Lots of people fancy fame and the attention that celebrities get wherever they go, but few people are fully aware of the downsides of being a famous person. Here are some key elements:
Image & reputation
Being well-known, you have an image and a reputation to protect; you cannot do everything or say everything you’d love to say.
Freedom of speech
As mentioned above, famous people often cannot say what they think freely; they have to exercise restraint when speaking as they might have endorsement contracts with brands that severely restrict what they can say or how they can behave.
Privacy
Think about all the paparazzi and journalists who are on your tail wherever you go, in an attempt to catch any tiny mistake of yours.
Imagine the loads of people who’ll come up to you wherever you go to ask for a photo or an autograph…It could seem fun at first, but it’s not at all fun when it becomes your daily reality.
Social debt
You don’t get to go anywhere you want to go.
You might want to stay in a hostel or eat at a cheap restaurant just for the beauty of the experience but won’t be able to do it in fear of making headlines and leaving fans wondering what’s wrong.
Safety
Being famous usually translates into wealth; this makes you and your family a more likely target for kidnapping and other types of harm.
You’ll often need that extra protection and security around you with all the burdens and logistics involved.
Scams
Think about all the false rape cases (or other fictitious accusations) you might be subject to by scam artists seeking a wealthy victim.
The point is, despite being innocent, many famous people find themselves negotiating non-disclosure deals and paying money just to protect their image and reputation.
You’ll wind up consequently reducing your interactions with others as you don’t know who’s there just to harm you.
Emotional & mental drainage
You’re required to be cheerful and put on a happy face all the time; you have to behave in a certain way even if you don’t feel like it (which can be emotionally and mentally taxing).
Restricted life choices
On a random day you may want to dress casually, put on low-key clothes and slippers, and take a stroll through the city but be unable to do it.
You no longer own yourself; your fame owns you.
Now what about the upsides? I can mainly think about two of them:
Money
Fame correlates very well with money. The more famous you are, the more lucrative your pay is, and the better endorsements you get.
Being famous sells pretty well; it’s self-explanatory.
Connections
Being famous means you’ll be regularly meeting affluent, influential people. Your network will be much stronger, and good connections make life quite easier.
Do I now believe that the upsides outweigh the downsides? Provided you’re already well-off financially, I honestly don’t (though this might be a subjective opinion).
The freedom that comes with anonymity is priceless; you can act however you choose, behave the way you want, make your mistakes and grow from them, and nobody cares because you are simply Mr. Nobody.
Nevertheless, there are careers where success and fame correlate strongly, and there is simply no other way. No way on earth are you gonna be a successful actor, musician, or athlete without being famous, at least locally.
These thoughts largely concern those who chase fame itself, often overlooking the pitfalls connected to it as well as the blessings that anonymity permits.
As someone has genuinely put it: “In life, the best spot you wanna be in is rich & anonymous; the worst is poor & famous”.
I couldn’t agree more.
