I feel this. However I also remind myself that social media connections are never as strong as those we've made in real life, and that there have been former influencers who've hung up their hat and lamented that their residual social connections regress to something close to a mean a lot quicker than they would've liked.

Ultimately, the act of winning at social media seems a bit too subordinate to me.

Just an FYI going to an Ivy doesn’t cultivate that network in most cases; you need to come from the right background and have some spending money to keep up with the lifestyle (ski trips, Broadway musicals, etc).

In that way social network is more meritocratic, as many people have come from very humble backgrounds and succeeded with skill and charisma.

It's an opportunity to meet people who have a higher likelihood of successful careers, who in turn also know many successful people. That makes getting meetings and fundraising much easier.

I simply wasn't able to meet those kinds of people as a mid 20s person transferring to a commuter university from a community college.

Existing wealth likely helps, but even the poor kids with scholarships have better outcomes at those universities.