The Good, the Bad, the Ugly

Wellness advocates Maggy Wang and Talitha Tan talk about taking the bad with the good when it comes to personal growth—here’s how and why

- Koyyi Chin

Today, no matter the geographical context, the rise of the ‘wellness influencer’ is at an all-time high ever since ‘self-care’ became the buzzword of 2020. And while the trillion-dollar industry itself dates to the 1980s, it is only recently that we see an influx of content related to mental health.

As such, in an age where social media has evolved from being a mere networking tool to becoming an integral aspect of our lives that nearly dictates everything that we do or perceive, we sit down with lifestyle and wellness advocates Maggy Wang and Talitha Tan to further understand what self-discovery and self-acceptance mean in current times.

Whether it is embracing burnouts, the fear of failure or the pressures to conform to societal ideals, they tell us about their ongoing journeys of personal growth and how it is all right to take things one step at a time.

CENTERING THE SELF

While Talitha Tan had never intended to become a content creator per se, the 25-year-old found herself more entrenched with social media with every post. What started as a passion pursuit for music eventually became synonymous with her social media persona instead of it being her primary goal.

“Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy creating content! I love picking up new sports, learning new things, meeting new people, and cooking too,” says Tan. “But there are times where I feel like I am being forced to do something that’s just isn’t ‘me’, you know? Like there’s this disconnection between myself and the work I produce because it becomes a job that I ‘have’ to do rather than something I ‘want’ to do.”