With everyone on social media these days, it’s very easy to overshare your daily struggles or complain a little too much when something doesn’t go your way. We live in an age of sharing everything about our lives on social media; whether it’s the breakfast we just had or even venting about the irritating line at the grocery store.
That may be okay if you’re not trying to grow a successful personal brand as a blogger or influencer. So how do you share your daily life and struggles with your audience authentically without oversharing?
I’ve listed several questions to help you figure out how to be authentic on Instagram without oversharing.
Are there some topics that are off-limits that you shouldn’t talk about? It’s important to reflect a bit before sharing. You need to be able to know where to draw a line between the professional aspect of your life and the personal aspect.
Ask yourself these questions before you post or share stories on social media to make sure you are on the right track.
Why do you want to share this struggle? Is it self-serving?
Do you feel the need to complain about something or someone?
Are you trying to connect deeper with your audience?
Do you feel like you have something of value to offer to your audience through this experience? Or are you just trying to rant or vent?
If you aren’t providing value, maybe consider rethinking sharing unless there’s something to be learned from your rant, complaint, or struggle.
HOW CAN YOU PROVIDE VALUE?
There are many factors to consider when trying to provide value. The best thing to do is to be real and authentic with your audience.
You don’t want to constantly be showing up as a negative nelly, so think about how your struggles can provide a lesson or a happy ending. Find the silver lining, if possible, or show how you grew as a person from the experience.
TRY STORYTELLING
If you’re telling a story about a struggle, end on a happy note. You don’t want the person watching your story or reading your post to feel sad when they finish watching.
Think about the hero’s journey. The hero faces a struggle and comes out on top.
I took this approach myself when sharing my breast cancer journey. I was a successful travel blogger who was suddenly facing a life-threatening cancer diagnosis. I had no idea how I was going to provide value anymore since most people followed me for travel and lifestyle content.
Then I realized that even though most people in my audience didn’t have cancer, they still faced hardship and could use advice on resilience. I was able to pivot my content to inspire, educate, entertain, and connect with them – even if that meant dancing around with my chemo pole! 🙂
Sharing my story showed others that they too could do hard things and that no one’s life is perfect. We were able to connect in a much deeper way and I even reached a whole new audience as well.
SHARE YOUR TRIUMPHS AND STRATEGIES
How did I get through my cancer diagnosis? What worked for me was daily meditation, lots of self-care, deep mindset work, and a big dose of resilience.
People connected with me on a whole new level when I shared this with my audience. People know when you’re coming from a place of service and they appreciate it.
Instead of just focusing on the negatives, show how you’ve come through those struggles and turned them into triumphs. Talk about the strategies you used to get through those hard times.
Especially after 2020, we are all still recovering and looking for tips and tricks from people who have found ways to cope, move on, and even succeed despite everything thrown at us. Share what you’ve learned through your struggles and help others who may be going through the same thing.
AUTHENTICITY CAN HELP YOU
Think about it this way – you never know who you’re touching, and you can connect deeply with so many people when you share your authentic story. It’s okay to share your struggles – being human is a part of your niche and adds to your personal brand! Focus on the value that you can provide from these struggles. What’s in it for them?
If you don’t yet have a happy ending to your struggle, maybe wait until you can end on a happy note or provide a lesson learned from the situation. With my cancer journey, I shared throughout the journey, but I tried to show how I was staying positive through it all instead of just focusing on the fact that I had cancer and it was tough.
It’s okay to rant every now and then, but don’t make it a habit. There’s always value hiding, whether it’s how you got through something or a life lesson you learned. Go within and dig deep into the value that life has provided you; then share it with your audience!
When trying to figure out what to post on Instagram, you want to make sure to be authentic but without oversharing. Find questions to ask before you post on Instagram and how to avoid oversharing on Instagram while still being authentic on Instagram. Make sure to share authentic Instagram captions when you are trying to figure out how to be authentic on Instagram.”THE TAKE HOME
Authenticity really allows you to shine and it also allows your audience to connect deeper with you. Just make sure that you’re providing some sort of value or happy ending to the content you share!
Want more tips? Check out my post on 5 types of content to post on Instagram, my favorite hashtag research tool, and my Instagram coaching program!
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