Why Do We Hate Follow Complete Strangers?
Don’t hand over your time (and life) to strangers.
There has been no shortage of people who have mocked me and my work. From mean girls in book publishing to cowards and their cruel, anonymous blog comments (I’m too dramatic, too mouthy, too confident, too sad, etc.) and “friends” who called me a “lunatic” because I suffer from clinical depression — I’ve had my share of people who have no problem telling me exactly what they think about me and the work I put out into the world.
The majority of these online commentators and armchair therapists are complete strangers.
We live in a strange age of parasocial relationships — where everyone feels as if they know the person whose work they read or follow on a daily basis —but the fact is you don’t know them. You may view their videos faithfully, follow their trials and tribulations, or feel as if the people who you’ve come to know online hold a place in your life, but rarely do we consider that the majority of people monetize a particular aspect of their life. They are content creators, not friends. They are influencers, not confidants.
What you know is a carefully crafted part of their lives. You know them in pieces, but never the whole. They are never completely real to you because their job is present something that…
