I see a lot of creatives taking time from social media in the new year. I think this is great! The online rapport can wear us out as we tirelessly read between the lines and try to gain context from people we only somewhat know. It’s easy to take things personally. It’s almost too easy.
Last year, I too took a break from social media. I turned off all the notifications, reduced my applications to only what I needed, and I scheduled my posts so that I was still present on a business level. I learned a lot in these months. I learned not only a lot about social media, my relationships, and my business… but I gained a few tidbits of knowledge about myself as well.
I’m a sensitive person. GASP! I know, I know. You are all shocked. It’s important for me to acknowledge this because it plays a huge role in my biggest takeaway from my time away from social media. Yes, it can be an ugly place and yes, people can be malicious for no reason. HOWEVER, social media is not out to get you.
It’s is also what YOU make it.
We have the tools to unfollow and block content. We have the option to limit our time and what we see in our newsfeed. There are tons of ways to protect ourselves from those little stones that hit our feel bads. BUT, we don’t. Instead, we are attached to the idea that if we don’t check things each and every moment that we might miss something. Worse, we feel if we don’t share as much-we may as well be invisible.
Let me tell you a little secret…
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YOU AREN’T.
You are 100% responsible for your presence in your own life. While that might sound kinda silly, it’s true. We wake up every day with the same hours as everyone else. When given the opportunity, will you stay in bed and watch Netflix while scrolling and trolling or get up and go meet a friend for lunch? So often, we choose the comfort zone, which heavily relies on devices and highlight reels.
I totally recommend taking some time from social media to explore how it affects the way you interact in life. It gave me a lot of perspective on who cared most about me and my own productivity. While I am now comfortably back on the social media wagon, my favorite parts of the day are moments like this… when my phone is airplane mode and I am able to write from my heart.
May your unplugged moments be as inspiring as mine have been.