How do you go about technology/social media?

[Sleyker]

I've been watching Black Mirror and it is terrifying to think that some day we'll be living in such a screwed up society that has lost touch of what really matters in life. I watch some of the episodes and my first thought is "Jesus, maybe I should stay away from technology". 

It is true that nowadays you can't live without technology but at least you could make smart choices with social media for example. I deleted my Instagram and Facebook accounts years ago because I noticed the validation seeking game I was playing and decided to end that.  Now of course I still play that game in real life interactions lol, which is something I am working on, but I am glad I made that choice. 

Now, being a dancer myself and wanting to start a dancing academy in the future, social media plays a HUGE role for a dancer's popularity. I am trying to figure out a way by which I could have tech serve my career without letting it affect my life and mental health. 

So, I would love to read your perspective on the topic and how you manage this in your own life and career/life purpose.

Edited June 11, 2020 by Sleyker

[enhance]

hard one!

its addictive thats the whole problem...

i dont know what advice to give, i used to use fb but havent for 6 months...

instagram... came off that too...

i use twitter to stay in touch with news and companies offers n support etc...

its the photos of myself i got sick of sharing... it makes a lot of ppl so photogenic- conscious and unnatural... posing etc... sick of that.

so as u r a dancer im not sure how to avoid it, it sounds like an excellent way to promote yourself.

Edited June 11, 2020 by enhance

[Sleyker]

14 hours ago, enhance said:

i dont know what advice to give

No problem, I'll figure it out eventually

14 hours ago, enhance said:

it sounds like an excellent way to promote yourself.

It is, but it feels so good without them 

[Aquarius]

Does actualized.org count as social media? ? jk lol. 

I like the forum because here I can talk to people about what really matters in life.

I don't really visit social media unless I'm trying to sell my art (I'm an artist), or I'm sharing a song that means a lot to me. And that's only Facebook. I don't use other social media.

And now that I have a boyfriend AND a life, I don't chat with many people either. Who has time for that? I need so much solitude with my inner work and to function properly as a human being. ?

[Sleyker]

@Aquarius

Nice! What kind of art do you do?

And how do you build your audience though? Because I feel like I have to play the social media game (following others, liking and sharing their posts, posting lots of content myself, etc)... all of that in order to gain many followers and clients for my academy.

[Aquarius]

@Sleyker nohow. I just posted my art of instagram and added hashtags. Posted a cute picture of myself as a profile picture. It all looks good.

I got about 90 followers last time I checked. I follow them back.

Sometimes I go and like on some hashtags i use. Or comment, but only if it's genuine and I leave a critique, not just a simple 'nice pic' comment. ?

Then on Facebook when I wanna sell something, I am part of many groups that are buy and sell.. so people are usually looking for art.

I message people about my offer, or I just make an art-for-art type of trade to practice, in case if they won't buy.

I have been inactive on my art lately. I do digital art normally, but I have an art course where we make traditional media art, like still nature, graphic portraits or paintings of houses and drawings of nature etc. So I've been focused on that instead of the art I usually have for sale, which is furry and humanoid digital art (cartoon) 

When I sold my art I was just asking my friends and internet friends if they want to buy, and many did buy! You never know ?

I hope this explains how I work.

[Sleyker]

Good, thanks for sharing.

[Aquarius]

@Sleyker welcome. But I really don't do any of that lately. I wish I would have more audience but I got a busy life and I'd rather stay offline. 

I kinda saw through the whole social media system. It's made to get you addicted. 99% of notifications I get from facebook are useless for example so I stopped checking even.

How do you get your audience as a dancer? And what kind of dance you do?

[Sleyker]

I dance cuban salsa to be specific.

I'd get my audience by posting videos of me dancing with a partner, pics promoting my courses, running contests, etc. But the thing is, I'd have to be very active on it, posting stories every day and so forth until I build a fairly large audience 

In dancing, especially when you're starting off, social media is crucial, otherwise how are people going to get atracted to go and learn with you? 

[Espaim]

For me it's useless. Used to waste a lot of time in FB when younger. I created accounts on Instagram 3 times but deleted them right after. It's an even bigger attention-seeking contest than Facebook. Not even mentioning the actual focus reduction caused by scrolling endlessly.

If I want to know how people are doing, I contact them directly. If I don't care enough about someone to contact that person to see how they are doing, why would I like to see their updates on social media?

To be informed about the news, I'll search for myself and not receive biased posts from my ideological friends.

If it helps your career then it's another thing.

 

Edited June 12, 2020 by Espaim

[flume]

@Sleyker Spend some time brainstorming new ideas to connect with your audience. Yes, social media is how it's done now but you could be the one inventing the next thing. Don't just be another dancer competing for views and followers among a million others on instagram. How boring.  Find a more unique way to share your love for dancing. Something that resonates with you and makes you feel excited. Social media has been around for some time now... People are thirsty for the next thing. Find something you authentically enjoy. Good luck!

[Sleyker]

@flume YES!, beautiful! Thanks for the ideas, I'll definitely think about that and try to come up with something new. Thank you!

[universe]

Do you really need it? Can you think of 10 successful dancers who are not on social media?

If its truly the case, you could just outsource it. Get a marketing agency to run your social media presence. Or if you want to go cheap ask a friend. Easy. No need to overthink this.