“IRL” is an acronym for “in real life.” While social media would like you to believe that the everyone in the world spends the majority of their time online — I don’t believe this to be true…and I certainly hope it is not because it would not be the best use of our limited time. I say this as someone who you see a lot in your feeds — yet I can personally assure you that I don’t spend a lot of time online. I’m actually very calculated in exactly how much time I spend — and it is absolutely under one hour a day. And it is when I’m walking on my treadmill desk — which is now the only multi-tasking I allow myself to engage in!
I far prefer the IRL experience. The reason is that while some posts are educational and some are ways to update friends and some are just beautiful places to look at and some make me burst with laughter — I believe for the most part, too much of social media is a highlight reel. I get it. Nobody wants to be seen publicly in our less than perfect, beautiful, maybe even envy-producing moments. I admit that I don’t share the moments when I lose my S#iT — which is rare — but it does sometime happens.
I love people. I purchased a painting years ago that says, “I fall in love at least twice a day.” And I do. I fall in love with many of you. Thank God for me that I have a husband that understands this in me. My heart simply expands. Here with you — yes, via social media –but also in intangible ways when I meet others in person. At the coffee shop. On a street corner. A clerk at a store. A person sitting next to me in a restaurant. Everywhere. There’s an energy in humanity that I crave and love. It nourishes me. And maybe you too. In fact, I’ll say it’s a must for all of our health and well-being.
Why? Because IRL shows the whole human. Online, we can edit, filter, pause, delete and perform.
In real life, we reveal ourselves in tone, timing, energy, eye contact, silence and presence. For me IRL — I write. I create. I connect. I listen. I talk. I share. I dream. I hug. I engage — even it it’s just a fleeting moment of genuine acknowledgement of another’s existence. That’s where perception gets real. That’s where life gets real. That’s where love gets tried and tested…and becomes real. That’s living.
© Dian Griesel 2026 Perception Dynamics Inc.
