Hardworking Reality TV Stars

I, a modern, logical, professional, forward thinking woman of the 21^st century, watch reality TV.

Yes, I can see the implied oxymoron but I swear it was a learning experience for me and I will tell you why.

At first, it started when I was younger and had a lot of free time. It not only seemed very entertaining but I actually thought it was real. Bored young woman that I was, this was fascinating to me.  Slowly but surely I realised how fake it all was…. Who wears full glam make up 24/7? Who fights like this in real life? Then I realised watching reality TV just became a bad habit for me. No one around me could understand why I watched it. I tried to explain the storyline to get others interested but I could hear myself….it was pretty sad. Honestly.

One day while watching one of real housewives pick a fight over some trivial issue, I asked myself,

‘who watches this shit? And wtf for ?’

At that moment, my logical brain kicked in.

These reality TV stars had become relevant because of familiarity. They are all over our TV screens whether you watch their shows or not. Always impeccably dressed, speaking ‘their minds”, maximising every opportunity, writing books, getting brand deals, even attending events for cash! The trick is if you see me often on different media platforms, you subconsciously think I have something to say.  So you watch and listen. Unfortunately, this trick happens with so many celebrity these days, we find it difficult to decipher who actually has something to offer.

Don’t get me wrong, these stars work hard and we, the intended audience, have to acknowledge that. The sacrifices they make to stay relevant. They have to keep up appearances, basically selling their brand, whatever it may be at any time. Take a minute and try to imagine yourself branded at all times…. Because truly, we all have brands. This is the image we perpetuate to the public. The difference is I get to get rid of that image after a long week when I  just want to get a drink down the street. . The image I’m projecting at this point is hobo chic!  The chic is silent…..

The difference between us and them is our job description. That’s why its hard for me to empathise when they are criticised. They are just being criticised for being bad at their jobs. This happens in every work environment, only their work environment is the world. While the rest of us get to switch off, they do not. If they want to, it comes at a huge cost of protecting their privacy. Side effect of this well paying job  is losing relevance. See, catch 22!  Not only do they have the worse work environment, their clients can be quite fleeting and they have several competitiors just lurking, ready to pounce on any vacuum their sudden need for a regular life might create.

Staying relevant to their clients is key. It takes a lot to keep someone’s emotional attention while offering no real gratification….