In the big picture, we are all content creators.  Whether we’re on social media or not; whether we’re posting short-form videos on the ‘gram or not, we are all creating content every day.

I mean “content” like a smile from a pretty girl, or a grumpy “harumph” from an old man on the train.  Or an ambiguous stare expressed by the bank teller, or expressed to the bank teller, by you or by me.  It is all content.

Some of us understand that intuitively.  Some learn to “put on a show” early in life.  Others never learn, or they don’t care, or they bend toward “authenticity” over pretense.

My own feeling—crystallized late in life—is that we all have a responsibility.  Which is to help make life brighter, or at least less bad, in most situations.  Don’t drag your foul-smelling baggage into the lunch room.  Leave it outside, out of sight.  In most cases, anyway.

Interestingly, my newfound attitude is a result of the more contemporary kind content creation—on Facebook and TikTok.  To effective—to be a contributor to the conversation—you need to brighten it up.  Make it entertaining to make it work.