Forget Astronauts And Athletes — Your Kid’s New Role Models Might Be The Most Obnoxious People On The Internet

Today's youth seem obsessed with fast fame and simple wealth flaunted by things like YouTubers, influencers, only fan models, Kardashians.

The digital age is exposed to a pose, prime, filtered and rehearsed artificial world before presenting vulnerable teens as the success of today's version of “instant”; The obvious overnight success has made it more appealing to “impact” than traditional career goals, reducing the previous focus on education, resilience and hard work.

a 2019 Opinion Survey It turns out that the most desirable career path for American children is to do YouTube or “Vlogging.” Since then, this trend is likely to have worsened, setting children for disappointment by unrealistic and counterproductive expectations. In addition to concerns, polls found that Chinese children do not suffer from the same myopia.

We asked them to rank five different jobs in a poll of 3,000 children from three countries.

America and the UK
1. Youtuber/Vlogger
2. teacher
3. Professional athlete
4. Musician
5. Astronaut

China
1. Astronaut
2. teacher
3. Musician
4. Professional athlete
5. Youtuber/Vloggerhttps://t.co/vlvuouedvv pic.twitter.com/xfoa5eucvz

– Frank Luntz (@frankluntz) July 17, 2019

Educators and psychologists are warnings on the downside. It's hard to encourage teens and tweens to shatter their homework and do well in school when their heroes don't seem to have any connection to traditional career paths.

Kim Kardashian's rise of the meteor was based on sex tapes with the rapper. Bhad Bhabie appeared as a troubled teenager with Dr. Phil and is now the only trick to adjusting $57 million a year. YouTube sensation and internet personality Mrbeast has established a net worth of $500 million after sharing a series of videos and challenges on the internet.

Digital media has instilled these “success” stories among teens and tweens, and promote books and research at the bottom of the list.

There are two concerns. Experts say this mentality and excessive exposure to simple money prevent children from pursuing education and promoting careers, often wreaking havoc on their self-esteem, body image and overall perception of reality.

Tamanna Ramesh, founder of Spark Career Services, told Daily Caller that more teenagers than ever “have influencers, YouTubers and celebrities like Kardashian as role models, often bypassing traditional educational paths and professional achievements.” Ramesh said this was to them “discontinue focusing on education, hard work and long-term career goals.”

“When YouTubers and influencers rise to the pinnacle of social ladder, our kids now see fame as an accessible and concrete goal,” she said.

“These numbers often portray an immediate, satisfying lifestyle and present a distorted picture of success. The problem is that many young people miss the reality behind these careers.

Continuous exposure to celebrities and influencers on only fans, Instagram and other media “can set unrealistic financial and beauty standards,” Ramesh said. (Related: More girls than ever are caught up in the only fan trap, but there's a way out)

Adding to this, “depicting perfection, wealth and luxury can generate feelings of inadequacy and low self-esteem among young audiences.”

Educator Angela Hudgens It reflected the same concerns about simple temptations surrounding our youth.

“Leave it alone, it could be a future for a generation obsessed with instant fame, not a real success. An obsession with influencers speaks of impossible purpose and ensures that children are not prepared for real-world experiences,” she told the Daily Caller.

Children do not respect teachers, community workers, or teachers and community workers who have achieved success through educational instruments.

“Social media algorithms prefer sensation and fame over content and foster an entertainment-centric culture. Teens are more related to influencers than traditional role models,” Hudgens said.

Psychologist Dr. Kiki Ramsey said: Success on platforms like YouTube is possible, but it is rare and often requires the skills, discipline and resilience that education develops. ”

A lack of such skills leads to young people losing their abilities.

“Social media can complement learning, but it should not replace basic growth,” Ramsey told Daily Coleler.

Dr. Hezekiah Herrera, K-12 education specialist in San Diego, California, emphasized the importance of educating young people to avoid being fooled by the overly-made lifestyles they see online.

“Most influencers don't post about the labor, struggle, or failure needed to achieve a level of success,” Herrera told the Daily Caller.

“Instead, we are presented with a dangerously fascinating version of incomplete paintings, ensuring that teens recognize effort and education as outdated.”

This trend also poses risks to vulnerable viewers, which can easily begin to form false and dangerous perceptions of themselves and the world they live in.

Ashley Penathe National Executive Director of Mission Connection Healthcare agreed that it is harmful for teens to grow up believing that they can become the “next big thing” on YouTube/social media rather than applying it to schools.

“It creates a disconnect between effort and reward,” Peña told Daily Courner.

“I have worked with teens who feel disillusioned when online ventures aren't making immediate success. The key is to balance their dreams. Skills, education and tenacity are what brings lasting success, regardless of platform.”

Immediate fame and excess exposure to property “creates a sense of qualification and immediate success that undermines the importance of hard work, patience and tenacity,” Ramesh said.

“Teens are taught to expect immediate rewards without developing the skills needed to maintain long-term success in the real world.”

The world of social media and influencers forms part of our culture and forces us to reassess the approach we take with impressive young people.

Young influencers are constantly showing you a lifestyle filled with millions of dollar mansions, supercars, designer labels and expensive habits. Aesthetics are troublesome. Filters and editing techniques combined with plastic surgery and filler normalization depict unrealistic norms of beauty.

“This mentality erodes motivations to learn critical thinking, creativity and discipline. The skills they need in the future are built more than the fleeting trends at this point,” Herrera said.

“Influencers project, filter, surgically polished, and with a gorgeous lifestyle that is difficult to identify from reality, both adults and even us.”

Most people will agree that the images painted by the majority of celebrities and influencers who are attracting the attention of today's youth do not project a true, concrete image. The standards of lifestyle and beauty of Kardashian and only fan models are unattainable, and the body image goals that young people perceive are based on awkward, filtered, highly edited images that attack them every time they click on a mobile phone. If our kids idolize fictional characters, how do they set realistic goals that they can achieve?

“We are at a critical crossroads. We need to coordinate our acceptance of the possibilities of the digital age while reaffirming the value of education, resilience and real-world applications,” Herrera states.

“On the other hand, it's exciting to see young people create platforms where they can share their passions, build communities and even generate significant incomes. But like anything, there are challenges,” Ramsey said.

“The future of our children depends on how we guide them in navigating this space. We need to teach them balance – how to use social media as a tool rather than a measure of self-worth.”

“Every serious country wants to turn young people into builders” – @traestephens

“Now in America, kids want to be influencers rather than astronauts. We should wonder what we are doing as a society.”

“The kids who want to be inventors pass through college and become McKinsey… pic.twitter.com/wavwelgyh0

– tbpn (@tbpn) March 16, 2025

“The future of our children is shaped by what we model and prioritize.” Ramesh told the daily callers.

“Social media stays here, but we can teach children to see it as a tool, not identity. Focusing on resilience, critical thinking and building healthy self-awareness, children are better equipped to navigate a world full of influencers,” Peña said.

“We need to celebrate role models who embody values ​​like patience, kindness, and credibility. Emphasizing their stories in schools, families and media can inspire healthier perspectives,” she told daily callers.

Ramsey believes it is important to minimize the appeal of “easy life.”

“We need to teach young people the value of effort, purpose and patience. Conversations about success should focus on the journey, not just on the outcome,” Ramsey told Daily Coller.

“The future of our children depends on how we guide them in navigating this space. We need to teach them balance. We use social media as a tool rather than a measure of self-worth.”

The dangers hidden behind these misconceptions are very real and can “adfashion mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression and physical abnormalities,” Herrera said.

“These portrayals convey misguided messages to young people. Perfect value and perfection are merely measures of self-worth that are not true.”

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Herrera deals with the influence of fan fame alone, “to commercialize elements of fame and physical appearance, a new layer of nuance – a new layer of nuance – can send potentially harmful messages to Tweean and teens about self-worth that reside on their ability to commercialize images.” (Related: Women find the hard way that only fans will never be happy)

Influencers and only models for success with filtered, exploitative content should not be underestimated.

“Exposure to such numbers is related to low self-esteem, poor physical imagery and misguided financial standards,” Hudgens told Daily Caller.

“Teens may feel compelled to achieve unrealistic goals.”

Looking at only stars and celebrities like the Kardashians can have a big impact, especially on young people,” says Ramsey.

“It distorts their understanding of success and makes them appear to be tied only to their appearance and material possessions. This can lead to feelings of inadequacy, low self-esteem and even unhealthy behavior as they try to measure these unrealistic ideals.”