Social media vacay 🏝️
Rule of thumb: when you are thinking of taking a social media break, you should do it.
We typically are so addicted to social media that by the time you start to suspect that soon you will need to reclaim your mind, you are already at that point. Reclaim it.
I have a lot to thank social media for. I understand it well and know how to leverage it. I have achieved some of my dreams because of social media. Even though I have had push notifications disabled for years, it still places a tax on my mind: distraction.
Social media invites itself into our lives. We share, we wonder who has seen what we share, we count likes, we distract ourselves with comments from people who don’t play roles in our lives anymore. We fill our minds with information while we trick ourselves into thinking we are being productive. The information fades fast: first it blurs, then it fades. I could not tell you what I spent my social media time on last weekend. Could you?
The tax on our minds is a tax on creativity, it’s a tax on focus, and it’s a tax on peace. Instead of finding a moment and recognizing it as space for calm, we stumble into idle moments with the question: “ok, what’s next?”
In the past I’ve deactivated social media profiles to reclaim mental space; to break habit. This time I’ve simply announced on Facebook that I’m going to be offline for a while. Same for Instagram. I deleted the Facebook app but kept Messenger. I’ve kept the Instagram app since it doubles as a messaging app and it’s the only way some people have to DM me.
If you think you can’t do it, just do it for 2 days. You can do that. After 2 days, perhaps you feel like extending a bit. See if you can do 3, or 7. All interruptions of habit count. These breaks help you to understand whether you are doing something because you want to, or if it’s something that happens without intention.
For me, it’s time for a break. Time to create space, read books, write, and get creative. Welcome to wander notes.
U-Bahn U2 from Nollendorfplatz to KlosterstraĂźe, Berlin.
