You probably have heard by now your daily dose of validation is going to be hidden. Instagram is hiding the likes on the feed. Now, that doesn't mean you can’t see how many people click that little heart for your posts. It just means your followers can’t see how many people like it. So fear not, those of you rely on the amount of likes your posts receive to embolden your self-esteem.
I, for one, say good riddance. What displaying the amount of likes does is stifle creativity. And when you trade your creativity for likes, you begin creating content for the wrong reasons - what you THINK will get people to click the heart vs. what actually tugs on your heart. Once the likecuffs are off, you can start creating content that YOU like and can be proud of. And that, my friends, is called authenticity.
Yes, authenticity is a buzzword that’s been flying around among social media managers and content creators, agencies and communications pros for far too long. But having the guts to create and publish content that is truly authentic to themselves or their brand is rare. Everything is analyzed and optimized for performance and immediate engagement - for likes. Being authentic - or real - means putting every bit of your identity and creativity into the content you make, without overthinking and without trying to win false validation from someone who, at the end of the day, doesn’t really care about you, your products, or your brand.
If you want to talk about building a brand, what better way to do it than by attracting an audience that is genuinely interested in what you have to say? Stop trying to win over those who don’t care about you, because a lot more qualified and quality people do care, and they’re the ones who you should be talking with in the first place.