Instagram is changing; What does that mean for us?

Change is never easy. Yet, it’s the one thing that remains constant. Everywhere you look something is shifting, becoming something new.  Even as our world becomes more and more digital, we can still see the world following the laws of change. 

I saw someone on Instagram say, “Just when I get used to this app, it changes again.” Instagram — Social Media, in general — refuses to remain any one way. Twitter is competing with Facebook; Instagram is competing with TikTok and so on and so forth. 

Social Media is in a rat race for users and advertisers. Which means they are always looking for ways to innovate; to offer something new that will suck users into the app. And with the push of a button the creators can update the software. In moments, the app you’re using instantly becomes something else. They also can do this based on what they prioritize through the use of algorithms. 

Algorithms can be the bain of any creator’s existence. Because in order to gain attention, you have to play by the rules, fit into the box. But the key word here is creator.

As creators, we are uniquely qualified to operate in spaces where the results are undetermined and uncertain. We know what it’s like to have an idea, experiment with it, fail and do it again. 

So what if we took the beef with Instagram and reframed it as another opportunity to create — to be who we are anyways. The game is taking your art, product, story, etc communicating that on the platform in a way that feels authentic to you.

We do this everyday. Every medium has its boundaries. Novelists have their language and story structure; musicians have their notes and their sounds; comic books have their panels and speech bubbles; jewelry makers have their metals.

Every area has its limits. And it is up to the creators to employ their ingenuity to establish how they will present themselves in their medium. Instagram reels, Youtube shorts, and TikTok videos are no different. They are just opportunities for us to package ourselves in new ways. 

So whatever your field is, I hope you will take the challenge of learning how to show up on these platforms in the full glory of your authenticity. Because there are people waiting to experience what you have to offer. 

Don’t let them down.