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Social media really discourages people from taking up hobbies out of fear of being 'bad' (lemmygrad.ml)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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So I like plants and gardening. My appartment is full of plants and I have a small herb nursery in my window sill. I'm currently growing three basil plants and a pepper plant.

I go to social media for tips and tricks and as usual it's full of people with grade A set ups producing lots of herbs and veggies and stuff. I started growing my pepper plant and after weeks I managed to produce a whopping number of 1 pepper. The weird thought that occurred to me was: I failed. I failed because my pepper plant isn't as productive as the plants I see online.

Meanwhile: did I have fun doing this? Yes, I loved watching the progress of this plant. I did feel cool when I added my home grown pepper to my dinner. Isn't that what hobbies are about?

How many people are out there quitting things because they aren't immediately good at it because social media primed us to crave instant satisfaction through constant dopamine hits? Pick up hobbies, be bad at them, learn, have fun.

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[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago

I think that what you're describing is definitely a problem but social media is a blessing and a curse. YouTube and Reddit and other internet resources contain a wealth of information, tutorials, and even access to experienced people who are willing to help you out with advice. Before all this, if you wanted any of this you either had to know someone, pay to take a class, or spend a lot of time with books figuring it out for yourself.

There's a lot of scientific evidence that says social media is bad for ones mental health, but I think it's possible to moderate that effect by trying to see things as inspirational rather than intimidating.