Retreat From Social Media: Why It’s the Best Thing For You
To minimalize distractions, learn to do without.
Even in practicing minimalism, overwhelm doesn’t come from physical things alone. Whether it’s being at a crowded event or staring at a long list of to-dos, a feeling of overload can happen anywhere. It can even come from the screens we watch every day.
An Improvised Experiment
So I’ve experimented with a few tools and tricks, all of which I feel in the long run will make me a better person and a better writer. Here’s why I suggest anybody take a minimalist approach to social media:
1. It’s designed to be addicting.
That alone should alarm anybody. The sensation of scrolling is addictive. The longer you stay on the site, the more opportunities the company has to show ads. Who wants to be bombarded with ads all the time? We’re trying to reduce clutter, and being enticed by promotions is counter-intuitive to that.
2. FOMO is reduced or eliminated.
If people are up to something or want me to know about an event, they can text me. And then I can decide whether or not I want to join them. I also feared not being in the loop with TV shows and writer groups, so much that I’d spend more time watching said shows or chatting in said groups than actually writing! Again, that’s counter-productive. More energy can be put into making and creating, rather than kicking it every weekend or going out for drinks.
3. It’s one less thing to manage and worry over.
For a period of time, anyway. Social media is at it’s best when it’s used to stay in touch with people or to share and promote what you do or create. Beyond that, it’s a time sucker. I try to post or tweet when I have a significant update or something of value I think is worth sharing, and not much else. I don’t worry about followers and likes, because its an extra, artificial layer of stress I don’t need. Granted, if you do make something that people want, you do want to let people know that you’re still at it, and not leave them in the dark.
4. You learn what networks are best for you.
You don’t need to be on every platform, there’s a strong argument for not having any social media accounts. But in the world we live in, sometimes that’s not always possible. And so I’d challenge anyone to take a month away from all social sites, see which ones are vital to you and your brand (not every company needs Twitter, and not all business people need LinkedIn), and par them down.
How To Break Away
1. Move all your social media to the next screen. This is the first and most straightforward way to start, but it’s not a long-term fix. Adding the extra step of swiping might stall you from continuing the habit.
2. Reduce time spent on the sites. Whether it’s for ten minutes or several hours, you have to note the difference in how you feel when not using it. Use the block of time to do anything else.
3. Go for a day without social media. Then a few days. Then weeks. Try a month. Some people would say that’s too much, but before the 2000s we figured out how to survive just fine without any of it. So all you’re doing is going back in time.
4. Document the journey. I found a cool Minimalist Journaling practice that I’ve tried out for a week so far, and it’s been very motivating for me. I want to fill the squares with text and symbols, and if they are blank, I know I need to try harder the next day.
5. Come back only if you feel you want/need to. There did come the point where I needed to let people know I was working on something (a fiction novel), and I wanted to chat with fellow writers about it. That time away from social media did give me a perspective on how to use it as the tool that it is, not as something I must have.
I’m grateful for my time away, even if it meant that I lost a following, or that I was missing out on some event or news. Part of minimalism is learning what is truly necessary, and weeding out what isn’t. Next time I will announce it though because I feel most people do need to know that you aren’t stepping away because of your quitting. You step away to learn and do better.
