Being an Influencer - a cautionary tale

So I read an article today about an Instagram influencer and I was shocked by what I read. This woman was working in a great job in PR so I would have thought she would have been able to promote herself without getting herself into thousands of dollars worth of debt ($10,000 to be exact). I thought while reading this, it reminded me of Rebecca Bloomwood from the film Confessions of a Shopaholic. Rebecca just spent thousands on clothes and then hid from her debt collector Derrick Smeath. I think that for me this is definitely one of the major pitfalls of being an influencer, that and privacy being invaded. I have to say as much as I love my blog and the potential opportunities that could come my way, I'm not sure I would ever spend money just to get that Instagram shot. Don't get me wrong I love Instagram, I would go as far as to say that it is my favourite social media platform apart from my blog. As a dyslexic person Instagram is perfect for a more visual person like me!

As I've said I love Instagram but for me I share things that I naturally have taken a photo of or things I like anyway. I would never just do it for the sake of 'getting that Instagram'. I take photos all the time but it's a natural process most of the time (if I'm pulling an awful face I will obviously retake it)! However, I do feel bad for those Instagramer husbands/boyfriends/partners etc that have to take millions of photos to get the perfect shot. I try to get a good shot but it's never going to be an influencer photo because neither me or my husband have the patience to take a million photos for one shot, no I would not be a good professional photographer either!

I think since the article the woman has cleared her debts but for me being married and owning a house (paying a mortgage each month) - these are the things that I put first before spending hundreds of pounds on myself, on makeup, clothes, events and expensive dinners out. We ate out in Italy but we were careful, but had great food and I just took photos to remind me in years to come. We tried to eat where the locals eat, I'm not one for really fancy restaurants but we did accidentally eat in one and we were so disappointed. There is nothing worse than getting a plate with basically nothing on it and being charged the price of a small car........not into that! I learnt a lot from my late Dad in trying to be sensible with money and shopping around for a little bargain and eating where locals eat (I'm not perfect and I wasn't as good with money when I was younger as I am now).

For me I get complimented on my clothes and makeup which are all reasonably priced, or saved up for. I don't see the necessity to waste money, on something just because it's a brand name. I can get the same result but on a fraction of their budget.

So the lesson to learn for all Bloggers,Vloggers, Instagramers, Influencers is not to get into debt trying to make it or actually injure yourself to get those 'perfect shots' either! A photo isn't worth any of that.

Toodles XX