Are you #goals?

Is it me recently? Or is everyone saying "OMG goals." I don't know, it may just be me but I hear it about ten times a day. Although I have to admit, I probably contribute to three out of those ten times. Whenever I see someone or something desirable my immediate reaction is to say, "GOALS!" But upon reflection,  do I really mean it? Is that someone/something really my goal in life?
Media, especially social media, has perpetuated this idea of "goals" in a lot of people's minds. On Twitter and Instagram there are even a plethora of accounts solely dedicated to posting pictures of "goals". An increasing amount of people are following these accounts, and I am definitely guilty of following some of them. These life "goals" can range from relationships, education, jobs, friendships, and even pets!


The concept of goals has been twisted from something small on social media, to advertisements for many companies. Consumers will see them and be encouraged to buy whatever product it takes to bring them up to the same level of "goals." This concept creates a false reality for people and takes advantage of people's needs for companionship, prominence, success, etc. Not going to lie, in eighth grade, my friends and I saw a best friends goals picture of four girls wearing corresponding Halloween outfits. Our immediate reaction was "That's so cute! We should do that too." Of course, we followed through and took almost the same picture that the girls took. If we had never saw the picture, we probably would have never bought the outfits (which were definitely not worth the money by the way).

Companies had embedded the idea of these goals in our minds, causing consumers to buy products they would normally never buy on our own. They attempt to imitate exactly these situations in life which are perceived as idealistic.
Media has perpetuated the idea of "goals" in the public's minds. Even my mom the other day texted me an aesthetically pleasing  picture of her coworker in front of the Eiffel Tower and said "Goals!" She then proceeded to look up prices for a vacation to Paris. Is this really my mom's goal? Yes, I guess going to the Eiffel Tower is a pretty desirable thing to check off a bucket list, but without the concept of goals in the society today, this trip would probably not be planned so soon. Has the media influenced the public's minds with this false reality? Or is everything just the least bit adorable our goals?