Private stagnation or decline, not to mention admitting to it, would counsel failure – and self-congratulation is much extra palatable than perceived self-pity on social media. The latter might immediate feedback to the impact of “issues will work out”, a platitude that solely serves to ease the commenter’s discomfort as anybody who has shared their struggles is aware of.
Too many posts thus really feel extra like a spotlight reel than real self-reflection, albeit utilizing introspective language to get social validation for one’s successes.
For instance, if the publish had been about overcoming insecurity, it would learn: “I met my youthful self for espresso. She was late, as a result of she’d been paralysed by ideas of the right way to impress me. I informed her that she not craves exterior validation, not when she turns into the primary particular person to be nation head of her firm earlier than turning 30.” (Not an actual publish, however you get my level.)
The tip outcome, whereas presumably unintended, comes throughout as a humblebrag.
THE PROBLEM WITH REDEMPTION ARC NARRATIVES
This tone isn’t distinctive to the development. It echoes the late bloomer narrative, a everlasting and predictable fixture within the social media information cycle across the time that the outcomes of a nationwide examination are launched.
You know the way that goes: Achieved adults share their poor Main Faculty Leaving Examination (PSLE), O Stage or A Stage scores, highlighting these grades don’t matter as a result of they’ve now achieved a societally-lauded model of success.
The well-intentioned narrative goals to assist those that really feel like a failure to grasp this era of battle will move. However the issue arises when it mockingly reinforces the necessity to hit conventional benchmarks of success.
In different phrases, self-reflection on setbacks solely appears price sharing in hindsight – if these struggles finally result in standard success or will be reframed as algorithm-friendly private progress.
