Nowadays, however, photographs are often used to project an image - a life we strive for, or a life we pretend to live. Likes have become a measure of our worth and consequently these photographs have become the reason we leave the house. Our friendships and our destinations are carefully selected depending on what they will represent to our followers.
For those of us partaking in this inane quest for popularity, life is a constant struggle to remain relevant - or at least to seem that way. What actually goes on behind the screen ranges from insecurity to eating disorders, and from loneliness to serious mental illness. Yet the photos continue to pour out of us, portraying complete bliss.
To make matters worse, we fall for it. We witness everybody else's perfect life and wonder where we went wrong. We then pigeon-hole ourselves to develop an identity that might fill this void - another step away from who we really are and another opportunity for life to teach us a lesson.
This might seem harmless in the long run, but what our generation is yet to grasp is how fulfilling life has the potential to be - how incredible it can feel to live for your own approval.
I think we would all benefit from stepping back and examining our lives. Ask yourself whether your friends enrich your life, whether you are following your passion and whether you are staying true to who you are when you share your life online.
I've said before that when I stopped judging others, I stopped feeling the need to impress. Now every time I put my phone away to listen, look and embrace the moment, the relentless desire to be admired slowly fades away too.