Social Media is where fortunes are made overnight, waistlines shrink by morning, and everyone’s skin glows under 5 minutes. Scroll for five minutes and you’ll encounter an endless parade of “before-and-after” transformations, “financial freedom” success stories, and “one simple trick” videos promising to make you rich, slim, and enlightened by the end of the week.
What prompted me to write on this subject, is that the Festival of Lights, Deepavali has just gone by. I was amused (actually shocked) to see reels on the absolutely ludicrous claims to get rich by tomorrow morning – by doing a 1-minute ritual, chant 1 mantra, light a diya with certain ingredients from our kitchen, write a number on our hand and the list goes on and on. And these influencers have millions of followers. I really want to meet one such person who did any of the above and became a millionaire in 24 hours.
The Mirage of Instant Wealth
Let’s start with money, the most common social media fantasy. The “get-rich-quick” genre on Social Media is thriving. Influencers in designer sneakers pose beside rented Lamborghinis, urging followers to “escape the 9-to-5” through crypto trading, or passive income schemes. Their captions promise financial freedom if you just “believe in yourself” and, of course, “click the link in bio.”
The formula is always the same: personal story, emotional hook, then a call to action. “I was broke last year, and now I earn six figures a month!” they proclaim, conveniently forgetting to mention their sponsorship deals, wealthy backers, or the thousands they spent on digital ads. What’s more alarming is how convincing these narratives appear. The aesthetics—luxury cars, beach vacations, motivational quotes—create a powerful illusion of credibility.
Real wealth, of course, comes from sustained effort, discipline, and learning from failure—qualities that rarely fit into a 30-second reel. But who wants to hear about compound interest or five-year savings plans when they can imagine becoming a millionaire before next Monday?
The Fantasy of Overnight Transformation
Equally pervasive—and perhaps more dangerous—are the promises of “getting slim overnight.” Social Media is saturated with diet hacks, detox teas, miracle pills, and “fat-melting” workouts that claim to deliver visible results within days. Influencers flaunt impossibly toned bodies while promoting supplements they likely never use, backed by dubious “scientific” claims and Photoshop filters.
The culture of instant gratification has turned wellness into performance. Instead of focusing on long-term health, followers are enticed by quick fixes that often harm more than they help. Detox teas, for instance, are little more than laxatives wrapped in pastel packaging. Crash diets and extreme workout challenges may yield temporary changes but wreak havoc on metabolism and mental health and muscle strain.
Behind every such post is often a cocktail of genetics, good lighting, and professional editing—yet millions of users internalize these images as attainable. The result? An epidemic of body dissatisfaction, eating disorders, and burnout disguised as “motivation.” In an era defined by hustle culture and body obsession, Social Media has become the modern marketplace of dreams and it preys on insecurity, impatience, and the universal human desire for shortcuts
Why We Keep Believing
If these claims are so absurd, why do so many intelligent people fall for them? The answer lies in psychology. Social Media is designed to trigger emotional responses—envy, aspiration, hope. Each scroll activates a dopamine hit, making us crave more of what we see. In moments of vulnerability—financial stress, body image struggles, loneliness—we are most susceptible to the promise of instant transformation.
Moreover, social proof plays a huge role. When a post garners thousands of likes and comments, it creates the illusion of legitimacy. Add a few “before-and-after” testimonials and our brains starts to believe that, If it worked for them, maybe it can work for me.
A Call for Reality
It’s not all doom and deception. Social Media when used wisely, can also be a space for education, authenticity, and positive change. Many credible creators now advocate for financial literacy over fantasy and promote realistic fitness goals rather than false perfection. The challenge is to train ourselves to pause before double-tapping on a promise that sounds too good to be true.
In the end, the secret to success—whether financial or physical—remains unglamorous. The only “instant” result worth striving for is the instant you decide to stop believing in illusions and start investing in reality.
