Chasing current trends in social media can feel like one of those walking belts at the airport: if you don’t step on, you’re standing COMPLETELY still. But turns out, that conveyor belt isn’t actually taking you to your proper gate. It’s bringing you into a creepy little basement.

Okay, that’s enough of THAT metaphor. 😬

I stepped off. And you can, too. And in doing so, you can rediscover the quiet joy of making content that feels like YOU again.

Before I did so, I was subscribed to newsletters, followed algorithm gurus, even tried to find that perfect best time of day to post. Eeeeek, just thinking back to it makes me tired and overwhelmed! 🫠

I was chasing relevancy with all the enthusiasm of a kid chasing a kite, hoping the wind wouldn’t change direction. But deep down, I felt like I was losing myself. And that wind (AKA, the algorithm) certainly has a mind of its own!

Related: How to Overcome Perfectionism in Content Creation

The Hidden Cost of When You Chase Current Trends on Social Media

Following current trends in social media might look like the easy path. It offers formulas, “best practices!” and the allure of going viral.

But what it gives in structure, it often takes in soul… which is probably why social media feels like it’s super soul-sucking for you!

Emotional Burnout from Constant Comparison

When we look outside ourselves to know what to say, it disconnects us from what we actually want to share. You know, like when Instagram started and we all wanted to post what we were eating. It was for the fun of it! For sharing things you love with friends! But then, algorithms and monetization and marketing made it… un-fun.

I fell into this so 👏 hard 👏.

I found myself obsessively watching other creators, wondering how they made content so fast, so confidently. I was creating from anxiety, from FOMO, from should-storming myself. And then, emotional burnout came, and not from a lack of ideas (even though it felt like that). It came from putting so much noise in my ears that I couldn’t even hear my own brain think. I couldn’t hear what my heart was begging to post.

The Pressure to Perform Instead of Connect

Trend culture subtly nudges us into this performative space rather than a truthful one.

And for heart-led entrepreneurs, this creates a soul-deep tension. You didn’t become a coach or a consultant or a guide to lip-sync your way through someone else’s content calendar, did you? You became it because you love what YOU do, yes YOU. You realized there was a lack in your industry, and said “I can do this differently. How I think it should be done.”

And you’ve helped so many people along with the way with this.

Yet, the pressure still creeps in. There’s nothing fundamentally wrong with performance, but when you feel like it’s overpowering the truth behind what you’re sharing, your message ends up loosing its magic.

Losing the “Why” Behind Your Business

I bet when you look back at why you started your business, it has very little — if anything! — to do with trends. It has everything to do with lifting people up, helping them feel less stuck, feel more seen, offering them a sense of beauty and clarity. And none of that needed a trending audio to be valid. It can! But if that overwhelms you, it definitely doesn’t have to be.

Chasing current trends in social media made me forget the reason I started my business to begin with… FOR 5 YEARS.

And the more I forgot, the more my business began to feel like something I had to escape from instead of something I got to show up for. Something separate from myself. The “boring” part of myself. But your business IS SUCH A COOL PART OF WHO YOU ARE!

Related: How to Find a Niche That Doesn’t Put You in a Box

The Alternative — The Jenna from Waitress Approach

Instead of fighting to stay on top of what’s in, I began focusing on what’s true.

This is what I call the lifestyle lens: creating from your actual, messy, beautiful life, not a curated version of someone else’s.

Let me explain a little more.

If you haven’t seen Waitress, here’s the gist: Jenna bakes pies that reflect what she’s going through. Each one is a slice of her emotional world. Her creativity doesn’t come from perfection, but from truth.

Sometimes the experience stemming from those pies don’t feel great. They’re gritty and raw — but what comes from them it something beautiful, like the “I Hate My Husband Pie,” a bittersweet chocolate pudding filling that’s drowning in caramel. 🍫

I remember when I just started forming ideas for what Studio Violet would be and I was watching this movie… and I KNEW THAT WAS IT! This metaphor is how we create content.

You can take what you’re feeling, be it frustration, excitement, grief, joy, and bake it into your content within the lens of your business.

This is how we stop chasing trends and start channeling ourselves as the trend.

How This Shift Changed Everything for My Business

Letting go of current trends in social media felt scary at first. And hey, it’s not actually about never using trending audio or a trending theme. It’s just about not putting the pressure on yourself to do that.

I Actually Enjoy Creating Again

No more dreading the blank page. In fact, what is a blank page? Who is she? I have a system where I brain dump what’s going on in my life and use that as content. Noticing, reflecting, creating, and using social media as the platform to channel my creativity.

And I know you’re creative too, even if you don’t really do it as your “job job.” When you start seeing creativity as the content creation (I mean… it’s literally in the name!), you can start seeing it for what it is, and what it’s not — marketing!

Yup — content creation ain’t marketing in my book. Marketing is SECONDARY. Primarily, it’s self-expression and an exercise.

My Audience Feels More Connected to Me

I get such sweet DMs that make me feel like I was talking to this person the whole time 🥹. And it helps me remember that although the idea of ~going viral~ feels very cute, there’s nothing that hits quite like when someone leaves you a really thoughtful and kind message about the creations you’re putting into the universe. Especially when those creations are directly related to your business, AKA what you love to do!

After all, those dream clients of yours want something real, human, tangible, and someone on the other line to compliment! They want to be invited into your world so they can see more clearly.

Related: How to Handcraft a Feel-Good Social Media and Content Strategy

An Invitation for You

If you’ve been trying to follow current trends in social media and still feel like it’s not working, I want to offer you a different way.

Start with your life!

Look around at what’s already happening. Your stories. Your memories. The way you make decisions. The textures of your day. That is where your best content lives.

If you want some more musings on this or if you’re still in the DIY phase of your biz, I talk all about this on my podcast. If you’re super excited at the chance for us to design, build + launch a content creation system that eliminates the need for a social media manager, then let’s have a fit call!

Can’t wait to see where content creation takes you in your business. 🦋