We may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post.
Remember when the only people you were competing with were your siblings for the last slice of pizza? Simpler times. Now itโs not enough to live your life โ you have to perform it. And thanks to social media, thereโs a 24/7 scoreboard for whoโs โwinning.โ
Spoiler: Itโs never you.
Between TikTok trends that expire faster than your vanilla almond milk in the fridge, and Instagram Reels showing you just how much better everyone elseโs summer trip to St Tropez is, weโve accidentally signed up for this never-ending competition.
- Career Achievement Sprints:ย โCongrats on your promotion!โย Except now, youโre wondering why youโre still in the same position you were in five years ago, while theyโre apparently the CEO of a tech company at 27.
- Relationship Relays:ย Engagement photos, honeymoon videos, baby announcements โ posted in perfectly staggered succession, so you can measure exactly how far behind you are in lifeโs great relay race.
- Parenting Pentathlon:ย While youโre proud your kid remembered to brush their teeth this morning, someone elseโs child is out here speaking Mandarin, playing the cello, and rescuing endangered sea turtles.
And the timelines โ oh, the timelines. We have two of them now:
- The One in Your Head:ย By 30, youโd have it all figured out, right? Right.
- The One on Your Feed:ย Apparently, everyone else figured it out by 23, and youโre just out here wondering what to make for dinner.
The worst part? Social media is designed to keep you looking over your shoulder. Itโs a treadmill you didnโt sign up for, with an incline you canโt turn down.
You canโt โwinโ because the finish line keeps moving.
Someone will always have a nicer home, a more successful career, or a more luxurious trip on their feed.
But hereโs the thing โ life isnโt actually a competition unless you decide to play.
The people you think are miles ahead? Half of them are just better at editing their highlighted reel.
The rest are just as confused, tired, and over it as you areโฆ theyโre just posting a filtered version. So maybe the real win is logging off for a bit, focusing on your own race, and remembering that no oneโs REALLY keeping score but you.
