Mackenzie Newcomb, 29, is living the dream of millennials and Gen Z. Working from her home on a beautiful pond in Massachusetts, she works a demanding schedule that includes quiet time on a kayak and trips to the beach. There, she's not expected to do more than work on her tan, show off her J.Crew gear for free, and perhaps enjoy her roll of lobster for free from a local restaurant.
Most of Newcomb's peers would kill for her work as an influencer on TikTok, but New's native England burned out. What her content creators are looking for right now, more than any flexibility or perks, is a nice, long break from the daily grind of receiving free stuff and posting video selfies of her.
"There's something great about this," Neucombe admitted to the Post, citing the sponsored trips she offers and the clothes her favorite brands ship to her. It's also very emotionally exhausting and not always worth it."
Newcomb makes about $50,000 a year. A great way to make a living. But she, like other influencers interviewed by The Post, says she's tired of the constant hustle and bustle. And they say they're afraid to even take a short break for fear of losing followers equal to their earnings. He says he is.
She started blogging in 2011 and quit her full-time marketing job 10 years later to run the virtual Bad Bitch Book Club and social media lifestyle brands., but questioning her self-esteem after just one year at her Newcomb gig.
how she describes her life, online trolls constantly thinking about how to deal with the crisis, worrying that work like hers is "so reflective of capitalism", and feeling like it's hurting the world during the recession and the climate crisis. Com is the first appeal of being a full-time influencer.
"Definitely more self-loathing," she said.
Since spending all of her time on social media, she added that she started taking anxiety medication and seeing a therapist.
A recent study by Awin found thatcontent creation reported that burnout affected their mental health; according to Indeed's 2021 survey We found that millennial (59%) and Gen Z (58%) workers—the overrepresented group in the influencer space—reported the highest levels of burnout.
Growing frustration is felt all the way to the top. Queen of TikTokCharli D'Amelio was the platform's most popular figure for two years before stepping out earlier this year. Despite losing the coveted crown, the 18-year-old confesses to feeling mostly relieved and happy to take a backseat. , D'Amelio said on the podcast "Charli and Dixie: 2 Chix."
Karasmith, Age 28, Native African Resident of Brooklyn influencer, she rose to fame on TikTok in March 2020 after losing her job. She started focusing on sharing information on issues affecting the community. Smith worked about 30 hours a week and she was earning between $10,000 and $12,000 a month.
But a year later she found she no longer had the will to smash it. And she's found herself sharing things that don't always feel real in order to keep up with the latest.
"I felt like I was about to throw anything that would stick," Smith told The Post. In fact, according to Awin's research, 64% of her content creators cite lack of quality and creativity as the top causes of burnout.
Smith also tries to secure most of her stress New transactions while tracking late payments from others. She recently took on the job of Chappaquiddick her Wampanoag tribe so as not to rely on her media social as her main source of income.
This phenomenon is not limited to her twenties. TikTok star Christine Cochrum ( 46) is also struggling.
Curvaceous vintage style beauty bloggertypically worked 40 to 50 hours a week and didn't want to disclose her income. her place in the social sphere. She said she was lucky to be able to do it thanks to her husband's salary.
Cochrum followed her, partially Decided to go on hiatus, she found she had trouble concentrating, felt rushed and completely disorganized, and wasn't happy with the content she put out. , I was scared, I was worried that if I rested I would lose momentum and the algorithm would be like, 'Oh, you don't exist anymore,'" she told the Post.
She said the algorithm changes after two weeks every time she feels she knows exactly what she wants.
"Everything you learned is gone," said a Washington DC resident.
"If you don't appease the algorithm gods, you won't be seen, you won't be heard, and you will be of no use," said Kokrum.
Constant platform changes were the main cause of anxiety for 72%. According to Awin,
"We're just sitting there, stacking decks and doing everything we can to get there.
The cycle of internet fame has picked up its pace since the birth of YouTube stars and the first Instagram influencers. I'm speeding up. Most of her media her star eventually lost the interest and support of her followers and disappeared from the high-profile platform.
Comedian Jenna Marblesbecame one of the most followed YouTubers in the 2010s, with nearly 20 million subscribers. I left the platform permanently in June 2020 after facing backlash over my previous content. .Her influencer Caroline Callowaydeleted all content from her account after her impeccably crafted image began to crack. (Her empty Instagram feed still has her 651,000 followers.)
Meanwhile, Newcomb plans to bring her life along the coast of England to New York in the fall. Willing to move, she said she would get a "real" job there. She knows that people may find her choices difficult to understand, but it is something she takes very seriously. You'll definitely run into someone you like because that's exactly the life many people want to live," she said. "[But] it's a really crazy feeling, like you're contributing to the end of the world."