In defense of the selfie

Selfies garner a lot of hate online, and in some cases that vitriol is well earned. I’m not here to defend the duck-face or gym-bro selfie poster whose feed is 99% them. I’m here to defend selfies for the rest of us. Those of us who aren’t trying to be influencers, who just use social platforms to stay in touch with friends and family.

For us, I am an enourmous fan of the selfie. I LOVE seeing pictures of my friends who exist within 30 miles away or over 3000 miles away and everywhere in between. It is one of the few ways I get to SEE my friends and family in that space too-far between visits. And, while I love reading personal posts, well thought out text pales to actually ‘seeing’ you. The perfect storm? A picture of you with substantial words attached. Seeing you (and reading your words) helps me feel connected, passively in or around your life, and up to date on how you’re feeling by way of how you present yourself in your photos. A picture does speak a thousand words and your selfies tell me so much about your day/week, state of mind, etc.

But, there’s something even more magical and special to selfies. The are self-empowering for so many of us who lack the self confidence of others. I adore seeing you, knowing what it took to move past your fears and social anxieties to post your selfie, and even more to look and be confident in doing so. I see strength, empowerment, and self-acceptance (if not at least progress to all those things). Personal growth is amazing to see and it definitely comes out in your selfies. That doesn’t mean you need to post one a day, or even one a week, but periodically I’d love for all my friends to post more selfies whether you’re feeling confident or otherwise. I can assure you, those pictures will be my most cherished of all the pictures you post.

Want to up that game even more? how about selfies of you doing something you love? Watching people engage in activities or pursuits they are passionate about is one of the best things to experience. Passion translates deeply through people’s eyes, and selfies will capture that. You’re shy? Start posting more self-shot photos and you’ll being seeing a change in how your friends respond to you and how you respond to yourself. Slowly that shyness or insecurity will begin to wash away… and suddenly, a week, or even years later you’ll realize you’re more confident than you were before; more secure with yourself, and most importantly more accepting of who you are.

Have fun with it, enjoy life, post those selfies and I promise you it’ll make you and us all happier!

Here, I’ll start:

P.S. Just don’t try to be an influencer, people… we all smell that stink a mile away 😉