Millennials worldwide are probably somewhere in their early thirties, and many have already started a family. Their experience in middle and high school is drastically different from what they expect their children to go through. Although much has changed, they can expect peer pressure and popularity to be on teenager’s minds, albeit in a different way.

Teen Popularity Is A Job

Nowadays, teens are still invested in the social hierarchy and their position within it, but Gen Z has moved the entire concept online. Teenagers are already busying themselves running Instagram pages, creating YouTube videos, and moderating Facebook Pages. 

Instead of running in cliques within the high school cafeteria, popular teens are on their way to becoming influencers on social media. Some have already achieved their goal, boasting millions of subscribers. Generation Z is on every social media network, and they utilize any platform to its fullest. The only crucial requirement for success on social media is to have a large following. 

What About The Unpopular Kids? 

If social media is a popularity contest, how are the unpopular Gen Z using it? The answer lies in the fact that there is a variety of social media platforms to try from. These are some of the ways to get on social media that don’t require a teenager to be one of the “popular kids.” 

Spotify

Podcasting and creating music for Spotify is extremely easy. Moreso, podcasting doesn’t require any video input, which is convenient for shy teenagers. Many find that they are empowered to speak up at a podcast when hidden behind a microphone. Gaining popularity on Spotify isn’t too difficult of a task, and there are even ways to purchase Spotify followers. As long as a podcaster has the courage to speak into a microphone and the creativity to make unique content, they can be successful in generating income through the platform. 

Twitch

Millennials probably remember their parents telling them to turn off their video games and open a book. Gen Z decided they aren’t having any of that and turned gaming into a competitive sport, creating an industry worth billions of dollars. Twitch is a platform where people can watch other (more experienced) gamers play. The gamers who stream their gameplay can earn a decent living from their time spent on Twitch. Unpopular video game nerds managed to find their own social media network, and like others of their generation, they are using it to its fullest potential. 

Blogging

Although technically not part of social media, bloggers write their articles on online websites of their creation and market their blogs on social media. Many bloggers earn their money through affiliate links. Again, they must be popular, but only among the people who search for their specific blog type. In other words, they are competing with other teens and people that have similar likes and dislikes. They aren’t competing within mainstream culture but within their subculture of nerds and geeks. It shows the genius of social media that allows anyone and everyone to achieve their dreams.

It may sound like a stretch, but any teenager can use social media to get famous. We should remember that social media is merely a form of communication, and competition for popularity will translate into it, as it would with any language. Kids these days can easily use YouTube, Twitch, Spotify, or any other social media platform to achieve fame and popularity among their peers. The only issue is whether they have the dedication to try. Popularity is no longer a deciding factor of a person’s ability to achieve fame, nor is it the only option for high school kids.