Summary
When did conversation start to feel like a performance? Social media may be quietly reshaping the way we speak, behave and present ourselves; even when no camera is present. Reflects on ikhlāṣ, authenticity and character, and asks whether we are teaching the next generation not only how to communicate, but how to be comfortable enough with themselves that they do not need to perform.
When Communication Becomes Performance
I've been wondering whether we're witnessing a subtle shift in how people communicate.
Have you noticed that some conversations no longer feel entirely natural?
Not because people are being insincere.
But because they almost feel... performed.
It's difficult to describe...The expressions...The cadence...The pauses...The body language.
Sometimes it feels as though the habits we developed for speaking to a camera are slowly becoming the habits we use when speaking to one another.
What's particularly interesting is that I don't think most people are doing it consciously.
It has simply become normal. The performance has become the default.
Perhaps every generation unknowingly absorbs the medium that shapes it.
Previous generations were shaped by books.
Then television.
Now social media.
If that observation is true, then it raises an important question...
When a person becomes constantly aware of how they appear, do they gradually become less aware of who they are?
Islam has always placed enormous emphasis on ikhlāṣ (sincerity).
Not merely sincerity in intention, but sincerity in character.
Being the same person whether anyone is watching or not.
As parents and educators, I wonder if one of the greatest responsibilities we now have is not simply teaching our children how to communicate...
...but teaching them how to be comfortable enough with themselves that they no longer feel the need to perform.
Your brother
Sajid Umar
Location: 'somewhere en route to the hereafter'
22/01/1448 (AH) - 07/07/2026