Being an influencer is an excellent part-time job for busy collegiate athletes, who are interested in content creation. However, without proper balance and intentionality, the work can become detrimental to your mental health.
Here are some things I do to keep it real:
Six Tips for Collegiate Athletes To Prevent Social Influencer Burn Out
- Scrolling vs. Lifegiving Self Care: Studying your field of work and mindlessly scrolling for fun are two VERY different things. Be sure to set firm boundaries as to when you are working and when you are simply enjoying socials. Find relaxing, life-giving activities and do them when you need a break. Scrolling is NOT self-care.
- Be Intentional: Write down what your WHY is. Why are you creating content? What is your purpose for putting yourself out there? Having a mission statement to reference when you feel burnt out, tired, or unmotivated is SO important.
- Shift Your Mindset: Getting too consumed by likes, views, shares, comments, etc. can lead any influencer down a path of burn out. Gently remind yourself that views aren’t your reason for creating content.
- Find Your People: Build community with others who have similar platforms to you and share your struggles. Being an influencer can be lonely due to the nature of the profession. Find people who are like you by simply DMing other creators. Community is so important!
- Haters gonna Hate: You will get mean people in your comments. You will receive unprofessional DMs. Setting realistic (not negative) expectations for what you’re going to encounter is healthy. Also, having a plan of action when you encounter negativity on your page is vital. Are you going to interact? Are you going to delete the comment altogether? (A common choice for many influencers.) This is something only you can decide for YOUR platform.
- Know When to Pause: Let yourself take a break before it’s too late. Everyone is preaching about consistency, but consistency is only possible once you’re in the correct mental headspace to execute. If you’re pushing yourself to constantly create without a purpose, you WILL burn out. Take it from me. There is a difference between posting quality content you’re passionate about and just creating to fill your feed.
