who we are.
I understand where you're coming from and I'm so glad we're here on Substack!! There is no pressure here and everyone is incredibly nice. Lots of love ✨
❤️🥹❤️
grams was always such a struggle for me. I tried so many things, participated in art challenges and events, made reels and stories...eventually I just got tired of doing it all for no return, only one or two likes. When I started doing an email newsletter, I had so much more fun doing that. I'd even get emails back that were really nice! Now we have substack it's very much a similar feeling to writing to my email list and there's many interesting things to discover. It's much nicer
I totally agree!
It’s really interesting to me to read what goes on behind the Instagram scenes… Don’t you feel like we’re all in this weird sick dance together - as consumers and content creators - and this crazy whirling reel of a dance is leaving us all increasingly dizzy and angry about being used and manipulated… That’s why I now much prefer Substack, where I can just focus on reading about the meaningful thinking and creating of artists I admire! Thank you for sharing these musings!
Yes!!! You describe this feeling perfectly—it's absolutely dizzying. I agree that Substack feels one step removed from madness of some of the more popular social media apps. Hope it stays that way!
"Sometimes projects take time," "But like any other muscle, I'm going to keep practicing it" 🩷 I feel hardly seen yet but I can relate about the "rat race" anxiety and pressure. This was so inspiring for me. Thank you.
aw, i'm so glad you found hope in it!
Feeling this! I have a much more modest following on insta but have had similar feelings. Which is a big part of why I’ve laid low recently! But not without worries!
It's hard to figure out what's "helpful" to a creative (and very online) career vs. what's, well, not. thanks for commiserating! :)
omg haley i felt this in my soul😩 i used my account for acting and comedy when the industry was slow during covid and now i feel like my career is forever intertwined with how my reels perform (and i definitely feel blacklisted since posting less😭). this was so validating though!! can’t thank you enough for making me feel not so alone! it feels like everyone else is just saying f$@% it! let’s make MORE MORE MORE! and ig is literally sending me emails offering collectible figurines as an incentive🙄🙄
Oh my gosh yesss. The anxiety about what will happen when you post less is so real (something I’ve certainly struggled with!). Glad we’re talking about it ❤️
This hit incredibly hard 🥲
You get it!!!
This is such a familiar feeling! Do you ever schedule older art so you can give yourself a break? On the positive side, it’s really awesome that you’re excited by your work and can’t wait to share it!
I do, and then I face the weird guilt of sharing old stuff rather than creating new work. The problems run deeeeep.