The First “Like”

The Odd Psychology of Success on Social Media

Photo by Prateek Katyal on Unsplash

Putting ourselves out there on social media can be a challenge. Sometimes those first few seconds after we push a post out into the ether can feel like an eternity. Those minutes before that first “like” can be long enough to send people into spirals of inadequacy. They can cause us to question ourselves in ways that are deep and uncomfortable. They can send us into cycles of hitting refresh so often that we begin to both look and feel like crack addicts craving our next dopamine fix.

Sometimes it’s clear that there’s an odd psychology behind success on social media. It’s been understood for awhile that social media engagement is a complicated issue. Social media marketing is something that so many people struggle with that entire books and articles have been written on it.

There are correct times of day to post. There are correct ways to phrase ourselves. There’s a psychology behind everything from the colors used in the title images we find, to the lengths of our sentences and paragraphs. It can be slightly maddening to keep track of it all as we try to succeed in our careers.

But even when our profession isn’t on the line, this odd psychology still prevails. I remember in sixth grade when my peers and I first signed up for our social media accounts, and I…