Spring Cleaning: How to Spruce Up Your Social Media Feed for Creative Wellness & Success
Well, queens, April is here and it’s time for some spring cleaning! Now, if you're like any of us at TCQ, “spring cleaning” has more to do with our closets than our kitchens, but this blog isn’t about what happens in your home; today we’re reading your social media feed for filth.
When you do your annual refresh and reset, don’t forget to throw your socials into the mix. When was the last time you cleaned up your feed? Were ice buckets still a thing? Was Will Smith still “Oscar-nominated”? If either of these is true, we need to talk.
At TCQ we often discuss how prevalent social media is in our lives, but we don’t spend much time talking about how this entertainment form is evolving. Since Tom and Mark brought us Facebook and Myspace over two decades ago, social media has completely changed from what it was when it first started. Our feeds have become part of our society’s daily ritual. As conscious queens, we must stay mindful that our social media consumption plays a significant role in shaping our thoughts, emotions, and ultimately, our creative output.
For the women navigating the realms of entrepreneurship and creativity, it’s very easy to blur the lines between business and pleasure when you use your Instagram or TikTok for marketing and engagement. It's easy to fall into the trap of comparison and self-doubt when constantly exposed to highlight reels and success stories of your competitors on social media. As you tidy up your external environment in your home or your business don’t neglect to tend to your internal environment as well. We want you to be proactive about giving your feed a bit of upkeep so that you can have a healthy online presence that fosters inspiration and success.
So how do you start? With the basics. Rule number one: time is money, sis. As solo entrepreneurs or small business owners in creative industries, your time is precious, and just like every other investment you make, investing your time should feel intentional. If you’re spending three hours a day trying to learn how to jubee slide, you’re making poor investments.
Spring cleaning your social media feed means taking a mindful evaluation of the content you're consuming on a daily basis and identifying the “noise” or social clutter. Sometimes we don’t even realize how our temporary interests can become permanent fixtures in our feeds. If you’re still getting niche interests that you’re no longer pursuing, start your purge there. Take one hour and toss any account that no longer serves you. Just throw out the baby with the bathwater. I promise you won’t miss the ASMR sandwich accounts.
All that’s left should be accounts that align with your values, interests, and aspirations. Your new feed can reveal not only how your branding has changed, but how YOU have changed. You can get clearer about your vision and hone in on creators who inspire you, challenge your perspective, and offer valuable insights. Congratulations, you’ve successfully created a digital sanctuary.
Now that your feed is a better representation of who you are, it’s time to reflect. Take a good look at yourself through the lens of your digital mirror and ask yourself: is your feed too niche? As creative entrepreneurs and professionals, we know that diversity and creative inspo go hand in hand. If the content on your feed is singing one song, and one song only, it’s a sure sign that you’re depriving yourself of creative exposure.
Now, for the sake of clarity, we don’t want you to jump right into following more people for the sake of diversity (I literally just told you to throw out a metaphorical baby). Instead, take stock of what creative elements you feel are missing from your feed. Make a list of what you want to see so that you can slowly be more intentional about the vibe you curate. By purging the noise, you’ve cleaned your slate, giving yourself space to pick and choose creators that fuel your imagination, introduce you to new ideas, and challenge conventional thinking.
Finally, remember that even though trends come and go, mental health is forever. Recently, Dr.Drew was on Keke Palmer's podcast (Baby, This is Keke Palmer) and he spoke about how most of us don’t realize that we have poor internal boundaries. He went on to discuss how many of us who identify as “empaths” simply have paper-thin internal boundaries and thus, can’t protect ourselves from external emotional onslaught (Yes, I clutched my pearls too; he was too loud. 😭). Now leave it to the marketing girlies to correlate this to social media and mental wellness.
Dr. Drew made us realize that many millennial femmes do not have strong social media boundaries. We consume all the things, all the time, without considering how this mental clutter can affect our productivity and our mental health. If you want to get better creatively, you have to practice setting boundaries, not just with your time, but with your mind. Spring cleaning your social media means ultimately setting boundaries to protect your mental well-being and preserve your energy. Your mental health is non-negotiable, babe, especially when you’re working towards the better you.
At TCQ, we see ourselves as your marketing fairy godmother but just like Cinderella, it’s up to you to dance. Show up for yourself this year, and declutter your feed and ultimately your mind. Spring cleaning is a time for renewal inside and out and we’re here to help you create a real path for creative success, no matter how small. So roll your sleeves, detox your feed, and make some magic this year.
Your success is waiting.
We’re in your corner queen,
The Team at TCQ
