The Glo Up

On instagram and Twitter, there's been this phrase circling around called "Glo up" also known as "Glow Up". The term refers to a period in your life where you gain confidence, change you appearance, alter your styles, and is frequently used in the context of puberty. ON social media, you can find tons of teenagers posting their before and after pictures to display how they "Glo'd up".

The term "Glo Up" originated from a song by a rapper named Chief Keef where he used the word to describe his rise of wealth and that women need to mature. The word gained popularity through the media and ended up on Urban Dictionary where it was referred to as " a swag and demeanor are so intense that they cannot be changed by negativity".

Glowing up is one of the few slangs in American culture that has a positive aspect. After seeing other people transform from an "ugly duckling" to a "beautiful swan", encourages other to travel down the journey of self care and try to better themselves. Nowadays , everyone wants to glo up. They want to reach their full potential and master a high level of confidence. The good thing about "glowing up" is that it's a never ending process that encourages physical growth through self care.

I also participated in this "glowing up" culture. I would look up "how to glo up" or " how to be confident " videos on youtube. I aspired to be like other confident women that I see on social media who are comfortable with their appearance and style and unbothered by the opinion's of others.

Another positive thing about "glowing up" is that it means different things for different people. For some people, it means working out to reaching their body goals. For some women, it's learning how to do makeup and dress stylish. For some men, it's growing facial hair and being more muscular. Some people even use the term "glo up" to their changes in sexuality or gender.

The term "glo up" is one that promotes self acceptance and self confidence on a society that is very judgmental due to social norms and gender roles. This has been one of the few positive impacts of the media on insecure teenagers by promoting this idea of finding one's self until they are comfortable with who they are. So next time you post a cute selfie, don't forget to use the caption :#gloup.