digital-influence

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The Uncharted Influence: Role Models, Authenticity, and the Dissolving Self in a Digital World

A frosty window with snow-covered landscapes blurred outside, a contemplative man in reflection.
Kaia Thonul, Monday, October 14, 2024, 07:07

The crisp 4-degree air outside steams against the train window like a phantom's breath, painting foggy trails on the glass as we steadily traverse the landscapes of my homeland, from quiet hamlet towards bustling urbanity. My heart throbs with a peculiar heaviness today, every heartbeat echoing a sense of loss. Immersed in this melancholy, I find myself contemplating a topic- Role models and influencers.

Our daily lives have become so entwined within the digital universe that influencers and role models no longer remain individuals we look up to from afar. Instead, they've become undeniably involved in shaping who we are, carving our thoughts, preferences, and actions. Their significance, their impact – it's all-pervasive, there's no escaping it. It's like the cold air outside, seeping in through the corners of the window and touching every passenger, subtly and definitively.

On this cold morning, heart heavy with unshed tears, I wonder. Are these influences infusing our lives the role models we truly need? Are they shaping our society, our world, the way we aspire them to? Their influence is mighty, but is it always right?

The potency of a role model comes from their ability to inspire, to invigorate, to spawn hope and aspiration. And yes, influencers, with their aspirational lives, do inspire. But as I sit here, an audience of one to the world outside my window and the world online, I feel the ever looming question, 'At what cost?'

I've seen people - friends, family, acquaintances - shape-shift and mould themselves to the standards and styles of influencers. Sometimes, it seems that they lose pieces of themselves in the process - pieces that make them unique, pieces that make them who they are. This thought doesn't come without a dose of heartache; it's a bit like losing someone you love, bit by bit, until one day you wouldn't recognize them.

I'm no stranger to the charms of influencers, of role models. I, too, have gazed longingly at their snapshots of perfection, taken advice from their words, yearned for a life like theirs. But as I sit here, gazing out of the window, a silent spectator of the world, I can't help but feel a twinge of sorrow. I fear we're straying from authenticity, from embracing our own unique self, caught up in this whirlwind of influence.

As this train speeds forward, cutting through the frigid air, I urge us to learn from the landscapes it passes. Every tree, every snowflake, every frost-kissed leaf is unique, different from the other. Their beauty lies in their individuality, in their unaltered, unfiltered being. Perhaps, there is a lesson for us in that, a guide towards a healthier influence.

Shaking off the cold, I decide to keep my heart open for the influencers and role models, to let them inspire but not dictate how I live. Because no glamour should cost me my authenticity, no influence should rob me of my individuality. As I close, my heart still aches, but now, it's an ache of realization, of lessons learned, remembered, and cherished. I hope, as my words travel across digital landscapes into your world, they echo a quiet reminder for you too, dear reader. Hold on to your essence, let it shape your story.

Tags: influence of role models digital influence preserving individuality

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