When a simple sleep hack unexpectedly went viral, Perry-May Britton thought it might transform her business. But an experience that brought her twelve new clients instead of thousands of online admirers taught her a surprising lesson about success, social media and following Jesus.
A very strange thing happened to me… About a month ago, I spent 58 seconds recording a little sleep hack for my socials. As a somatic coach, I often share helpful little wellness tools like this, and as usual, I posted it and forgot about it. Three days later, I went onto Instagram to discover that 90 THOUSAND people had viewed the reel! It was a complete mystery. We laughed a lot and wondered how and why the ‘universe’ had picked this one. Today, it is at 203K views.
I have had a social media presence for many years and post irregularly. Sometimes there is a flurry of views, but never very many. My social media plan has always been to grow a community of people who wish to engage meaningfully with somatic work for long-term mental and physical health. So, when this happened, there was, of course, the temptation to think I had won the Internet Lottery and I was, to be honest, pretty pleased with myself – imagining that the clients (and money) would roll in after it.
READ MORE: ‘I am a pastor’s wife and have struggled with depression, so I decided to use social media to encourage those who also are feeling weak.’
There is a story in John 7 where Jesus’ brothers urged him to go to the Festival of Tabernacles so that ‘his disciples might see his works’. They said, ‘No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world’ (v4).
A perfect example of Jesus being tempted by the lure of becoming a public figure. But what did he do? He went to the festival in secret. It wasn’t his time.
READ MORE: I quit social media when the Holy Spirit revealed the damaging way I interacted with it
Four weeks on from my ‘fame’, I am reflecting on what has changed in my life.
Four weeks on from my ‘fame’, I am reflecting on what has changed in my life. The answer is almost nothing: I have had no new clients, not even one enquiry about working with me. I have had a few negative comments about my appearance and, bizarrely, Instagram has reached out to say that I now qualify to buy a blue tick as a public figure for a monthly fee. On a happier note, I hope that a few thousand people have had a better night’s sleep. I do have some more followers, which is nice, and my 14-year-old son is impressed (no mean feat for a middle-aged mum). I also have an underlying pressure that I need to keep feeding the giant.
What would Jesus do? He would slip through the crowd in secret. He would keep doing what his Father instructed him to do without seeking attention or reward.
My relationship with technology was challenged in a different way in June, when my phone got wet and I was literally locked out of my life for eight days as it slowly dried out in a bag of rice. It was a very revealing experience – how much of my life was dependent on my phone: my banking, my social media, my communication, my camera, my diary, my shopping, my research, even my exercise routines and listening pleasure! It happened to be the week before my main course was starting and when I usually do the most online advertising. It was pretty stressful. As I had all the time in the world (!), I managed to have lots of conversations with God about it. His response was very predictable. He just kept saying, ‘Trust me.’
READ MORE: ‘God told me to be famous at home’: Why one influencer walked away from YouTube at the height of her success
To my surprise and joy, when the course opened, I had DOUBLE my usual number of clients, twelve of them, who had all come from a personal recommendation.
To my surprise and joy, when the course opened, I had DOUBLE my usual number of clients, twelve of them, who had all come from a personal recommendation. Twelve people with whom I have some real connection, not just a random algorithm. Twelve people who can keep me accountable, who can give helpful feedback, who I can rejoice with when they see the positive changes in their lives and realistically remain in contact with.
Doesn’t that feel more ‘Jesusy’ than 200,000 people I don’t know? Isn’t that how you would want to grow a business, at a gentle pace that keeps you stretched but still grateful for every new client? It may be that the time is right for me to become a public figure (in a very small piece of the internet), and the sleep hack is really good, but I suspect Jesus’ way is a much better one for me. Resisting the temptation to feed the social giant will result in that deep satisfaction and joy that comes from hard work, building long-term relationships and sticking close to Jesus.
No comments yet