Anyone using social media regularly comes across new words and phrases every single day. This is because the internet is one of the major places in modern times where new terms and concepts are being coined. From Pookie to Netizens, it is the internet where people are making new words to make conversations easier; however, the amount of new words emerging has also made it difficult for people to know the meaning of every single concept. 

Now, one of the latest terms that you might see on the internet is Aura Farming, and if you are questioning what is Aura Farming, then this article will ensure that you have a proper understanding of the term. Here, you will learn the meaning and usage of this new internet obsession. 

Understanding the meaning of “Aura”

To understand what aura farming is, you kind of have to lock in on Gen Alpha’s use of the word aura first. Like, for starters, in Gen Alpha vernacular, aura doesn’t really have a color attached to it, and it’s also not some spiritual, floating-around energy thing. Instead, the word basically becomes a tool to count or measure somebody’s “cool factor.” If someone has a lot of aura, they’re just effortlessly cool, and they give off that kind of coveted social standing without even trying too hard, you know?

What does Aura Farming Mean?

If you come off effortless, people will look at you like you’ve got extra aura. And yes, you can even go out of your way to be effortless, and it still works, most of the time. (Like, wearing the coolest new shoe style in an Insta selfie but then not saying a word about it. ) But if you push that strategy past the comfortable amount, your peers will start noticing, and that’s basically where aura farming comes in.

So if you’re chasing down aura points, flexing a bit too much (showing off), and then somehow turning it into a whole self-parody by flaunting way too much cool, chances are you’re doing aura farming. For us millennials, there are some older, more familiar lines that feel kind of on point: “so desperate,” “such a poser,” and “trying way too hard” are the usual suspects.

The term itself comes straight from the video game world, where “farming” means repeating the same task over and over to build up points or rewards. Think of chopping wood or defeating low-level monsters for hours just to get better armor. Aura farming borrows that idea, but then applies it to the social world. It’s the subtle, and honestly exhausting (IMO), discipline of projecting a carefully selected vibe across every piece of your identity, online and in real life. 

Is Aura Farming always a negative word?

Now here’s the tricky part, because like a lot of Gen Alpha trends there’s also this built-in contradiction. Aura farming isn’t always a bad thing. Actually, it can win you real aura points if you do it successfully on social media and get a massive following as a result of the same. The idea is basically being cool and exuding confidence without trying too much on your part. 

Source: Saferloop