Savannah Watson

I love watching “productive” YouTubers. What I mean by that are specifically author-tubers and lifestyle bloggers. Nothing against entertainment YouTubers (as previously mentioned, I am a huge Game Grumps fan). But there is something special about “productive” content. In good ways and bad. I find this kind of content motivating and not motivating at the same time.

Watching videos of people living their lives and being productive in their hobbies/careers is great! It’s exciting to see other people striving towards their goals and accomplishing things, living their best lives as they say. There is a sense of community when you find people who share your interests and passions, even among people who have never met. Listening to someone talk about their own projects is really enjoyable to me. The enthusiasm of another writer is infectious, as is watching a self-employed small business owner do their thing. And oftentimes while watching, I find myself wanting to be productive too.

The downside is…. as is true with social media in general, it is easy to get sucked into content and suddenly feel bad about yourself, your situation, or your life. I find this to be true, especially when watching ‘productive’ content; it becomes too easy to start comparing yourself to what you see on the screen. To think: “why am I not doing this?” or “how come my life/career doesn’t look like that?” or “what am I doing wrong?”. (Personal aside: As someone who loves to exercise, I also fall into this trap with exercise content.)

So, while I love to watch lifestyle and author-tube vlogs, I know that it’s best to just take it in small doses. And when I go from feeling energized and inspired by their content to self-conscious and self-critical, it’s time to step away from it… maybe for an hour or maybe for a few months, whatever feels best for me. Everyone is on a different path in this life, and feeling bad that your life doesn’t match the life and path of someone else only serves to create roadblocks for yourself. While it has become exceedingly difficult in this digital world we live in, where we share (and sometimes overshare – yes, I am guilty of this too) so much of our lives, I think it’s important to celebrate other people’s victories without letting them feel like personal failures.

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