2013 dominated as the "year of the selfie". Canadians were snapping away with their duck lips and picture perfect smiles and filling up our feeds with photos. The selfie trend grew in popularity and it didn't stop in 2014. Admittedly, I've been known to snap a few selfies myself. But there is a hot new trend that is burning up our social feeds. This not-so-humble trend is the "Humblebrag".
Defined by Oxford Dictionaries as "an ostensibly modest or self-deprecating statement whose actual purpose is to draw attention to something of which one is proud," the humblebrag has become a new staple on our feeds. Post-workout show-offs, cute puppy moments, flawless morning selfies - we've got a lot of things we want to post. Though, even with our noteworthy shareable moments, Canadians seem to try to find ways to stay humble with their posts. Enter the humblebrag. Virgin Mobile wanted to look into the humblebrag and find out more about what Canadians really thought about this trend.
Nearly half of Canadians have admitted to doing the deed. You may not even know you're doing it; in fact, I didn't even realize that I've humblebragged too from time to time. And I'm not alone. Thirty-eight per cent of Canadians admit that they've humblebragged without even realizing they've done it.
Just like your 'sponatenous' selfies, humblebrags can be easy to spot, especially if you know what to look for. Not sure if you've humblebragged? Here are three surefire ways to spot faux humility:
"I can't believe I woke up like this."
More than half of all humblebrags are about ones' appearance, crowning it the topic people most humblebrag about. It's okay to be proud of how you look. And sometimes we need a little affirmation, even when we say we don't. But people tend to see through that layer of faux humility and according to the survey, a large majority of Canadians preferred people being more straight up about their bragging. So if you're going to continue to snap your selfies, leave out the humblebragging. Perhaps instead try throwing a little humour into the post. We all know the truth - you didn't wake up like that, but you can have some real fun with the post, even without the faux humility.
"This old thing? I just threw something on I got from New York, on sale."
Excess is success with the humblebrag. New accessories, sale treasures and outrageous splurges are all things Canadians have humblebragged about. The survey also revealed that a large majority of Canadians (74 per cent) who humblebrag, do it in person. If you want to show off the goods, an alternative to the humblebrag is letting your friends gush over the item first, then dishing the details about your shopping escapades.
"I'm so exhausted after spending all last night backstage at the T. Swift concert. Here's another pic of me and my new bestie, Taylor."
Our study revealed that amazing locations and access took the third spot of humblebrags people notice. You've probably seen the photos and posts before: friends thrilled to attend a party, their Friday night post-work drinks at a new bar, or even selfies with a celebrity. Of course you'd want to show off your amazing experiences to your friends and followers! But to avoid being labeled a humblebragger, try finding the balance for the types of posts you share and avoid faux humility. You don't need to post updates every five minutes about the event you're at. But if you do want to share, try to limited it to one or two posts. I find this works for me because it allows me to update my feeds but also live in the experience!
Canadians have a love/hate relationship with the humblebrag. The humblebrag has quickly grown from the online feeds to our real world lives and if you're ready to ditch the faux humility, it might be time to be straight up with what you really want to say.
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