Putting on a Front

I once read an article arguing that we use a defined set of "fronts" when deciding what to post on social media: the Partier, the Socialite, the Risk-Taker, the Comic, the Institutional Citizen, and the Eccentric. Oddly close to the members of the Breakfast Club. The author argued these categories let people understand our messages more quickly, and that doing it generally leaves a positive impression. He went further, calling the fronts "central to performing as an undergraduate in front of peers." From that angle, posting is less about narcissism and more about taking part in a socially expected way. Conformity is the wrong word, but there is a tinge of it. I would sooner call it harmonizing with your peers.

When you harmonize, the trick is to hit the right key. Without subtle social cues and facial expressions to lean on, it can feel safer to live inside these categories. I would argue the categories shift over time, since that article was looking at college students. For my own generation I might add "Involved Parent," "Proud Foodie," or "Single and Having Fun."

If social media really is becoming a parallel to ordinary interaction, we should treat it as such. The danger is not social media itself. It is when we mistake it for ordinary interaction. If you are having a bad day, that is not the thing to post. It does not fit the categories and will not yield what you are hoping for. Use your real, everyday interactions for that. Lean over to a friend and say, "I'm really struggling today." They can listen, empathize, and comfort in real time. Use social media, instead, to reinforce the parts of your personality that matter to you: express the creativity and the wit, tag your friends, post that you are training for a marathon. Just remember, when you read your feed, that fronts are exhibitions, and sometimes exaggerated ones.

So what front do you use? Would you add a category of your own?