my innermost thoughts on being an influencer

what they don’t tell you - a piece on a career as an influencer for how to be a woman on the internet

When I wrote What they don’t tell you about being an influencer, I wasn’t sure if it was going to be a piece I’d actually put out. It was vulnerable and intimate and a glimpse into the doubts I have in this career that I found myself in. It was informed by 10 years into working in this industry — from my very first job in 2013 when I worked for one of the first influencer marketing agencies to actually becoming an “influencer” myself to the countless conversations I’ve had with other influencers and content creators, talking about what most wouldn’t tell you about this career that reportedly 1 in 4 Gen Z Americans want.

When I began writing about my gripes with social media and the world of influencing more specifically, I got a couple comments that I was hypocritical — that while I was talking shit about it, I was benefiting from it. Those comments aren’t wrong. I am hypocritical. But I’m learning to be okay with being hypocritical if it means that others get a glimpse of what this industry is really like. Yes, I enjoy a lot of the perks that come with this job. But with that, and like with all other jobs, I also have to put up with the not so great stuff, too.

I know that being an influencer seems cool and glamorous. And often times, it is. It’s provided me beautiful opportunities and experiences I wouldn’t get to have otherwise. It’s given me personal freedom that a full-time job likely couldn’t. I am so grateful for a lot that it’s brought me. But I’d be lying if I said it was a position I — and most of my influencer friends — are completely happy to be in. I have other friends who have impressive talents and careers — working behind-the-scenes for some of the most notable faces in the world or building their own brands or writing impactful stories — and most of them feel this pressure to become front-facing, to commodify themselves when their income doesn’t depend on it. I tell each one of them the same thing: it’s a luxury to not have to. It’s a luxury to be able to be done with their jobs at the end of the day. It’s a luxury to not have to be hyper-fixated on their appearance in order to secure a paycheck. It’s a luxury to use social media in the way it was meant to be used — for fun and for connection.

Anyway, I’m ranting. But I just wanted to give a bit more context to the piece, especially because it’s behind a paywall, which I decided to do because I am learning that some things are too personal to share with everyone. I’m learning that it’s okay to limit access to certain things.

As always, thank you for reading and I hope that some of you out there find the below helpful as you navigate this digital world.

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Be an influencer, they say. You’ll get free clothes, get paid to take photos and get invited to fancy dinners and vacations. You’ll make your own hours, earn lots of money, and have thousands of followers. You’ll have so much exposure and people will know your name. You’ll get brand deal after brand deal and will even be able to start your own brand one day – multiple if you’re smart. A podcast too. And whatever else is lucrative. Whatever else will make money and lots of it…