Social Media and Cotton Candy: Part I

Finding substance beyond the superficial sparkle of social media

Unfortunately, social media platforms encourage individuals who ought not to be seen or heard to publicly air their often poorly thought-out and narrow views on whatever topic they choose. What can be done about this phenomenon?

A few years ago, when I was trying to figure out how to be a better singer, my sister recommended a book to read. I was shocked to learn that in some training systems for opera singers, individuals were not allowed to sing any part of a song for four years—only voice training and practice exercises! Imagine the discipline, patience, and humility that it requires!

If you aren’t well-grounded in knowledge, wisdom, and experience on a given subject, but you think you are because you can broadcast your face to millions of people, this is a recipe for a poorly cooked meal that will surely cause your palate and stomach to protest louder than a smoke alarm in the middle of the night.

Author Robert Greene, in his book Mastery (2012), warns of the dangers inherent in walking a path littered with glittering performance-based expertise without being undergirded by apprenticeship, mentorship, and humility. He writes:

“The very desire to find shortcuts makes you eminently unsuited for any kind of mastery.” (Mastery, Chapter 2, p. 113)

Social media, by contrast, allows unqualified, ill-prepared individuals to shorten the required time and circumvent the slow process required for mastery. These platforms reward visibility over depth, novelty over substance, and confidence over competence. (Follower counts and clicks, anyone?) Popularity is more highly regarded than grounded authority.

Is it any surprise we are awash with echoes that sound loud but carry no depth? You need not look too far back on YouTube to see what happens when visibility outpaces depth, integrity, and grounded presence; ImJayStation, Austin Jones, Ruby Franke, Etika, and Big Li, to name a few.

Watching someone’s meteoric rise to becoming a star on these platforms is akin to what happens when you chomp down on the visually alluring promise of cotton candy—it’s big and fluffy, and smells good, but after you take a bite and chew for a bit, you get the uncomfortable feeling you've just been had!

Perhaps we are facing an epidemic of shallowness, sparks, and glitter that bombards our sensibilities, tempting us to choose the allure of cotton candy superficiality over the steady diet of bread grounded in presence, masterliness, and integrity.

In Part II of this essay, we’ll explore ways to counterbalance the social media scales of superficiality and commercialized performance, which right now tip the balance away from true weight as though we’ve been piling feathers on one side of the scale while ignoring the gold on the other.

I’d love to hear how this resonates with you. Feel free to share your thoughts or add your voice to the conversation below.