Teodora Pavkovic presents :   The Humanitech Era II

The speakers

Questions by Alfredo Pupillo

David Polgar 

What are your views on the evolution of this idea of a “personal brand” among teenagers from the nineties up until today? Where do you see it going over the next five years, and how can we as adults help [re]direct teens onto a healthy[er] path?  

Treating teens as brands on social media is fundamentally at odds with both what it means to be a teenager and what it means to be a brand. Brands thrive on uniformity around messaging, while teens are in a state of rapid evolution in regards to their identity. For example, when I consider who I was in high school, I was actually many different people. That's what happens when we are teens--we are trying on new identities and in a state of rapid self-exploration. Brands, on the other hand, are stagnant. To treat a teen as a brand online is to force them into choosily and then marketing an identity, when in truth one's identity as a teen should be more fluid. Brands are the antithesis of fluidity. 

Another reason why "teens as brands" is problematic is because it is stifling from an expression stand point. Brand managers and people in PR/Communications are typically very watchful about what they say, because every statement needs to be "on brand." We have done a major disservice to the promise of social media if we promote the idea that teens are brands because this runs counter to promoting authenticity and creative expression. "Be careful what you post," is an adult statement that makes sense from an adult reputational standpoint, but can also be rather finger-wagging and threatening for teens. In my opinion, we have focused our attention on the wrong problem--the issue should not be scaring a teen that wrong tweet will prevent them from getting into the college of their choice and destroy their career option. The issue is creating an environment where one bad tweet is allowable! Guess what? People make dumb mistakes. Also, more importantly, American society is based on both redemption and the ability to carve your own path. 

The rise of Snapchat, Instagram Stories, etc. is directly related to this messaging. Of course teens are going to seek out spaces where posts are less permanent; we have been hammering away at how this permanence would get in the way of their future. Any form of ephemeral social media is anti-brand; it is about the post as opposed to building a brand. 

Yet another issue with pushing the idea that teens are brands on social media is regarding free labor. It is perfectly fine for me to treat my social media engagement as being a "brand" because my activity indirectly leads to money through consulting, paid speaking, etc. When we expect teens to be so highly curated, we are actually expecting them to do a tremendous amount of unpaid labor (which is stressful). 

For teens this issue is complicated by the fact that some teen influencers make an incredible amount of money--but the vast majority of content creators on social media are not paid influencers. Where I see this issue headed over the next five years is in tackling what it means to be an "aspirational influencer." There are not that many well-paid social media influencers, but if we include people who believe they will be an influencer, the number is much higher. 

Juan Sanchez

Please tell us about Digital free label / a brief explanation for non-tech audience/ benefits /perspectives / next steps in that direction.

"Our mission is to reduce people's screen time but, most importantly, increase their HUMAN time—the time we spend without technology and connect on a deeper human level. Indeed, we envision a world where digital-free products become more common. In the next 5-10 years, we are challenging ourselves to create the world's first DIGITAL-FREE LABEL to certify products like ours. It might seem irrelevant right now, but other labels like Gluten-free, GMO-free, Sugar-free, Dairy-free, Paraben-free, Animal Cruelty-free (the list goes on and on) were also unthinkable 15 years ago. Today, these labels heavily influence how people filter their searches and make purchase decisions. Things are changing, and as we are immersed in this inundation of current technology, we have identified a new market need that we call "ANALOG NOSTALGIA," or what we define as the nostalgia of a simpler past time when human connection was valued over social media likes. We want people to return to these simpler times and be conscious of how technology affects them and their relationship with others."

Jess Davies 

Please describe remarkable aspects of life before social media. 

 "The most glaring differences I see are the creation of personal brands. People showcase a filtered life for the consumption of strangers. This is problematic because they are seeking outside validation from people they don't even know but worse yet, for not being their authentic self. There have been studies that show that humans creating these avatars in the digital world actually create two selves - or split selves - in their brains."

Pat Mc Andrew 

In your experience with workshops, how does improvisation work to create an experiential learning space that facilitates the development of healthy relationships?

"Improvisation requires us to get outside our comfort zone and just do. It requires us to dive in and figure it out as we go along. But, perhaps most importantly, improvisation requires us to collaborate with our fellow teammates towards a common goal. Whether playing a game or enacting a scene, the foundational elements of improvisation demand its participants to listen attentively, to help one another in a positive way, and to develop heightened awareness as to what is being said and the actions taking place. This sort of cohesion naturally develops critical emotional skills like empathy, belonging, and community that are essential when building and cultivating relationships. When engaging in an experiential learning space like improvisation, participants walk away with a deep level of understanding and connection to their fellow human beings. This is why it's so important."

Nina Herscher 

Could you explain to our readers the Digital Flourishing concept and its many possibilities?

"Digital Flourishing is an empowerment-oriented approach to fostering health and wellness, encompassing strategies for mindful technology use. Drawing on theoretical frameworks from positive psychology, traditional psychology, sociology, and data science, this digital wellness model is designed to empower people with research-based holistic health and wellness strategies for the digital age. The principles of the model are illustrated in the Digital Flourishing® Wheel, which consists of the following 8 domains: productivity, environment, communication, mental health, quantified self, relationships, physical health and digital citizenship."

Max Stossel

In today's digital world, how easily can people identify the difference between healthy and unhealthy tech use on their own?

"It would vary for each person, but a helpful check-in is how does this app/game make me feel? Both during and after use. And outside of the realm of time spent, "What value is this adding to my life/what am I getting out of this?... and then, what value is it REALLY adding to my life/What am I REALLY getting out of this?""

Oluwatosin Olabode 

How is this situation in Africa related to teenagers creating a social-media –personal-image and its impact on self-esteem?

"Facebook and WhatsApp are the most engaged social media platforms by African teenagers. It is an avenue for them to chat, share their views, build new friendships and keep in touch with the old friends whom otherwise they wouldn’t be able to stay in touch with; all this, helping to boost their self-esteem, self-concept, and self-worth.

The dangers, however, are that because these teenagers do not have proper guidance structures, and in their efforts to impress their peers, they often define their identities within these social media interactions that could in-turn have negative consequences on their sense of identity when they feel or think that they are not meeting up with their friend’s standards. Within the dynamics of this identity crisis comes a sense of loneliness, social isolation, bullying, self-conflict, depression, and even suicide in extreme cases.

And so, while we are seeing some African teenagers thriving within the social media space, gaining access to opportunities and creating opportunities. We are also recording teenagers that have lost their voice and character within the social media space."

HUMANITECH was organized by Teodora Pavkovic and Anya Pechko, with the support of David Klein and Patrick McAndrew.