I cannot recall exactly when I first had the realisation that the validation derived by performers within the virtual realm might have the power to displace their drive to achieve in real world competition, but it was certainly within the past decade. These suspicions have only been strengthened over the recent period from observing how performers (including high profile athletes) are choosing to conduct themselves online and in person. What is also becoming all the more apparent is the tension between these two realms. The behaviours that are cultivated and encouraged in social media land are in many ways contrary to what is required to compete successfully against real life competitors and navigate real world challenges in the sport. Chasing social media fame is proving somewhat incompatible with pursuing real world goals in sport. Unregulated social media use in itself is also emerging as a threat to the performance and wellbeing of the individual, serving to make performers more fragile and exposing vulnerabilities. The rapid rise of these new features of performing in the digital era has caught many of us off guard, such that coaches, support staff and administrators are still grappling with what to do to manage and regulate performers’ online activities. Certainly we have been slow to recognise the dangers and to date we have largely failed to come up with effective countermeasures to mitigate the potential harms.
THE POWER OF THE ONLINE PERSONA…
For many performers their athlete persona is a cherished part of their identity, to the extent that, for some at least, what sport they happen to participate in or what success they might achieve in competition are secondary concerns. With the gift of social media, it is now possible to fabricate this persona out of very little and continue to enjoy the status it affords in a way that is no longer dependent upon results in real world competition. For some performers at least, this deal with the virtual devil is an attractive proposition.
Whilst there can be an element of ‘fake it till you make it’, increasingly you don’t necessarily even need to ‘make it’ in the competition arena at all. This is not entirely a new phenomenon - Anna Kournikova was perhaps the first high profile athlete to demonstrate that a great deal of fame and fortune could be attained without actually having to be among the top ranked players in the world or actually winning tournaments.
The digital era has put such possibilities in the hands of the many - all you need is the will and a smartphone, both of which are in ready supply. Of course, as in the case of Kournikova, it does no harm if the performer happens to be photogenic and not averse to posing and pouting for the camera.
ALL GLORY, NO GRIND…
The attention that a social media presence can bring for performers, including endorsements from sponsors and praise from random strangers, can create the sense that they have already made it. Moreover, it soon becomes apparent that such rewards and recognition largely come from posing and posting rather than necessarily being driven by success in the competitive arena.
Given the ready availability of short-term rewards, it is perhaps unsurprising that a performer might choose to invest their time according to what provides the most immediately apparent returns. After all, why try harder, strive for more or struggle unnecessarily when virtual success has been achieved already?
It takes relatively little work to create a plausible impression in social media land. Any performer can easily project an online image of being hardworking and committed - all this requires is regularly posting photos at training and practices, along with a hashtag and perhaps a motivational quote. Portraying themselves in this way also implies that they are successful. The average social media follower is not particularly discerning when it comes to such details as competition results. Maintaining the pretense simply requires the occasional staged photo in the vicinity of a competition venue. The rewards for these efforts are relatively consistent and pretty immediate. Certainly it is far less toil and a positive outcome is far more assured compared to what it takes to be successful in real life.
Sponsors - especially those who prowl social media platforms - are also often not unduly concerned with the reality or the performer’s results in real world competitions; essentially they just care how many eyeballs are on the performer’s social media channels. The Faustian pact they make with the performer represents a great deal for them - the advertising reach they gain often comes at little or no cost (beyond donating some product free of charge).
PERVERSE INCENTIVES…
Clearly, there are still plenty of performers who remain highly committed and are not inclined to give up on their dreams so easily. However, the reality is that having presence on social media is increasingly an integral (and to some extent necessary) part of the life of an athlete and their obligations as a professional. And even the most committed and high flying athletes increasingly appear to be struggling with the task of serving these different masters.
If we want to understand the behaviours on display, it makes sense to start by examining the incentives at play. In the digital era, the forces at play are steering performers in a direction that does not entirely align with the original aspiration of achieving real success in their chosen sport.
A pervasive aspect of mobile technology and social media applications is their powerful pull as a potent (and seemingly endless) source of distraction. Their power to distract and divert our attention is extraordinary. This is not by chance. The features of these platforms have been specifically engineered to hijack our brains and reinforce behaviours that drive their constant and compulsive use. All of us can relate to the experience of compulsively checking our device at all times of day and mindlessly scrolling through our social media feed only to look up to find an inordinate amount of time has passed without our noticing.
One of the more insidious effects of social media applications is that they are instant gratification engines. Once again this is by design and it is a key part of the allure. This contrasts sharply with the delayed gratification that is a characteristic feature of training, practice and the pursuit of any long-term goal. In the case of the latter, benefits are accrued over time, the rewards are long deferred and ultimately there is no guarantee of a positive outcome. This does beg the question, how can the reality compete with the guaranteed ‘likes’ and instant gratification offered by a social media post?
COMPATIBILITY ISSUES…
The imperative to be active on social media creates competing demands and encourages performers to conduct themselves in a way that is often not entirely compatible with other (more important) facets of their life of an athlete. The performer’s online activities in service of their social media following and their duties in the real world frequently come into conflict. Actions taken online can easily have detrimental effects in real life.
The hyperconnectivity of smartphones and the rewards of social media come at a cost - and not only in terms of time spent. It is easy to see how this might have adverse knock on effects for the primary mission - that is, being able to compete successfully and cope with the attendant challenges of training and competing at the highest level.
The most obvious example is that constantly being online and compulsively checking to see how many ‘likes’ a recent post has garnered is a huge drain on time and mental resources. From a coaching perspective the knock on effects of this are plain, as illustrated by the high profile case of a college basketball coach who felt compelled to schedule breaks within his practices to permit the players to indulge their cravings to check their smartphones. This presents a problem in other ways for an athlete who must balance other commitments such as work and school. Even when they are not on social media or responding to alerts, simply having the device in the environment has a measurable (negative) impact on attention and depletes the mental resources available to invest in the task at hand.
What is required to cultivate and conserve a social media following is often suboptimal from a performance or athlete health perspective. Responding to what appeals to a social media following is not necessarily helpful to the primary mission.
For instance, one of the things that consistently yields the greatest engagement and most enthusiastic response on social media is sharing highly personal thoughts and feelings. It seems the more personal the better when it comes to earning followers and generating ‘likes’ and positive comments from strangers.
A topical example is how performers are increasingly met with praise and rewarded with public validation for divulging to the wider public what would have previously been closely guarded thoughts, doubts and feelings. It certainly appears to be in vogue for high profile performers to broadcast their insecurities and share their frailties with the world. Certainly these outpourings are being met with gushing expressions of support and admiration in the present moment. Observing such displays is likely to encourage performers at all levels to adopt this practice.
Aside from the distraction and the potential to displace motivation, the over-sharing that is so richly rewarded with followers, likes and praise has some glaring potential negative consequences in the competitive arena.
“Sycophants don’t leave me now, ‘cause I’m afraid what you’ve done to me is now the wolf in my head”
HARSH REALITIES…
In some sense it is of course admirable to be willing to be vulnerable in public. To the extent that high profile performers are role models for younger athletes, the effects of their actions on reducing the stigma of mental health is a good thing. From that perspective, the positive response and applause on these platforms when prominent figures publicly share their struggles on social media is all very gratifying.
That said, even the most generous commentator could not legitimately claim that all this public sharing has proven beneficial from a performance perspective when we assess how the individuals concerned have fared subsequently in competition.
If we are less charitable, on occasion there is a conspicuous element of performance in such a public cri du coeur. We might also ponder the extent to which habitual heavy use of the same social media these figures are employing to share their struggles is itself contributing to the emotional distress and mental health struggles they are reporting. Authors have drawn a clear line between mobile technology and social media use in particular and the growing rates of unhappiness and depression reported by individuals. It therefore does not seem a stretch to make such a connection. The possibility remains that this might be a circular relationship.
To be clear, it is hugely important that performers feel able to open up about anything that is troubling them, especially given the pressures and struggles involved in being an athlete. It is absolutely critical that performers have people in their circle within the sport and their life outside outside sport in whom they can confide. Investing in these relationships and cultivating a support network of this type is essential to being able to sustain performing and for the health and happiness of the individual. But once again, being too immersed in the online world typically comes at the cost of genuine connection and performers’ offline relationships. Public declarations via social media and the outpourings of support (or otherwise) received in return are likewise not to be confused or conflated with the real solace that comes from confiding in real people who genuinely have their best interests at heart.
There are also some other harsh realities to face. For instance, it seems naive in the extreme for a performer to think that publicly exposing themselves in this way has no risk. Given the adversarial and unforgiving nature of the competition environment it does seem a decidedly odd strategy. The crucible of competition and even the training environment inevitably exposes any fault lines or vulnerabilities. Opponents can also be expected to ruthlessly exploit the weaknesses that have been advertised so carelessly with the world at large.
IN CLOSING…
The allure of insta applause is not to be underestimated but what is striking is how tenuous the existence of the online performer seems to be.
Whilst insta fame might seem to have all the trappings of real world success, it is a pale shadow of the real thing. Virtual status and commanding an online following can offer a fleeting sense of satisfaction, but ultimately social media is the junk food of the soul: it lacks meaning and proves unfulfilling.
The online performer is damned to never be satiated. It truly is a Faustian bargain: to be at the mercy of a capricious online following is purgatory. And when the fickle and faceless horde turns on a performer on social media it can be hell.
Coaches and the other grown ups around the performer continue to grapple with how best to guide performers to meet their social media obligations without falling prey to its unfavourable aspects. Even if the performer escapes the wrath of the online mob, the virtual world is nevertheless fraught with insidious negative effects. Being constantly online takes a toll on the athlete in real life. This is something that needs to be managed and regulated appropriately to mitigate the risks.
In reality most performers do not consciously choose to prioritise social media fame over performing; more commonly it is something they inadvertently sleepwalk into. It follows that part of our strategy should be prompting performers to be more conscious of the choices they are making on a day to day basis. A mental performance coach with the USOC who was among the first to remark on how performers’ social media posting was becoming a distraction even at major competition took to asking the performers ‘are you here to tweet or are you here to compete?’. Clearly we need to address these issues before performers reach the big show - perhaps we should regularly ask performers ‘are you here to practice or are you here to pose?’.
Photo credit: Photo by Sammy Williams on Unsplash
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